We've been hard at work this week brainstorming some ideas to bring even more value to the STEEM blockchain. As much as we understand the challenges that the current system faces, we are also aware that some of the biggest changes we can make come in the form of education.
It's because of this reason that we are proud to present the first installment of a new series of publications:
"Growing Smart with Smartsteem"
What can you expect out of this series?
The goal here is provide tips and tricks for Steemians of all levels of experience to grow their accounts, and their networking.
It's imperative for Steem citizens to understand that growth does not only mean more SP, but the effectiveness that people have on the blockchain, and their social influence.
As service that matches investors with those who seek promotion tools, we understand the necessity to integrate an element of education for our customers. In other words: How can we help Smartsteemians maximize their results?
"Growing smart with Smartsteem" is our answer.
Lesson #1 - Are you ready to promote your content?
This might seem like one of those questions people should be asking already. However, it's possible to say this is not always the case. The idea of using a promotion tool like Smartsteem.com is to showcase the work you have been putting into your content.
Whether it's free writing, poetry, vlogs, etc, promotions tools are there to help you reach a wider audience and capture their attention. That's why it's important that you are promoting work that truly showcases the best you can do.
Smart Promotion: The Post
How many times have we seen people promoting low effort content only to have a negative reaction from the community? Sadly this type of thing is not uncommon, and as part of our commitment to the STEEM ecosystem we run a blacklist to deter the recalcitrant accounts who continue to do so.
What's interesting about this, is that the accounts who engage in these activities usually lose their investments. The posts usually get flagged, reported to @steemcleaners in the case of plagiarism or any number of negative consequences.
Now, this doesn't have to happen and we've got some tips and tricks for you.
Step 1: Preparing your post
The ideal post you should be thinking about promoting should have the following elements:
- 100% Original Content
- Accurately sourced references: Images and Quotes clearly outlined
It's important to state that this are not rules per say, not in the sense that the blockchain itself requires it. However, the goal is to put your best foot forward and to win an audience, so we could consider them best practices.
Step 2: Create your Post
Think of the following list as recommendations. If you've taken notes, you will notice some of the most successful Steemians practicing some of these little habits, and that little fact should speak volumes to anyone that is seeking to grow on the platform.
In no particular order:
- Be yourself - don't try create content emulating someone just because you think that's the way to make money.
- Be relatable - write/talk to your audience as if you are dealing with a good friend
- Before posting, read out loud - you would be surprised how many times messages are lost due to a missing ","
- Be consistent - As they say practice makes perfect, don't think your first promoted post will be a home run.
Conclusion
Promotion tools are just that: tools.
They cannot in any way improve the quality of a content creator. That is why is so important for content creators to focus on doing their absolute best before using them.
It's important to keep in mind that the value of the STEEM ecosystem is directly connected to the value we are able to convey through the content it generates and the quality of interactions that happen, because of that content.
We sincerely hope that this framework gives those who are on the fence of promoting their content, or those who are already doing so, but not obtaining the results they want, valuable information that will help them grow smarter.
All the best,
Team Smartsteem
More about Smartsteem
- Introducing Smartsteem 2.0
- Introducing Open Cost Ledger - Optimization of Vote Purchases
- Join us on Discord
At least this voting service is putting emphasis on creating quality content
I put so much effort into my posts here, I spend days researching in order to provide accurate referenced material. This platform however seems to reward the whales. Hopefully, it will change someday, the best content I read is from people I follow who would not be known by many.
Continue to tinker and experiment.
It took me almost a year to get consistent multiple $1+ level votes. I was fortunate because early on I had a whale that upvoted me, but I kept grinding away and now have several dolphins as well as great minnow followers.
Posted using Partiko Android
I will just have to keep grinding on I suppose. Thanks for the reply
The cream will rise to the top...eventually
Only a matter of natural order taking its course
I will just have to
Keep grinding on I suppose.
