Last Updated on 01/02/2023 by Dean
This is a comprehensive guide on how to get sponsored on Twitch even if you are a smaller streamer.
π° This article is part of our how to make money series.
Requirements to get Sponsored on Twitch
Let’s face it, not every streamer has the reach required to get a brand to sponsor their Twitch stream.
In fact, most small streamers aren’t going to get sponsored.
In order to get sponsored, you’ll need to have at least 50 – 100 concurrent viewers whenever you go live.
I know that might be disappointing to some of you, but you have to be realistic.
After all, a sponsor isn’t going to make any money out of a partnership if you don’t have a certain audience size.
But don’t fret!
You can still get sponsorship as a small Twitch streamer with less than 50 average viewers.
These kinds of sponsorship are called Affiliate Sponsorships and we have an entire article dedicated towards them.
π Read more on Affiliate Sponsorships
How to Get Gaming Sponsors on Twitch
[skip to How to Find Sponsors]
π Stream Regularly and on a Consistent Schedule
Consistent streaming schedules are super important. They are not just essential to a streamers growth, they are also detrimental to your ability to get sponsored.
If you don’t stream regularly, brands won’t even consider you sponsoring you.
After all, they are looking to make money. And they can only do so if you stream regularly.
π Keep your Streams High Quality
Your stream should be as professional as possible if you’re looking to bring in sponsors.
With that I mean you should have a good quality microphone, a decent facecam, and a clean background.
Please don’t stream while your room is awfully messy…
Another important element is your Twitch username. Your Twitch username should be as short and memorable as possible.
For more info, check out our article on how to pick a professional Twitch username.
Additionally, your streams should flow well and not contain any dead or boring moments.
A great way to prevent a bad stream flow is to plan out your stream beforehand.
This is a trick that many top-tier streamers use to make sure their stream runs smoothly and is always highly entertaining.
For example, popular Twitch streamer Ludwig is known for saying that he oftentimes spends more time planning his streams than actually streaming.
π Be Established on Other Platforms
Your primary audience can be from Twitch but you should at least have some presence on platforms such as YouTube and Twitter.
And preferably, you’ll have the same brand name on those platforms.
π Network with Other Streamers
Networking is one of the best if not the best ways to grow on Twitch.
While collaborating with other streamers isn’t exactly going to get you sponsored in a direct way, it is going to increase your exposure by a lot.
For example, many Twitch streamers saw some insane growth in 2020 thanks to Among Us, a social interaction game that allowed up to 10 streamers to collab with each other.
Some of the streamers who benefitted from these mass collaboration lobbies are:
Just to name a few.
Some of these streamers saw their audience increase with thousands of new viewers almost overnight.
Games such as Among Us have changed the way Twitch streamers can grow through colloboration and small streamers especially should use that to their advantage.
If you’re not sure how you can find other Twitch streamers to collab with, you can check out our article dedicated to networking.
π Read more on collaborating with Twitch streamers
You can also check out our article on Twitch Communities which help you find small streamer groups on Discord, Reddit, and Facebook.
π Don’t Expect to Get Sponsored Right Away
Getting sponsored is not something that is going to happen overnight.
Especially if you’re just waiting for them to come to you. It’s going to take a while.
But even if you decide to take the matter into your own hands, you should go in expecting quite a few rejection letters depending on your following on Twitch.
While it is possible to get sponsored as a small streamer, it’s obviously quite a bit harder.
Don’t let it get to you and remain patient!
In the meantime, you can always sign up for Affiliate Sponsorships or find others ways to make money such as selling your own streamer merch.
Where to Look for Sponsors
π Use Powerspike
Powerspike is a free platform that you can sign up for as a Twitch streamer with an established audience.
Powerspike is basically sponsorships made easy, or at least, easier.
If you get accepted to their platform, you’ll be matched with brands that fit your niche and audience.
Powerspike doesn’t really reveal what they consider an established audience, so you should just shoot your shot because again, it’s free.
