Artificial Scarcity - Why The Twitch Cult Is So Appealing - CPG Rant
Artificial scarcity is often used by those who want to control some aspect of your decision making. By taking advantage of the allure of being one of the chosen few, key holders can entice many into vying to be the lucky few.
In the gaming community, Twitch Partnership is one of the key pieces of scarcity that people vie for. By becoming a member of the elite, creators get features for monetization. But the rarity of these events -- and the attached elitism -- means that in many cases you're being taken advantage of by a system that will never reward you.
Twitch “Partner” status is coveted, and not just on-platform; it carries over into the physical world as well. At PAX East, in their (relatively large) booth, something like 1/3rd of the total space was dedicated to a space which was only available or accessible to partners. The partner lounge had full time staff guarding the entrance, ensuring that none of the rabble were able to enter the space. Which means that Twitch was literally paying to keep people out of the Twitch booth. Most of the time when I walked by, this ‘partner lounge’ was empty; like an airplane flying with empty first class seats while every seat in coach is full.
It's fine to look to be successful. But think critically about whether your'e fighting for a reward you're never going to get.
If you've ever asked your self how to be a Twitch Partner, how to get YouTube verified, or how to get Twitter verified... maybe think of whether those are things that you really should be working to get.
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