Thanks for the reply
- cryptoguru1
I'm a bot. I detect haiku.
It is very tough getting started for sure. I invested in steem power to increase my vote but have not seen a very big return for it yet. Everything takes time right.
Time, and focus.
Write what people want to read. I actually did a post recently with some tips to grow your following that really helped me.
Posted using Partiko Android
Also I checked out your post- pretty good dude!
Thanks! I appreciate it.
No worries
It is hard to write what people want to read, as I tend to write what I want to research and hope it is what my readers wish to learn about. I reckon diversification is key here.
Thanks-writing and hoping will only get you so far if you really want to grow your audience. I have found the more I write the more I know what will fly and what won't.
Posted using Partiko Android
Yes I suppose you need to stay constant in people’s minds also. I must write more often and try diversify also
As @protegeaa is saying, everything takes time. And nothing can be taken for granted. If you want big votes, there has to be a reason why somebody should vote for you. Always keep that in mind.
I write for fun & recreation, and hopefully that a reader may derive some benefit from some of my content. Should any of it be deemed good enough to earn some steem as well, well-to do! There is! Ozzpower.
good night America, good morning Africa. Well, I'm at 12h33 right now and am now going back to lateral planing-zzzzz
I suppose it does take time, I wrote an article on my view of how this all works if you wish to check it out on my blog.
I will go back and look. Thanks you
Posted using Partiko Android
Hey @cryptoguru1,
content discovery is a challenge on steem. But, the good news is that promotion tools when used responsibly can help you get more eyes on your content. Specially if you are putting that much effort.
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
Thanks for the reply, I willl check out more of these tools
Keep steady, the audience here is way smaller than on other big social platforms. But i think this could change soon with HF 20. =)
Maybe, this contest is something for you: https://steemit.com/crypto/@originalworks/1250-steem-sponsored-writing-contest-digitex
I wish you big success on STEEM. ^^
Thank you, I will check this out. Much appreciated
Yes, I totally agree, Time for the early guys to move aside and allow some of the newer content make its way to peoples eyes I reckon. So much valuable content never reaches the audience it deserves
I’ve been using SmartSteem for awhile and I think it’s a great way to promote your post and redistribute the balance in voting.
Posted using Partiko iOS
THIS^^^^
Votebots like Smartsteem essentially speedup the rebalancing of voting power from the early whales to the newcomers, which means a lot more Steemians have meaningful voting power.
Service like @smartsteem also ensures a broad distribution of the currency. Some pay with STEEM for advertising and others receive STEEM for their performance (Vote Selling)
I think Smartsteem is very important for the future of Steemit.
Hey @techwizardry,
of course we agree, it's about giving everyone an equal chance to shine.
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
totally
Thank for the tips. It can be very disheartening if writers put in a lot of effort, they only earn a few cents. Hopefully your tips will help.
Posted using Partiko Android
That’s true it happened to me too
We are confident this new series will do wonders for everyone, both new and more experienced users.
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
The most important question, when can we expect part 2 of this lessons :) ?
Posted using Partiko iOS
Hey @jamesndungu,
we will be releasing one lesson per week. That is our current plans.
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
Thank-You ! This lessons are very well written, very educative & insightful. I will be waiting for the next update next week :)
Posted using Partiko iOS
The issue of content relevance is definitely at the core of Steem Community. Without valuable and relevant content the Community itself cannot grow. It'll be like attending classes without learning anything. Those who are yet to realise that value-added content is the biggest and fastest way to grow a dpendable followership and stable income are simply wasting their time. In the long run, it is relevance, originality, creativity, and value that'll sustain those who will go far here.
@smartsteem, I thank you most sincerely for bringing this issue of content relevance to public attention. I look forward to Lesson Two. Gracias!
Lesson two should be coming out next friday as planned, thank you for your feedback
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
Hi smart support what happen to this post of mine? I didn’t receive any votes from smartmarket , why? Until now..