π Use Athlane
If Powerspike doesn’t work out, there’s another brand-influencer matching platform on the market called Athlane.
Just like Powerspike, Athlane is a platform that brings brands and streamers together.
This can be a good way to find sponsorships without having to go through too much effort.
π Find Sponsors at Events
Going to streaming and e-sports events can be hugely beneficial if you know how to network well.
Not only can it help you meet other streamers, but these events can also help you get in touch with brands that could potentially become your sponsors.
Conventions always have a ton of brands of all sizes that attend and try to get some of that real-life exposure.
It’s your job as a streamer to make a good impression on these brands while you’re attending events.
When approaching a potential future sponsor, you should appear both passionate and charismatic.
But you should also know exactly what you’re going to say to them.
If you’ve never heard of an elevator pitch, it’s about time you do.
A well-rehearsed elevator pitch can help you get your proposal out in minimal time.
This way, you are not wasting anyone’s time and at the same time, you’re also appearing confident and professional!
Some things you should include in your elevator pitch are:
- What your niche entails
- Your audience size
- How often your stream
- What YOU can do (as an influencer) FOR THEM
Especially that last one is important. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the business world it’s that everyone is looking to get ahead.
And if you want collaboration to work out, you need to have an idea of what you can bring to the table.
Why should they sponsor you?
Of course, this kind of in-your-face approach of proposing to brands IRL isn’t for everyone and you’ll be just fine if you only stick to online sponsor-seeking!
List of Twitch Gaming Sponsors
Paid Sponsorships
Affiliate Sponsorships
How to Send a Sponsor Proposal
π How to Contact Sponsors
When contacting sponsors, you want to keep it as professional as possible.
While you might feel urged to ‘DM’ a company, that is most likely not the best way to get their attention.
First of all, DM’s don’t come off as professional.
But aside from that, brands oftentimes have so many DM requests they might never even find your sponsorship proposal.
For the best type of result, you’ll want to contact via email if possible.
Many brands have a collaboration email where you can send your sponsorship proposals.
If they have such an email, you are most likely to find it at the footer of their website.
Otherwise, you can just contact them through whatever email is listed on their contact us page.
Some brands will also have a collaboration page to make it easier for influencers to apply for sponsorships.
You can find such a page with a simple Google query such as ‘Corsair + Sponsorship’ for example.
π Show Passion
One thing you must realize when sending sponsorship requests is that you’re not the only person doing it.
Brands are dealing with these types of requests every single day.
So a simple formal message isn’t going to make you stand out.
What I’m trying to say here is don’t sound robotic.
Your language should make it clear you are passionate about your business.
π Make it Personal
You could just copy/paste your proposal and send it to hundreds of brands.
That way, this grueling process of seeking sponsors will be over in a minute and who knows, one might stick!
…Please don’t do that.
I get hundreds of such emails every single day and I’m not even a brand.
Do you know what happens to them? They go unread and go straight in the trash.
Brands will easily sniff out the copy/pastes from genuine requests.
When sending out sponsorship proposals, make sure that they are tailored towards whatever brand you are sending them towards.
π What can YOU do FOR THEM?
One quick way to increase the appeal of your proposal is to explain why you will bring value to the table.
After all, this is a partnership we are talking about.
And partnerships are mutually beneficial.
If you can’t bring value to them, they won’t sponsor you.
Simple as that.
It’s up to you to convince them that you can.
Point them in the right direction! Tell them what you can do for them and you will stand out from all the other proposals.
π Email Format
Your request should be formatted in the following way:
1. Greet the brand properly.
A nice, polite greeting goes a long way.
Don’t assume any genders.
2. Who are you?
Introduce yourself with your real name and your Twitch username.
3. Introduce your stream/business
Next, you’ll want to give a short explanation of your stream and your community.
4. Details of your audience
Here you’ll state the size of your audience, demographics, and other useful information.
5. What can you do for them?
Explain how your audience can be beneficial towards their business.
6. Explain what you’re looking for
This is where you show interest in their brand and explain what kind of partnership you are looking for.
