Why I posted on Facebook about my back pain instead of posting on Steemit
This is the first time I've ever created a movie with a screencast portion and multiple camera angles. I hope you enjoy it! The content below isn't exactly a transcript, but served as my notes for the video.
Hey Steemit.
Have you ever had someone tell you, "You're doing it wrong?" when it comes to how you use a social media platform? Each platform develops a culture. Twitter, Facebook, Medium, Reddit... they all have their own, often unspoken, community expectations of how the medium will be used.
The interesting and somewhat exciting thing about Steemit is we haven't yet defined what those expectations are. Even more interesting, as we define them and reward specific behavior, they will adapt and change as people respond to new, creative ideas.
Let me give you an example.
Yesterday, I had really fun time at a friend's pool party (there were a bunch of big data nerds, so they didn't mind this nerd talking on and on about a new blockchain-based social media platform). Driving there and back and throughout the day, the lower back pain that has been bothering me the last couple of weeks started getting a lot worse. I could feel pain in my right leg as well. After some googling around last night, I posted a message on my Facebook.
Really useful comments from my friends and family started pouring in (see the video). I got some really great advice and learned about Piriformis Syndrome in the process. Tomorrow I'll probably start looking into physical therapy options so (hopefully) this doesn't become a chronic thing.
Why I Didn't Post This Question on Steemit
I now have, I think, a couple bots following my Steemit blog. Busy people have decided I (so far) put out consistently useful content which they want to promote. They're (so far) willing to risk their reputation in exchange for their time. If I put out spam and they upvoted it, that would look pretty bad. Time is the scarcest resource of all, so I get the trade off.
Putting this question about my back pain on Steemit would have been a stark contrast from the content I've already created. Would those who follow me get upset if it got upvoted by influential accounts while their detailed analysis of something important only got noticed by some minnows? I think, as Steemit exists today, they probably would. I see Steemit currently as a mix between Reddit and Medium and, unless we build out a Quora like category, asking questions about your personal health on a platform like Medium would be a bit odd.
Since Steemit doesn't yet have friends and family lists and notifications, I figured I'd get a much better response on Facebook from people who know me and want to help. I think I was right, because I had a surprising number of comments when I woke up the next morning.
So what does all this mean for you? Have you determined the culture of Steemit well enough to know what type of posts are acceptable and what posts aren't? Is it okay to post whatever you feel like it, regardless of the rewards, specifically if you have people following you and expecting consistently great content? How will that impact perceived value over time?
I don't yet have the answers, but I do know that I want to provide value. That, to me, is what will bring long term success. The more value we provide, the more the network effect increases the value for everyone.
I hope you enjoyed my ramblings today.
Steem On.