source: https://www.referralcandy.com/blog/word-of-mouth-marketing-strategy/
Recently discussions have been focused a lot on marketing. I believe steem could turn into a marketing powerhouse by just implementing a simple referral system.
Word of mouth is the most trusted and efficient marketing tool and we need to unleash its full potential.
Right now users have no real incentives to bring more people on steemit, but if users were paid to invite new users I think it could go viral very quickly.
It is very important that such referral system be decentralized. Steemit is only one site based on the steem blockchain, there will be many more and all users should be able to take advantage of a referral program regardless of the site they are using.
How would it work?
We could assign a number to every steem account, this should be trivial actually. Numbers could be assigned based on account registration date, there is about 140 000 accounts now, the first account created on steem has number 1 and the most recent account has number 140 000.
As an example, say my account is number 32 830.
New accounts will need a number to register ( an invite if you will) Now every users who registered an account with my number (32 830) will be users that I have referred.
I will be receiving say 1% of the authors rewards from all my referred users. So if someone that I referred earned say $10 on a post I will receive 10 cents for that post.
New users will give 1% of all their rewards to the person who invited them indefinitely, but they will also have the opportunity themselves to refer new users and earn 1% from them.
This is also a new way for non bloggers to make money, they can just refer as much people as they want and they will be earning an income. It could attract people who are not really into socializing on the internet.
A referral system is also aligned with steem vision, it is based on meritocracy, people who refer the more and most engaged and active users will earn the most.
The new multiple beneficiaries payout feature will allow people to give a certain percentage of their post to users, the referral system would do just that with a few added rules which is why I believe such system would be possible to build on steem at the blockchain level.
I really think this feature could create a powerful and unstoppable snowball effect. What do you guys think?
Let me know in the comments below
Steemit could benefit a great deal from a well-working referral system that would incentivize people to bring in new members.
If that function is realized, I will be happy. I think the referrer compensation function is a really good function.
I think you've come up with a brilliant plan for marketing Steemit via referrals.
This post needs to go viral!!! Because the Steemit/STEEM devs need to see this. You've even laid it out like a well maid bed for them to pretty much metaphorically lay on it, meaning you've done all the work. It's just a matter if implicating your process into the code.
Thanks and praise. V
True.. this needs to go viral, more importantly needs to be heard by decision makers of steemit....
It's my hope that by going viral this post will reach the decision makers. Other than that I really have no idea how they'd come to read it?
I'm even weary about a direct email having any influence. I need to look into what can be done.
Steem accounts already have a unique id number. You were actually really close with your example! Yours is 32490.
Top thing in the left box https://steemd.com/@snowflake
BitShares has a referral system. I'm a little fuzzy on why Steem doesn't. Referrals are a little tricky sometimes, because if refcodes are used in URLs it can lead to an impression that the site is a scam or just sponsors spam. But in the interests of incentivizing another front end or app to create accounts, I think it would be great if it worked something like how registering through BitShares' OpenLedger gives them the referral.
An limited invite system may also still be useful. Though really the phone registration gateway needs to stop turning away legitimate people.
Great!
Coinbase uses referral codes in their url..there are many other legitimate sites who do because word of mouth is the most efficient way of getting new users. Also It makes sense for a decentralized blockchain that users do their own marketing. And as the saying goes " there's no such thing as bad publicity", if people think it is spam or sponsors it doesn't matter because at least they will be aware of the site, something they wouldn't have been without the invite system.
Have you noticed that almost all crypto youtubers who post on steemit do not have a link to their steemit profil? This is because they have no incentives, with a referral system you can bet they will all put the link in the description of their videos.
One last thing, marketing is effectively sponsors spam, and to me a referral system is the best way to not give this impression, all other form of marketing are more offensive to users.
Most modern browsers don't really show any variables passed to the website through the url if it's after the question mark sign and you can also easily shorten your urls. It wouldn't be hard to implement referral tracking with a url shortener that could be built right withing steemit.com. I believe the benefits far outweigh the possible problems
On top of this, the fact that traffic to individual pieces of content from people not logged in (or even ones that are logged in?) has not bearing on the rewards means that people have zero incentive to share their steemit content outside the platform.
I totally agree with you... Steem should come up with some kind of referral system to enable fast growth.
I'm trying to be Steemit zombie all the time! Nice post! Thank you for the recent upvote!
great work! :)
If Steamit it will have a referral system it will go skyrocket , now people are not interested to promote Steemit because basicaly they dont earn anithing from that, if Steemit will implement a refferal system it will go to the moon but it will become more vulnerable.
I agree too! And if someone come by him/herself, this user can decline the référence and his/her 1% goes to the reward pool !
If someone register without invite then that person would not share 1% of its reward with someone else.
Giving users ability to decline affiliation defeats the purpose of a referral program. I actually think that referral programs works best when they are invite only but that's up for debate.
was I the only1 that found that zombie add creepy as hell ... the child bit the parents and made them zombies then went to they`re grandmas house !? come on ... itz like advertising using the black plague ... or you want your buyers to b zombies and buy without thinking ...
referral system is a good thing ... we all can agree on that ... but no more zombies or minions or any other demeaning comparison for the masses ... like sheep and so on ...