how to become a global moderator on twitch

How to Become a Mod on Twitch ⚔️

The following guest post was written by a StreamElements community member who organizes a team of Twitch moderators from different channels. This post is part of our ongoing Community series. Stay tuned for more! ¬Icel

Hello, I'm Jared Korba, but you can call me Korba. I've been moderating for streamers helping to make their lives and streams better. Here's a look at some of the stuff I do:

Help out with brand streams.
Work with big people in the Twitch Industry.
Built my reputation with Twitch Streamers.

How Can You Become a Mod for a Big Streamer?

"Just go out and see what you can achieve, never put yourself down, and say you can do it"

If you're looking to become a mod for a large streamer, there are a few things you need to keep in mind.

Treat these streams how you would any other job. You need to act professionally in the workplace while still being fun and friendly.
Don't be disrespectful to their current mods or say things like "They don't know how to mod". This streamer has chosen these mods for a reason regardless of how you feel about their style.
On that note — You should watch other mods in a Twitch chat that you want to be a mod in. Learn from them as much as you can, take notes, and see how they run the chat so you can be consistent.
Notice how they speak to others, and how they introduce themselves. This will give you key information on the tone of that chat.
As I've said, Streamers choose their mods so make sure you're respectful to them as well. Don't call them out and make sure to always be friendly and positive while not promoting any negative behaviors from other members of the chat.
If you do see legitimate problems in chat or with the stream, use the correct procedures. Bring it up with mods and server admins and always be respectful.

To put it simply, making you a mod is electing you as a representative of their stream. Streamers will want to pick someone who promotes their values and behaves well — you can prove to Streamers you are capable of this with how you act during their stream.

Using StreamElements Bot Tools to Support Moderators

Once you've become a mod, or if you're just looking for help moderating your channel, StreamElements Bot Tools can make your life a lot easier. Find out how to set it up using this video:

This is very useful for new or small streamers that mod their channels since you can automate some of the tasks. It also helps channels with a large group of mods who work together.

If you're a moderator on someone else's channel, ask them to make you a manager in their StreamElements account, so you can tweak some settings by yourself.

After you've set-up the StreamElements bot in your channel, there are a bunch of settings to familiarize yourself with that can make your job as moderator easier.

Spam Filters

The spam filters offer several different options for the bot to delete messages that break the rules and timeout the user responsible. You can use one of the preset protection levels or tweak those options yourselves.

Make your life easier with the right tools

All the options can be limited by user levels, so rules that apply to the general population of your channel don't necessarily have to affect Subscribers or VIPs. This means you can award special privileges to some people like the permission to post a link or to write in all caps.

Chat Commands

There are a bunch of default chat commands that interact with the different bot modules, and the true power behind the system is the ability to write custom bot commands.

First of all, it's very useful for preparing answers to questions that get repeated a lot, like "what game is the streamer playing", and then you can make a !game command that will provide the information and maybe a link to buy the game — which is especially handy if you have an affiliate link. The same thing can be done with social media, websites, etc.

But you can do much more than that. Chat commands can use variables to give information tailored to the specific user! Check out the #command-share channel in StreamElements' Discord for more cool options.

Timers

Timers are a bit like chat commands, only you don't need to type the commands for the information to appear, it happens periodically and automatically. They're useful for information that doesn't change a lot and people ask for regularly, or for important information around events you want the viewers in chat to know about.

Perhaps you need to remind viewers to enter a competition, or donate to a charity — this tool allows you to set that up in a variety of ways.

You can set the interval each message appears and how many chat lines to wait for before the bot will post it — this is used to prevent the bot from spamming your channel, and to avoid your chat being filled with automated messages.

My Tips for Moderating

In addition to using the StreamElements Bot tools, here are some of my other general tips for being the best mod possible.

Don't care what people say about you as a mod — remember chat can be a volatile place and when people lash out, it usually says more about them than you.
Use other resources Twitch has already for you like, Log Viewer, Chatty, ModCh.at and many more.
Once you get a stable moderating job, use that to help you apply as a moderator elsewhere.
Make a schedule that fits the streamer/s you're moderating for and your IRL life. Remember to keep a good work/life balance and to maintain your happiness and health. Make sure to take breaks; taking a 2 day break every couple of weeks is important.
Work your way up the chain for positions, show interest in developing new skills or trying new things. Build yourself up from mod to a manager!

