Yesterday Twinge and the OP group teamed up for a gender study on Twitch. It answered the big question: is it easier to be a woman on Twitch? In the assessment they backed up their facts with Twinge, a website that tracks broadcaster stats, and allows the viewer to rate their favorite streamers channels.
We spoke to Justin Malara, founder of Twinge about why he created his website and why you should be using it if you are a broadcaster and viewer of Twitch.
Interview by: Chris
Images by: Twinge
Streamer News: So if you could please introduce yourself and explain what Twinge is?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]My name is Justin Malara, I created Twinge.tv. Twinge is a site that allows Twitch viewers to rate and discover new channels, and gives broadcasters the ability track channel growth and gather insight about what makes their streams successful.
[/su_note]Streamer News: How did you come up with the idea? Do you stream yourself? or have been a fan of Twitch?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]I’m not a streamer myself, but I am an avid viewer. The original concept for Twinge stemmed from frustrations that I personally had with Twitch’s directory and VOD system. I wanted to broaden my viewership, but found it incredibly difficult to discover new channels outside of the top 100 that are currently live. I also found browsing past broadcasts (VODs) to be a struggle, there was really no resource that allowed me to browse and filter VODs by the games that were played during the broadcast. Once I started pulling together the pieces for Twinge, I quickly realized there was a big opportunity to track channel growth and statistics with the data I’d gathered.
[/su_note]Streamer News: If I am a new or seasoned broadcaster how can Twinge help my stream?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]There are a lot of ways that broadcasters at any level can benefit from Twinge. One very important thing that Twinge provides channels, is a means of existing when offline. Advertising your channel is difficult when new faces are greeted only by an “I’m offline” message. Twinge displays your most viewed, recent vod and information that can convince the viewer that your channel is worth checking out.
Twinge also provides insight that can help you gauge the success of your channel. You can look at a single stream’s success, or even portions within that stream. You can determine what games draw the biggest, most consistent viewership. You can track your overall growth, to determine if your channel is headed in the right direction. You can even compare your stats to similar channels in your timeslot.
[/su_note]Streamer News: So if I have a channel on Twitch and I have a steady following over the span of a year, I can use Twinge for possible sponsors that are interested in my stream with the data Twinge creates?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]I think it can definitely give you leverage. It provides potential sponsors with a much broader picture of where your channel stands globally on Twitch. When these guys head into their meetings, the numbers can go a long way in selling your channel through to the rest of their brand.
[/su_note]Streamer News: I agree, at the end of the day numbers do not lie. If I am new to Twinge, what is the first thing I should be looking for, from a broadcaster standpoint and a viewer standpoint?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]As a broadcaster, you should definitely dive into your numbers. You might be surprised to see how they are responding to your broadcasts. It can help you determine what’s working, what’s not, what to stream and when. The biggest service that Twinge can provide a broadcaster, in my opinion, is assisting you in really honing in on the perfect broadcasting style for your channel.
As a viewer, I suggest checking out your favorite broadcasters. Reviews can go a long way in supporting their channel and constructive criticism is like ‘cheat mode.’ Knowing exactly what you need to do to better support your viewers can be a great asset. If you’re looking for new channels, I suggest heading to the ‘Browse’ page. You’d be surprised how many great channels I’ve found, that otherwise I would have never known about.
[/su_note]Streamer News: So whether you are a fan of Twitch or a broadcaster, Twinge is the one stop shop for all the information you are looking for from the viewer point of view and broadcaster as well.
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Absolutely. Twinge is a tool that allows users to better navigate and understand Twitch. Thats actually sort of the story behind the name, a twinge being a more exaggerated twitch.
[/su_note]Streamer News: Are there any new features you plan on implementing in the future for Twinge? Like launching new categories or tagging or specific things for viewers to search through?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]I’m excited to be launching an opt in system, later this month, that will allow streams with < 15 viewers to be tracked. There are improvements to the growth pages coming soon that will help to provide more actionable insight. I’m also currently in the process of integrating with GiantBomb’s API, to categorize channels by the games they play. [/su_note]
Streamer News: That will be a great feature for new and current Twitch viewers who are looking for genre specific games. If they don’t know what to watch one night or their favorite streamer isn’t on, searching this way makes it way easier for them.
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Definitely, I’m hoping it can eventually lead to channel suggestions based on a user’s tastes.
[/su_note]Streamer News: At this point you’ve built a great tool that can be very useful for broadcasters and viewers of the Twitch community, we stumbled across it when we first started Streamer News and it helped us discover other Twitch streamers that aren’t top tier, but still provide great entertainment.
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Thank you very much! Thats exactly how I hoped Twinge could contribute the community. I’m happy to hear it’s been useful in helping you discover new channels.
[/su_note]
