From Stories to Elevator Pitches to Slogans
So STEEMit is in beta. There's a good functional product. Now what is the message that we want to get out to the masses?
The Stories – Problem & Solution
Founders in Silicon Valley startups typically start their pitches like in this video.
Although the grand vision is important and should be included, a crucial part of what interests people is the founders's personal stories of what problems they are trying to solve and why they came up with their solution. It's critical to start out with a problem & solution, and it's preferable to communicate a story. People remember stories much more than generic statements. The Problem & Solution slides of a pitch deck alone should explain most of what the company is about and will get people tuned in or tuned out in the first few minutes.
For others in the community, we can share our personal story of what got us involved. An authentic personal story will resonate with most people, especially with those who share similar problems. You can also share a story of another person in the community when speaking to someone who might be in the same situation. (eg. A story of a broke & struggling writer who publishes essays on Steemit to make ends meet might be something to share with other writer/artist friends. BTW this story probably communicates much more than the generic statements I've made so far in this post. It's the power of stories.) As Steemit matures I think there will be many stories to tell.
Avoid The Details
Oftentimes the core message gets lost in the details. For founders, there's a zillion things to do. You may know every little aspect of the company. You might end up describing your startup in levels of detail that may cause confusion or just be way over people's heads. For a cryptocurrency company it's a whole lot harder to explain what you do to the mainstream public. It may be ok if the initial target market is crytpocurrency enthusiasts and there is a case for industry buzz words and a whitepaper. However, it's still important to keep messages short and place emphasis on what problem you're solving for the community. As in the video above, saying you're 'revolutionizing the world' with a Byzantine Fault Tolerant consensus protocol and elliptic curve cryptography won't resonate with many people. So it's always good to take a step back and think about the core message.
If Steemit wants to start tackling larger markets the message has to be completely different. Most people probably don't care about 'decentralization'. Most people don't care as much about 'privacy'. Venmo did $1 billion in transaction volume in Jan 2016, and one of their main features is snooping on your friends. Yeah it's a payment app and it didn't even need a white paper either. If you're going mainstream, it has to be a mainstream message. You can start with a niche and it can always evolve over time. Here is how Reddit has evolved over time. However I think it's good to go after the mainstream sooner than later. Once people see actual dollars in their pockets they won't care what the heck a consensus protocol is.
Be A Broken Record
Your core message and slogan should be the essence of your company. You have to treat everyone as if they're new and never heard of your company or message before. In fact someone who reads an article or PR about your company is probably hearing you for the first time. Even if they're not new, they'll probably forget your core message and wouldn't be able to explain what you do to someone else. The reporter may want to hear something new, but it's important to repeat the core message no matter how tired it may become. It also reinforces what other people in the company say so you'll reduce mixed messages. The more you repeat the core message, the more everyone else will as well. Just like in politics, it's important to stay on message.
Slogans
Whether you love or hate Trump, 'Make America Great Again' is a great slogan. It probably resonates with Tea Party conservatives, disaffected Republicans and inner America because it captures the patriotism, nationalism and Americana that the older generations remember. It does so very concisely. The slogan is also consistent with Trump's bravado to believe he can make it happen. Paypal just came out with the slogan 'New Money' which is also very good and may still be effective for the average person and older generations, but we in the cryptoworld all know Paypal uses old money.
So what do you think should be the core message for Steemit? Elevator pitch? Slogan?
Here is something to start with:
Elevator pitch:
Steemit is a social network platform where you can read, curate, and share your stories and get paid.
Shorter:
Steemit is a social network that pays you.
Even shorter:
It's like Reddit, but pays you.
Slogan:
It's the Internet That Pays You
I just wanted to start the discussion. So you all will have stories about why you joined and why you enjoy Steemit, but what do you think is a good elevator pitch? What is your shorter and shortest versions? What would be your slogan?