As new users, we are always tempted start publishing posts as soon as our accounts was approved. One of very first tips I will give to any new user is to master the act of commenting and comment as much as you can.
There are days I make more from commenting than creating posts.
One other thing I like about it is it makes you lot of friends.
On Steemit, you can increase your growth, followers, recognition, upvotes with sensible comments.
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The first tip is don't go comment harvesting. If you can't with a post. Let it slide and look for another that resonate with you.
You make your best comments with posts you found interesting so save your comments for those.
Truth be told, one of the reasons the orcas and whales get a lot of comments on their post is for the hope of massive upvotes. This is why you see a lot of funny comments not relating to the post. Don't be one of those.
One of my best commenting tips is quoting. Picking out the part of the post you found interesting and make a comment on it, this shows the poster you really read and found his post interesting.
To quote a part of a post - Highlight the part, copy and paste it into the comment box. Then add '>' in front of the pasted part.
It is a bit difficult to get the orcas or whale to follow you by commenting on their posts. At their level, they have a lot of things and people jostling for their attentions. So your comments have to be exceptional to earn a follow from a whale.
But you can get more planktons and minnows follow you by dropping comments on their posts.
Remember, some planktons become dolphins in no time. So learn to spot them by the quality and the frequency of their posting.
To get as many followers as you want in no time, head over to the introductory tag under new. There you see newcomers introducing themselves. Look for ones with potential judging by their posts or just pick randomly. Upvote their introductory posts or leave sensible comments if you can.
There is a big chance they will follow you. If you have been here for a while, remember how you followed almost everyone that upvoted or dropped comments on your posts.
If there is a chance to be witty or a little funny on a post without offending other people, why not? Most times been a little different makes you stand out.
Talking about standing out, format your comments as you would your posts - put space, italicised, bolden etc where applicable.
I will talk more on the 10th and 11th tips in subsequent posts.
Thank you for reading.
Remember to upvote, resteem for others to read and comment to share your thoughts.