Many of you remember a time when steemit was growing like there was no tomorrow. The explosion of cryptocurrency certainly did help us. I tend to think that about half the people who came were looking for the next crypto get-rich-quick scheme, and then the other half were sincere about participating in a new kind of social media, more censorship resistant, monetized, more community oriented and more decentralized.
Our turnover rate was abysmal though, absolutely horrifying. Why was that? Sure, many left because crypto wasn't the hot thing anymore, but more probably left because of the bidbots and crappy posts that filled the trending page. Luckily those issues are behind us.
There was one more reason why so many people left though, and it still haunts us today: because they came with the wrong expectations.
How many of us tried to get our friends to join by promising riches?
"You get paid for likes!!"
This was the most common thing people said to get their friends and family on board. That or "BITCOIN IS THE FUTURE!!" sounding mad about some technology that none of them understood and one that many were calling a scam. Some joined and left because after their first post, which did alright, the rest of their posts earned them a fraction of what they would make working a part time. Can you blame them for leaving when we were the ones who tried to sell them on "You get paid for likes!"
"Did you join steemit? Did you join steemit? Did you join Steemit?"
This just annoyed the hell out of your friends, didn't it. Most of them just checked it out out of obligation and felt it was overly complicated and left.
Now we have a new name and that gives us a second chance.
Let's get it right this time
Here are some tips for not only on-boarding your friends and family, but encouraging them to stay.
Don't try to convince them to join at all
If we push too hard, people feel we want them to join for our own selfish reasons. On the other hand, if you just casual drop in conversation that you have amazing friends from all corners of the earth, you are part of this-or-that community, or that you earned bitcoin, people will naturally be inquisitive. They will follow their own curiosity and eventually ask you questions that will allow you to speak more about Hive. Play it cool.
Save the monetization point for the K.O.
When I mention Hive, I talk about the awesome community, my personal growth and the interesting people I've met first. Once they sound interesting I hit them with the deal breaker. "Oh yeah, and you can earn money. I earned ....... this year writing stuff I wanted to write anyway." This leads money to be a motivating factor for people to put more effort into the platform, but if they're interest was already piqued before you mentioned money, they are FAR more likely to stay and stick it out after the honeymoon is over.
Introduce them to your Hive friends
There are many ways to do this. I do a podcast with @vincentnijman and share it on both 3speak and youtube. I hope we can grow it on both platforms to help build a bridge to the platform. When friends ask me about it I tell them I met Vincent at this cool online community, and they are often interested.
#POSH is another example of how to get the word out. Posting articles on twitter or sharing them directly lets people know the platform exists.
I also share artwork from certain hivesters, like the other day I shared @autobodhi's work with two friends. They loved it. Think that won't help to onboard people?
You could hire some artists from Hive to do work for you and then tell people where you met.
You don't need to onboard them right away
Take your time with it, just keep exposing them to the platform without it being unnatural of overbearing and they will naturally become interested.
What to say when they ask you "What happened to Steemit?"...
Some friends may have tried steemit before. Or they may have thought about it.
Show them the right communities
A platform full of randomness is a bit overwhelming. Rather than telling your friends about the whole of hive, sometimes it's better to focus on a community within hive that you feel they will connect with.
#naturalmedicine is really helpful in getting my friends interested in the platform because many are into growing vegetables, qigong, yoga, and other things that they can easily find there.
Last week I discovered the @build-it community which will make it much easier to onboard my brother because he is into making stuff and fixing stuff.
Be honest with them, it's not a cakewalk
Tell them upfront, your first post may or may not do well, and after that it's hard to build momentum. Tell them that if you don't engage with others, no one will care about your post. Tell them that when they are just fishing for votes, the experienced users can smell it a mile away. Tell them to be themselves and to make friends and get involved and that after a few months or a year, they will develop a steady support network. Tell them it's better to stay for the community cause you will be disappointed otherwise. Tell them that if they get the rewards out of their mind, one day they'll notice their posts are worth a whole lot more.
Follow your own advice: Engage
We can't just tell them to engage, we have to engage a bit too. Obviously everyone has their own lifestyle and availability so it will vary from person to person. Just don't leave them hanging.
Watch over them and make sure they are doing alright
Follow their progress and walk them through it a bit. Don't obsess over them but give them tips when you can. Feedback helps. Obviously an upvote or sharing their post can help them. Giving them gifts or introducing them to Hive friends can be more helpful though. Make sure to comment on their posts.
Don't forget about them after the honeymoon
I feel one of the biggest reasons people leave now is because the honeymoon is too sweet and after it is too sour. When supporting new users in general, it's far more helpful to spread your support for them over the course of a few months, rather than showering them with love for a week and then forgetting about them. No need to spoil them, let them learn to love the grind, but be there when they need you.
One good resource for new users is a series of tutorials made by @indigoocean!
And that's the way you do it ;D
It's the way I would do it anyway, once I get to that stage as I'm kind of permanently in the not convincing anyone to join, it comes up casually in casual conversation and I'm happy enough to talk about it but not in a "IT'S SO COOL YOU SHOULD TOTALLY JOIN" kinda way.
Also think it's kind of important to make sure the "getting paid for likes" things applies to both consumers and creators as I think one of the major flaws in steem's marketing spiels (what there was of them) was the hyperfocus on creators and this kind of system won't work without both (and will probably work better when the consumers vastly outnumber the creators).
That's very very true, and something I noticed early on but failed to realize as the main reason engagement is so hard. But then again, I suppose we will all be content producers some day when AI takes everyone's jobs so this helps us to get used to smaller give and take followings rather than the producer and consumer model. I think we won't need a consumer market eventually, we'll just need to get the content producers used to consuming a bit more as they become more able to. You are a role model for them!
I'm normally a role model of what NOT to do especially regarding sleeping habits x_x
Great post, and thanks for the shoutout for the tutorial.
Yes, we really want to bring new folks in, preferably ones who have interests in life that they'd like to share about. Right now half the activity on here is Hive about Hive. LOL
Thanks for the feature! Anticipating to see your brother jump on our bandwagon ;)
I recently on-boarded someone to the HIVE and your article will help me to persuade them to use it for the long term. I am working on my own write up as well, so this will help me greatly. I think the majority of new users will be either disappointed or exhausted when first engaging with the HIVE. You are correct to underline the importance of not advertising $$$ right at the get go. A lot of quality content is just passing by without the proper audience. Some of the time we are just preaching to the choir. So advertising the abundance of DIY, health and other fun communities is great for attracting newcomers....I don't know of many people who want to endlessly debunk the political lie. Sometimes people just want to chill and enjoy a fun community.
Great one, telling about rewards is the worst thing to introduce. The problem is if they don't get reward, they will stop posting.
if rewards aren't their only reason, they'll stay long enough to see their rewards go up
Hey great article man, well timed as I’m in the midst of trying to get a musician friend of mine to start posting. I got him an account under the guise of preparing him for exode and then pitched him on the small but supportive music community. I think he’ll come around. I’ll share his work as soon as he gets something out there.
Also thanks a bunch for sharing my stuff, funny thing, even though this community is still small and it can be reslly hard to get noticed, I still get about 1000% more eyes and ears and engagement then any other platform. (Though I guess it has been quite a long journey) And that’s really the most exciting thing for me right now. I honestly came hoping to make money but the community here vs every other platform I’ve tried is why I am still around and enthusiastic about this place. (Place? That’s funny no?)
show them the way!!
#posh -