7. Thank the brand properly
Finish the proposal by thanking them for their time.
π Sponsor Proposal Template
Dear Sir/Madam,
My name is [your name] and I stream on Twitch under the handle [Twitch username].
The reason I’m sending you this email is that I’m looking for a potential partnership between my brand and yours. I believe such a partnership would be mutually beneficial.
[Introduce your stream]
Every weekday from 5-11 PM EST I stream Fortnite to a loyal viewership of 300+. Afterwards, I post highlights of my stream to my YouTube channel which reaches over 70,000 people every month.
Due to my novel playstyle of mixing comedy with professional gameplay, my little community is growing bigger and bigger each day.
The majority of my audience consists of hardcore Fortnite enthusiasts in their late teens. These are the type of people that could benefit immensely from your products to take them to the next level.
I’ve found that using the latest version of your gaming keyboard in combination with your mouse has greatly improved my overall skill level.
A partnership with your brand would allow me to promote your products to my fans who often inquire about the peripherals I use to dominate every round I play.
Thank you for taking the time to read through this email.
I hope to hear back from you soon. You can reach me at [your email] or call me at [your phone number].
[your name], [your Twitch name]
How to Negotiate and Sign a Streaming Sponsorship Contract
Once you’ve found a brand that is interested in sponsoring your Twitch stream, you’ll have to negetiate the terms of the agreement.
Your leverage in this negotiation, will depend on the size of your audience.
As a smaller streamer you will often get send an Affiliate Agreement as a reply to a proposal.
Be sure to read thorougly read through this agreement as it may contain some fine print that you might not agree with.
As a bigger streamer, you might be asked to hop on a call to discuss the terms.
It’s important that you come to such a meeting prepared.
Be prepared to answer question such as what your desired pay would look like.
This is often a tough question to answer if this is your first sponsorship so be sure to know your worth so you won’t have to sell yourself short.
If you’re unsure how much you should be getting paid, you can ask other streamers with a similar audience size.
Once the negotiation is over, you’ll be required to sign a contract.
You should read this contract thorougly.
You might benefit from having a partner or family member read your contract as well to ensure you didn’t miss anything important.
A contract can often have harsh terms such as exclusivity and multiple year commitments.
You want to be sure that you aren’t signing something that you will regret later on or will hold you back.
Types of Sponsors on Twitch
When it comes to Twitch Sponsorships, there are two main types of sponsors.
Affiliate Sponsors and Paid Sponsors.
Affiliate Sponsorships pay streamers based on referals.
Paid Sponsorships pay streamers regardless of referals.
The latter is much more exclusive than the former.
In fact, some Affiliate Sponsorships will accept streamers of any size.
So if you’re a smaller streamer, you might not qualify for a Paid Sponsorship persΓ© but there are a definitely ways for you to make extra money through Affiliate Sponsorships.
Paid Sponsors are known to give streamers free products and pay them out a salary.
Sometimes, streamers will even get products with their branding on it.
For example EX-CS:GO pro Shroud has an exclusive partnership with Logitech and has a keyboard and mouse with his branding on it.
Through this sponsorship, Shroud likely receives a nice salary, royalties and lots of free stuff.
π Read more on Affiliate Sponsorships
FAQ
π Can Small Streamers get Sponsorships?
Small streamers can definitely get sponsored on Twitch.
But you have to be realistic about what you expect out of a sponsorship.
Someone with less than 100 viewers isn’t going to acquire a paid sponsorship from a big brand.
However, these types of streamers can get Affiliate Sponsorships which will pay them commissions based on purchases.
π How Many Followers do you Need on Twitch to Get Sponsored?
Depending on the type of sponsorship, you can get sponsored on Twitch with as little as 1,000 followers.
But if you’re looking for a paid sponsorship specifically, you are looking at more prominent figures such as 100,000 followers and up.
π Can you get Sponsored as a Twitch Affiliate?
Plenty of Twitch Affiliates have acquired Affiliate Sponsorships.
These type of sponsors pay out commissions based on the streamers’ referals.