Truer words have never been spoken.
fantastic post and a much welcomed new series.
looking forward to following it and learning more on how i can get better as a content creator.
been using smart steem since day one and love the experience so far.
Posted using Partiko iOS
Well that is just music to our ears @jongolson
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
I am a little initiate in this world of steem, it will cost hard work and time to get good income but with guides like this work and time becomes more pleasant for Venezuelans, like me. Thanks!
That is fantastic to hear David.
Regards,
Smartsteem Support
We thank you for giving us this valuable information. It is not easy to communicate information to the community. It is not easy to access these ideas, and I thank you again for this noble effort.
very nice, good content deserve a reply and upvote.
I share your post.
I upvoted your post.
Mabuhay, keep steeming.
@Filipino
Posted using https://Steeming.com condenser site.
thay are excellent and interesting informations.
Been doing it to get into steemit. It has been working great! Thank you guys
Posted using Partiko Android
🤩
Posted using Partiko iOS
This is really a great post.
Good content and I upvoted it.
No matter what we must do our duty to improve by unieqe process
Finde es super
:-)
I have a serious issue with using Bid Bots, its almost as if the comment sections get flooded with percentages and affirmatives and there is no actual content engagement. Where is the community when people just have bots spamming what they've done for the initiative of a vote instead of genuine remarks about the content itself. Also, votes Imo aren't as important as Re-steem, and thats what people buy when they use Smartsteem.
I personally dislike comment spamming, that's why Smartsteem isn't doing any of that.
https://steemit.com/life/@fahdq888/paris-the-capital-of-the-lights
Smart sreem good
Nice article dear...follow for follow ?
All the best @smartsteem!
... just found this one seems to have an error and a bit confusing.
Nice one. I have been using smartsteem for a long time now. Super effective way to promote your posts.
very nice Good content
Thank you sir for this great post. This was really helpful for me. I will follow and keep reading your updates for this series as I want to upload quality content.
P.S. newbie here, please support by following. Thank you. Have a nice day.
Great nonsense info. here. Thanks for sharing !
Congratulations @smartsteem!
Your post was mentioned in the Steemit Hit Parade in the following categories:
super helpful, thank you!
@smartsteem Thank for the tips. It tends to be exceptionally dampening if scholars put in a ton of exertion, they just acquire a couple of pennies. Ideally, your tips will help.
Well said I agree with everything you said but think the people who create good content should be upvoted by the bots for free as I think personally it would help the community so much what I mean by that is it would make people make good content because they know they would have a chance of getting upvoted by a bit and getting there post seen
Good content is subjective and where would you put the start and end of free votes for good content?
You should give away a couple of upvotes to a couple of people each week or month I think it would be a great thing for everyone and a great thing for the community
@therealwolf
A friend recommended I use #smartsteem. I tried to go to smartsteem.com but I got this message from my browser:
Since I could not proceed, I returned to my friend and he suggested I make a transfer of Steem to the smartsteem account, adding my details in the Memo line
I did so, but stupidly thought that entering @arthur.grafo was enough.
I am told that I should consider the Steem 3.00 I sent as being lost....unless you choose to help.
Is it lost? - and if I cannot go to your site and I never go on Discord, how do I learn to use #smartstreem ?
Thanks for any response
Hey @arthur.grafo,
Can you please make sure that you've got the latest firefox version. I've just tried it with my Firefox version and it worked.
And you can also use Chrome.
Regarding the 3 STEEM, no worries. The amount will be refunded.
Thank you for responding so quickly.
I am using XP (a special one that blocks off a lot of the spying from others including those who think their OS must report to them). It means I cannot use a newer Firefox...it even means I do not get to watch most videos on the web. So, though I see a need for upgrading, I prefer to stay with what I am using.
I think my error was made due to my not having enough information. I thought I am sending the Steem and you use it for various posts, until it is used up. If I've understood what happens, I'm supposed to add to the url the actual post I want to bolster?
