What's all the buzz about live streams? In this article, we’ll explore why YouTube loves streams so much, how they can get you millions of views (without a host), and whether a live stream or 24/7 stream works better if you want to improve your channel metrics.
Is It True That YouTube Loves Streams More Than Regular Videos?
YouTube's algorithms prefer streams to other videos, which is why they end up in recommendations more often. The reason is simple: YouTube wants viewers to spend as much time on the platform as possible and wants them to interact with the content while watching. Streams meet these two goals.
‘Why is this so important?’ you may ask. Well, 75% of all views on YouTube are generated from recommendations. In other words, this section is key to attracting new views and audiences.
But that’s far from all of the advantages of streaming. They also help you to:
- Improve channel metrics. If you do everything right, you’ll improve audience retention, CTR, watch time, and average view time.
- Achieve maximum results with minimum effort. No need to spend eternity creating a concept for the video or doing post-production. When launching a live stream, you can rely on improvisation and interaction with viewers. Meanwhile, your trusted existing content is all you need for a 24/7 stream.
- Get additional income. Streams create monetization opportunities that regular videos don’t. For example, you can use SuperChat for fundraising, earn with Super Stickers or use the Membership function.
Streams are a win-win option when you want to improve channel metrics. Yet many creators approach them warily because streams are often associated with a complex, labor-consuming process that requires advanced tools, powerful hardware, and impressive technical skills.
This is true — but only partially. The traditional live stream has an alternative in the form of continuous streams that require less effort and provide almost the same results as a regular stream.
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A 24/7 Stream VS a live stream: Which One Should I Launch?
First and foremost, continuous streams are a great way to find a new use for your existing content. The chosen video just plays continuously on YouTube until you stop the stream. It’ll take less time and effort than a live stream would. Meanwhile, you get just as many views, subscribers, and income.
Here’s how 24/7 streams differ from lives:
- Content. To launch a live, you need to create new content. But you only need an existing video to launch a continuous stream. Pick a video, set up a stream, and you’re ready to go!
- Creator’s involvement. A live requires your constant presence. After all, you’re the host, you’re communicating with the viewers, and you solve any technical issues. During a 24/7 stream, you need to reply to the comments at most.
- Equipment. Launching a live requires a strong PC and internet connection. To launch a 24/7 stream, you can use any device with internet access to get the stream started.
- The number of streams. It’s impossible to launch several simultaneous lives. But you can launch several concurrent 24/7 streams. Select different topics suitable for various audiences and get numerous traffic sources all at once.
- Multiplatform potential. You can only launch a live stream on one platform. But you can launch a continuous stream simultaneously on a few platforms .
- Versatility. Live streams are not suitable for all video categories due to their format that requires constant interaction with the audience and the presence of the host. 24/7 streams, however, are universal.
That said, abandoning lives and switching to continuous streams for good is definitely not an option. After all, lives have the unique advantage of the creator’s live presence and real-time communication with the audience.
On the other hand, there are cases when you should definitely choose a 24/7 stream. For example, when:
- You need to avoid a drop in traffic. Especially if you don’t have an opportunity to create new content right now, either live streams or regular videos. That’s when existing videos can come to the rescue!
- You want to improve channel metrics and attract viewers. If you need to quickly achieve progress, 24/7 streams are the way to go! They’ll help you rapidly improve watch time, viewership, number of subscribers, CPM, and increase income. You’ll also be able to monetize your existing videos again.
- You’d like to unite your serial video content. Let’s say some of your videos are connected or united under one big topic. This is an excellent opportunity to merge them into a continuous stream and provide your viewers with a reason to stay on the channel a bit longer.
We have already shared advice to help creators launch streams more effectively during our ‘Live Streams on YouTube: Advanced Tool for Channel Growth’ meetup. You can watch the recording here.
How to Launch a Continuous Stream?
There are several options. First, you can use a streaming program called OBS Studio, but that will require certain technical skills, powerful hardware, and a reliable internet connection for an interrupted stream.
There is also a second option: using a continuous streaming service that allows you to start a stream using a remote server, thus, avoiding unnecessary difficulties.
For example, AIR Media-Tech partners use Gyre streaming service. All they have to do is register and get access to their private server, upload videos to the server, create a stream on YouTube, and direct the stream to the platform with a simple click.
After the stream is launched, neither powerful hardware nor your direct involvement is needed. You can even turn your PC off. However, you should still relaunch the stream every three days to maximize its efficiency.
You can use a cloud server to launch several continuous streams at once. YouTube allows up to 8 simultaneous streams, which is a great way to attract new viewers.
Real-Life Cases of Continuous Streaming
The channel performance of creators who launch continuous streams speaks for itself. For example, 44 of our partners started using the Gyre streaming service and got 108,620,326 views in just 1 month. Furthermore, their income from streams accounted for 20% of general revenue.
Let’s use our partner Time4PlayGames as an example. While his videos got into recommendations 3,485,347 times without 24/7 streams, the number grew to 4,804,624 with them.
The single stream’s reach was more than 1.2 million. Meanwhile, the number of views on the stream neared the 6000 hours mark.
You can use a free 7-day trial to test Gyre’s effectiveness. Go to Gyre or contact us here, and we’ll make your continuous streams seamless.
Is Using Continuous Streams Safe?
Some creators approach streaming services cautiously, fearing that YouTube might consider such streams as spam. However, many top-tier bloggers and official platform partners have already been using continuous streams for a while to improve channel metrics.
Not only does YouTube approve streams, they encourage them. That’s why you have nothing to be afraid of as long as you’re using a trusted and reliable service. Just make sure you’re playing by the rules without trying to trick algorithms or wind up the views. Think about Gyre: they work in full compliance with YouTube policies, and you don’t have to worry about breaking any rules when using them.
But What if Channel Metrics Remain the Same?
There can be several reasons for metrics not improving. Perhaps you chose the wrong strategy such as abandoning new content creation and focusing solely on 24/7 streams. Or maybe the competition online is too strong at the moment. Sometimes, when stream metrics are discouraging, your best option is to simply stop and relaunch later. You may even need to do that a couple of times before getting results.
However, if you did everything right, you just have to wait for your views and CPM to start growing — as in the case of our partners who use Gyre.
For example, the channel of our partners Heidi & Zidane got 5,716,281 views during the month when they didn’t use 24/7 streams. However, the figures grew up to 7,529,110 during the next month, when they started launching continuous streams.
The number of recommendations during that month was 5,379,420 (compared with 4,292,496 during the previous month). The figure increased by one million, while the monthly income grew from $446.85 to $618.5.
Another great example is our partner DenLionTV. The creator’s income increased by $14,000 just in the first month after launching streams — from $43,182,73 to $57,541,89. The number of views grew by 50 million (from 96,939,915 to 148,969,521), while the average watch time and impressions doubled. The channel also got 100,000 new subscribers. But maybe the best thing is that they started to get onto recommendations twice as often.
And we’re just talking about our partners here. Thousands of creators worldwide use Gyre to improve their channel metrics.
You can learn more about continuous streams and use the free trial by going to Gyre. And if you need help launching streams or choosing the most effective growth strategy, just contact us here.
While you’re busy creating unique content, AIR Media-Tech is ready to take care of the rest. Let’s discover new opportunities for your existing content together!
