💰 TikTok's Rule-Bending 6-Figure Streamer - Live Success #5

Hey, it’s Harry.

As you read this I am nearing the end of a two-week trip to the Great Smoky Mountains 🐻. Today’s edition was written at the end of April so I hope this is all still relevant!

Anyway, have I missed anything important while I’ve been away? Hit reply and let me know.

Today we are covering:

• 📈 How Ben Toye makes 6 figures per year despite a very questionable streaming strategy.

• 🐢 My top tips for reducing lag in TikTok LIVE Studio.

• 🧙‍♂️ Getting more sponsorships.

• 🎶 A simple way to let viewers control your music.

🔴 The 6-Figure Rule Bender

On any other streaming platform, Ben Toye would be banned.

The first time I came across his live stream I was shocked. He seemed like every other phone streamer: sitting in his chair just talking to chat. Except he was getting hundreds of coins per minute from gifters.

Using TikFinity, I recorded the total amount of coins Ben received during a 1 hour period. He received $246. 🤯 

Ben’s Strategy is Simple

He has effectively found a legal way of selling followers.

1. Viewers send gifts.

2. Ben tells his 1,000-3,000 viewers to “get the top gifters”. He never says the word “follow”.

3. The top gifters gain followers.

The Grey Area

The TikTok community guidelines clearly state that “facilitating the trade of services that artificially increase engagement, such as selling followers or likes” is not allowed. It also states that content such as “like-for-like” is not eligible for the FYP.

Ben appears to get around these guidelines by never saying the word “follow”. He also never asks the viewers to follow him, preventing accusations of “follow-for-follow”. He never directly asks for the gifts, they just flow regardless.

Ben is also frequently playing copyrighted pop songs in the background. If he were streaming on YouTube, his channel would be copyright-claimed, giving all the revenue to the music company. If it were Twitch, he would likely receive a DMCA strike. 3 strikes and you’re off the platform. On TikTok, it appears there are no consequences for playing copyrighted music on a live stream.

Controversial hot tub Twitch streamer Amouranth buys $8.3M car washes with the money she’s earned partly by pushing the boundaries of the Twitch terms of service. Ben is doing a similar thing on TikTok.

Why is he so successful? 

Everyone wants their 15 minutes of fame. Ben is targeting the 1% of wealthy viewers who are willing to send literally hundreds of dollars to see their follower count rise and get a quick dopamine hit. Presumably, their goal is to spend their way to the top of TikTok.

Should you copy Ben? 

The vast majority of streamers will struggle to compete with the community Ben has built around this. For a stream like this personality plays a huge role.

If you’re going to try and emulate Ben then always add your own twist. For example, I can see that Ben makes no use of TikFinity. So consider utilising this if you are going to try something similar.

That said, I personally don’t advise many people to use his strategies. Ben is very experienced and very careful in the way he operates. He also clearly has connections at TikTok and even promotes his own agency.

What is my take? 

I respect the hustle. He has been doing the same streams every day for months on end. This can be mentally exhausting. If the platform allows it, chase the bag. Today’s newsletter is not intended as a hate article towards him.

Should it be allowed? 

No.

A large streamer recently told me that TikTok limits sleep streams because it is a bad look for potential sponsors of the platform. As I ranted about in the third edition of Live Success there once again appears to be no consistency from TikTok.

Whilst I wouldn’t use the word scam, I think the people gaining followers are being sold a false promise. Followers often do not convert into views or money, especially if they haven’t followed you for your actual content.

⚠ TikTok LIVE Studio Lag

People often ask me about the best settings for TikTok LIVE Studio. In the past, TikTok actually shipped LS with some terrible default settings but luckily they’ve improved things recently.

Go to Settings > Stream Quality. Now simply choose the 1080p option for the best settings. The H265 encoder is the most important setting to lower lag.

Stream still lagging? Either your hardware isn’t powerful enough or your upload speed is too low. Try the 720p option or read on!

If you’re continuing to lag check out the recent document released by TikTok which covers how to troubleshoot LS lag.

🧙‍♂️ Find And Negotiate Your Dream Sponsorships

Discover the secret to securing dream sponsorships with Justin Moore's "Creator Wizard" newsletter! As someone who has personally benefited from his techniques, I can confidently say that Justin's insights will help you find and negotiate the perfect partnerships for your streaming career.

Stop leaving money on the table and level up your negotiation skills with guidance from an expert in the field. Subscribe for free to Creator Wizard today and join a supportive community of creators on a mission to maximize their sponsorship potential!

🎶 Viewers Control Your Music

TikFinity can sometimes feel overwhelming. After all, there are 17 different pages full of great tools to customise your streams.

Often overlooked though is the song requests page. Connect your Spotify Premium, configure some settings and add the optional overlay and your viewers can now control your music!

As we’ve discussed earlier on, be aware of copyright law and DMCA so use this at your own risk or simply only play copyright-free music such as StreamBeats.

Want to suggest a topic for this newsletter? Hit reply and suggest one. I read all responses!

Thanks for reading!
Harry
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