/vt/ - Virtual Youtubers

The biggest reason that Hololive and Nijisanji are big today is because they have a dedicated legion of clippers who crop the most interesting and frenetic portions of their streams, and thus they don't need to expend the effort of creating their own highlights. Indie's don't have that boon, and they most erroneously rely on the precarious chance that someone in their fanbase might clip whatever interesting interaction happens on their stream. When someone watches a Hololive stream, there's an inherent sureness that something funny or enjoyable will occur - a promise, if you will - but, for indies, that 'promise' isn't there, and any potential viewer must rely on hour-long VODs to ascertain whether or not an indie is even worth watching. What happens when a potential viewer hops on an indie's stream but during a period of downtime and low content? They're going to immediately exit. Time is precious, and attention spans and tolerance will be low for streams that don't immediately grasp their interest. Clips are important because they're short, bite-sized peepholes into a certain streamer (and thus extremely low investment and light on your time) and you can immediately determine whether or not they're to your liking. Indies shouldn't be lazy and rely on the off-chance that some fan will clip them; they need to take the initiative and start creating their own highlights to ensure better viewer retention.

This doesn't just apply to clips. Pre-made content such as skits or shorts are good as well - anything that can instantly decide for a potential viewer whether or not you're worth watching is good enough. Just streaming isn't sufficient and won't get you anywhere.