As a poster who normal gets half to $1 in total, what would be a reasonable amount for me to dedicate to each post I want to enhance? I am only asking for info and do not expect you to guarantee success - just that I might hopefully might see some improvement.
I understand. Well, you will not be able to enjoy the full experience. But you can of course still use the promotion service.
Send a transfer to @smartmarket with your postlink (no comments) - for example:
https://steemit.com/steem/@smartsteem/growing-smart-with-smartsteem-or-lesson-1-are-you-ready-to-promote-your-content
Sending it to @smartsteem will result in a bid, that you can either track under https://smartsteem.com/promote/bid or https://steembottracker.com
Thanks and made my first transfer...
@arthur.grafo have you heard of the brave browser? It works great and it helps you stay private. I wouldn't use firefox for nothing though. They have firefox quantum out and that's supposed to be the cat's meow. Maybe you'll like that.
Posted using Partiko Android
I also do not wish to use Firefox (they sold out to Google years ago, when they accepted a "donation" of about $30m - only reason it became public info was because the Inland Revenue slammed a huge fine against Firefox for not declaring the receipt of the $30m.
However, I've tried Opera, but the latest version I can use, does not seem to work with Steemit very well, so I am forced to stick to the older Firefox.
Each year, the Firefox new version pretends to provide more security, but if you check the sites where they examine the code and report the truth, what Firefox really excels at is in harvesting data from us.
However, your suggestio of Brave is good and I have convinced a number of posters at Gab, who really need the privacy because of political content being published, but unfortunately, Brave is not available for me. I cannot even find an older version that would work on XP (SP3)
My posts at Steemit are not a problem, since I have even taken the exceptional road to openness by providing my full name in both English and in Greek. The few political posts I make also bear my full name.
I do take a more extreme position on Gab (there, unlike here, I have thousands of followers and my score is high, because I tell it as I see it). However, once I realised I cannot hide my details, I decided to take the rare position of, to hell with it, so what if they come after me,all they'll do is stop an old man close to the end of his life anyway.
However, I do not want all those hackers who are doing it for profit or fun messing with me, so I stick to my OS which a hacker provided, many years ago.
I hope the above clarifies why I am being anti-new-technology (think this is bad(?), I can imagine what you would think if you see my cell phone which does not even know what the web is and cannot use data-theft programs like whatsapp).
:)
Anyway, thanks for caring and remembering to try and help me.
I am using Smartsteem. I delegate my plankton SP to earn more and in the future, help more steemians. Until then, I will improve my post and learn more about the steem blockchain.
Thanks again smartsteem some more great work from whales to help others. Always like your ruff keep up the good work!! =)
This is really a smart guide for those people like me... Thanks a bunch for the info
Thank you for your post, it definitely adds value to our growing community. I am always trying to tinker and improve on anything I post here for best community experience.
All the best,
Shervin M.
Hi I have just two weeks in this community, and I fell that I have not grown as I wanted. But I am still working, I think that I have not enough time to get improvements up. What do you think??.
Smartsteem is the best bot to delegate to! A user and a follower!
Posted using Partiko Android
Thanks for this helpful advice😊
This is just more awesome sauce here on Steemit. I'm still a plankton and I'm loving the freedom and sense of camaraderie. We all can flourish here! Nobody is better than anyone else. Positivity is KING and QUEEN! Steemit makes me feel young again. Anytime we can learn together, we share in everything together. I have great feelings about this.
Thank you so much for your contributions here. I'm so new it hurts, but it's a good hurt, you know?
Peace, Love and Steeeeeeeeem! :)
well done
Posted using Partiko Android
it looks nice. I can say it's kinda hard to get more known on steemit, whales are taking over the platform. Smaller users cannot even reach serious upvotes. I'm not talking about only getting high upvotes or upvotes at all but we need a way to promote serious good looking content, doesn't matter what reputation you have! In the other hand, everyone has to be patient, everything takes time.