Does Steemit Have What It Takes To Succeed?
The Steemit platform is a relatively new innovation in the cryptocurrency space. What’s really interesting about the platform is the fact that, as a user of the platform, you have the opportunity to get paid for posting content or even upvoting and commenting on content that isn’t yours. Unsurprisingly, this set up has attracted a lot of new users into the cryptocurrency space, and more specifically, the Steemit platform. Steemit’s growth rate has been phenomenal so far, but the question I have found myself asking is, does Steemit actually have what it takes to continue this growth? Is there a future in which Steemit is a legitimate competitor to social media giants such as Facebook and Twitter? Well, in order to answer that question, we have to first identify what it is that makes Facebook and Twitter so popular in the first place.
The Dominance Of Facebook & Twitter: Common Characteristics
Facebook and Twitter may both be social media platforms, but they operate in very distinct fields within the social media space. Facebook is focused much more on interacting with people you already know and staying in touch with them. The ability to update your status and share photos of your life allows your friends and family to see how you’re doing. Twitter on the other hand, is a lot more personal to the user. Twitter allows you to tailor and cultivate experiences that are unique to yourself, depending on who you follow and interact with on the platform. With Facebook boasting an impressive figure of 1.94 billion monthly active users worldwide, and Twitter being no slouch at 328 million, the success of these two social media platform cannot be understated. There a number of reasons as to why Facebook and Twitter are so popular, and here are some of things that both platforms are doing right.
Accessible Interface
Facebook and Twitter have a very simple interface design that allows users to find and easily connect with friends and even strangers. You can message and comment on other people’s posts at the click of a button. This ease of use in relation to connecting with others is what gives these two social media platforms their worth, because social media is primarily about user to user interaction.
Source Of Information
Social media as a source of information, is arguably a bi-product of the primary function of connecting and maintaining relationships. Nevertheless, social media is becoming an increasingly important medium by which we consume our news. One can like and follow news outlets such as CNN on Facebook and Twitter respectively, and receive updates on what is happening around the world. Thus, social media is fulfilling another function that provides an opportunity for the social media space to attract an audience it was not intended to initially cater to. Facebook and Twitter have been excellent in facilitating this development in our consumption of information, and have subsequently benefited from that in retaining and growing their user base.
How Does Steemit Compare?
User Interface
Steemit’s interface is fairly easy to navigate, and generally attempts to enforce the idea of connecting with like-minded strangers. One can do this by following a user you finding interesting, as well as upvoting and commenting on their content. However, the interface does suffer from a lack of a dedicated messaging function. From my experience so far, you can only message another user either through ‘Steemit Chat’ or using an external messaging service such as Discord. The problem with using an external messaging service is that it makes the barrier to connectivity a little bit more difficult to overcome. Ideally connectivity between Steemit users should not depend on an external service, and instead, should be done on the platform. This will streamline the process of connecting with a stranger. Furthermore, the messaging service on the platform, ‘Steemit chat’, is not placed optimally on the Steemit platform itself. One has to click the menu icon to open a list, and then, in 9th place, will one see the internal messaging service. In order for Steemit to compete with the likes of Facebook and Twitter, it will have to really tackle its messaging/connectivity functions and make the process as smooth as possible.
Sources Of Information
Steemit does a good job of facilitating the way in which we receive information. It categorises information into tags and allows you to follow users that you believe will provide you with information you would be interested in. It is very easy to imagine being able to follow the likes of CNN and receive a stream of information in your feed. Another advantage of Steemit as a source of information, is the tone that the platform has managed to strike. One has the option of following users that will post a little more serious content, and at the same time, users that produce content that is more light-hearted are not shunned. This will be important for growth, as the platform itself will not be confined to a particular target audience.
Verdict: Steemit Has The Potential To Succeed
A lot more can be said for the weaknesses of the Steemit platform, but it is important to remember that the platform is still new. That said, in order for Steemit to reach the level I know it can, it will have to be a lot more user friendly to newcomers. The underlying purpose of any social media platform should be to facilitate the ease of connectivity with strangers. I personally feel that the platform could be doing a better job in this regard. Nevertheless, I am excited for the future of the Steemit platform and I am looking forward to see if it can really challenge the established social media platforms of today.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please feel free to tell me your thoughts on the matter and if you enjoyed the article then give it an upvote and resteem! I'll be posting even more articles that will hopefully challenge your thinking on a variety of issues, so follow me @Bisade to make sure you don't miss out :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------