Mods work as a team, with each other and the broadcaster

Building Your Community

Successful streamer will tell you everything is about having a good community, so as a mod, it's your job to help build this. This doesn't just benefit the streamer, it helps you become more recognizable as a personality.

Always greet new people in chat and welcome them to the stream.
If the person is new and you see them in chat again the next day, welcome them back. This makes them feel remembered and special.
Keep a list of people's usernames with helpful talking points or facts. Ask them how their dog is, or if they've finished a game they were playing yet. It can be hard moderating a big chat and it's easy to get people confused or forget details.
When someone says "You're doing a great job", keep it like that, don't try to impress them or try and be the cool mod — they already like you as a mod, so keep doing what you're doing.
Stop by chat members streams. Introduce yourself, and explain you found them through your streamer's chat. This lets people know they're in a good community that has supportive mods and is likely to keep them coming back.
Keep an eye on all methods of communication. Answer questions through Discord, Twitter, Instagram, and everywhere else your streamer is active. Everyone has a question about something and that could help you gain more experience.

Keep Your Ego in Check

We've all seen that one mod who thinks they're the best thing since sliced bread just because they work for a big streamer. It's important to stop yourself from becoming 'that guy' and here are some things to keep in mind.

Always have a good attitude that's true to you. Don't fake it because you won't be able to keep it up later and you'll come across as one of these ego mods. Remember, other big mods and streamers are watching and they can tell.
Never, ever take your anger out on someone in chat. Use correct methods for dealing with someone abusive, toxic, or just hitting your buttons.
Talk to all kinds of people in chat, not just other mods. People notice when mods don't interact with people they don't think are 'cool enough' for them. Keep in mind though, you may not be able to talk to everyone or answer every DM or Whisper and that's ok.
Don't run too many private or exclusive events. Keep things open to the greater community to avoid seeming elitist or at least share these with other mods — this way you all interact with everyone and no mod is singled out.

Tips for New Mods

So you've finally gotten your Streamer Senpai to notice you, that's great! However, you probably want to keep a few things in mind for your first couple of streams.

Less trolling, more showing of how you mod a chat — this is your first chance and people won't know your sense of humor yet. Play it straight for your first few streams.
Don't miss the first stream once you get modded. You want to make a good first impression and just like any other job you shouldn't be late on your first day.
Don't respond to every message you get — you need to set your boundaries as early as possible.
Learn the tools of that streamer's chat. They may use things you're unfamiliar with or use them differently. You're not there to make big sweeping changes, at least not at first, so watch and learn.
Stay active and attentive to show why they picked you over others.
Learn the Time Out lengths of the situation — know the consequences for misbehavior in their chat so you can enforce things correctly.
ALWAYS LISTEN TO THE STREAMER! Ultimately, you're there to help this person. If they say not to ban someone, even if you feel they deserve it, it's their call.

Perhaps most importantly, never forget what it's like to be a new mod. Eventually, you'll be working with other mods who'll be new and confused like you were when you first started. If you have a good list of tips for that stream, make a google doc as you learn so you can share it with others later. Never be mad at someone who's trying to learn.

Streamer Communication

On that last note, you should always have good communication with your streamer and they should, in turn, make time to talk to their Mod Team. You should be prepared for these moments as some streamers are very busy, so here are some tips.

Try to have a set regular time where you, the other mods, and the streamer can all chat.
Always maintain a list of things you need to talk about or need your streamer to do. Things like keeping social media or Twitch Panels updated with correct information. Provide them with this list when appropriate.
Keep a record of every notable situation that happens in the chat, Discord, and any other social media. Fill your streamer in on what they might have missed.
Don't beg them to the point where you become spam — remember, they're busy too.
With that being said, make sure to communicate how you feel with your streamer. If you're feeling stressed, let them know and see if they can help.
However, if you feel it's getting nowhere or you're not being listened to, know when to quit or take a break.
When your streamer is upset with something you've done, take responsibility and fix the mistake. Use this as an opportunity to learn and grow rather than argue.
If you feel as though your streamer doesn't recognize your hard work, just do you and you will just be fine. Others see how much hard work you do for the community and this grows your brand.
If your streamer is abusive towards you then consider quitting or reporting them.

Streamers should also keep in mind that mods are there to help and learn. Make sure to make all documents available to new mods and accept that they might not know how everything works in your stream right away. Having good communication between mods and streamers is key to having the best community possible.

Thank you for reading. If you have any questions or wants to talk more about stream modding, hit me up on twitter @korbagm

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