“I used to earn like $10+ a posting when I first started, these days I get so low, why ah?..”, “I am losing steem now, I get demotivated seeing such low votes..”, “Why some boring postings gets better upvotes leh?..”
First and foremost, a disclaimer: This post is dedicated to all Newbies (and not so newbies) that feels down every now and then because they feel they dont get upvotes. Take this as a boost to keep you going!
It can be disheartening to read or hear newbies asks questions like this. Some were just on board like few weeks to months ago. Can’t blame them because everyone has their own reasons to come on Steemit. These are valid questions nonetheless.
Certain expectations and unexplained reasons resulted in some talented Steemians leaving or spend less time at the platform.
There are a lot of reasons why some postings gets more upvotes and some don’t.
On the ’WHY’ part, below are just my general observation, and they may or may not be true. I am not an expert. If it offended anybody, I apologise in advance. Below observation is no way to imply on any one or party in particular.
Some Steemians who were already on board have already build their own followers, so naturally when they posted something on the platform, their followers will automatically respond accordingly (comments, upvotes).
Quality postings (contents) and catchy headlines works to pull people to read and respond.
Some Steemians prefer to read from the same authors or group of Steemian friends, so they only look forward to postings from the same gang, hence they may missed the postings of newbies.
Some high steem powered Steemians may have set bots that auto upvote their favourite Steemit contributors.
Some Steemians may left comments on postings but forgot to upvote.
Some Steemians are new and their upvote doesn’t carry much value yet so when they upvote, the value is less although their intention is sincere.
Some Steemians upvote doesn’t carry much value yet but they didn’t realise they have enough SBD to power up but they either don’t know how to do it or didn’t bother to do so, and as a result of this whenever they upvote others, the value always remain the same.
Shorter voting period (7 days) for Steemit’s postings to earn through upvotes. Although it is crucial to get everyone to upvote your postings within that period, it really depends on their free will and if they enjoy your postings they will upvote and leave comment. If you don’t have many quality followers (those with high steem power) or active followers (that follows and reads your postings religiously) chances are you won’t get much upvotes.
Don't expect to accumulate lots of upvotes when you only posted like 5 to 20 postings so far. Check out other established Steemians, most posted like hundreds to thousands of them.
Honestly, there is so much to learn on Steemit platform that I had so much fun reading the postings of other Steemians from other parts of the world. They are usually generous with information and willing to share their experience exploring certain methods to grow their potentials on the platform.
I must admit, some postings can be mind boggling for me to even process. This is due to the jargons used and especially those that involves technical.
To the newbies, here’s what you can do to keep your mind off the disappointments. I am not an exception myself as I am still learning everyday as well – just like you.
Be mindful of your expectations. Steemit is not a quick rich platform. It is built on contents and contributions from Steemians all over the world.
There is no money required to open Steemit account and yet you still earn, even if it’s just 0.02 on some days. When you accumulate all those earnings and convert to $$, nobody can give you that much of a cash freely.
Spend some time to read other good Steemians postings learn from them what makes their postings interesting.
Engage with EVERYONE. When people leave a comment on your wall, make sure to reply back and upvote accordingly.
Make new friends, not just the same group of people that you know. Those who are able to help poorly voted talented Steemians, do help them whenever you can afford.
Upvote sensibly. Well, you can't upvote everyone on the platform. There were like thousands of them out there and most of them write well. You need time to replenish your power to upvote too.
Have fun. Don’t dishearten too easily just because others earn better. There isn’t really an exact answer as to why they earn more although their postings sucks. The only reason I could think of is that they have the stellar support from the same followers/fans that voted for them.
It takes time to build followers/fans. Perhaps ask yourself what is your niche or what are your talents and what are you good at and build followers/fans around that area/niche. Say if you are good with Mahjong game with tips and tricks to win, focus on that. There will be Steemians that takes notice and engage with you.
Don’t rely 100% on Steemit to earn. Look for other alternative or ways. Don’t put all your eggs into one basket. Content writing is not for everyone, some are just talented with it and some may take years to be good at it.
Stay positive and be in good spirit always. If Steemit doesn’t work for you, there may be other areas that you are good at that you have yet to explore fully. Look out for it.
While putting my thoughts down on this, I came across a thought provoking article to read. You can read it HERE if you wish.
The writer made a choice to leave Steemit and he articulated his points. So whatever your reasons to come on board, only you know how to manage your expectation and outcome. It is always good to try and then later decide what’s best for you.
Phew! I hope you will take time to read this and understand the good intention of it. This is by far the longest posting I ever made.
I wish all of us the best on Steemit and may we learn/earn well.
Perhaps you have workable tips to share with other Steemians on how to:
- Increase good followers?
- Get into the good books of Whales?
- Get more upvotes from high steem powered steemians?
- How to come up with good contents and catchy titles?
Share them below!
Something About Angiechin28
Angie Chin is an Alpha Mom with a mission and founder of WonderWomen.Asia (coming soon), the first online portal in Malaysia that connects Women to affordable online learning, community activities, shareable contents, events, jobs and go-to market opportunities. At home, she’s a mommy to a 10 year old daughter, 6 furbabies + a grown babe. She loves travelling, cooking, exploring new food, reading and watching re-runs on Youtube.
Regularly posting up her ramblings and sharing contents (current favorities is Facebook & Instagram), she fell head over heels with Steemit after realising it’s the only platform that allows ANYONE to earn cryptocurrency by creating and posting up contents, even by liking, voting or commenting other people’s contents!
whatever you do on the platform, you will earn. Isn’t that awesome?
To start earning, sign up for Steemit already! Post up your original contents and you can almost start seeing the ka-ching in your account before you know it.
Best of all, it is FREE (Love the word FREE).
Life tagline (for now): Never be afraid to try anything once!
Drop her a note at wonderwomenasia@gmail.com
How to UpVote this 1000 times? Today is my first week anniversary on Steemit. Initially I was running on full charge, then half charge and almost down to zero last night with only one dim blinking light on my battery... made worse by not being able to upvote or write anything -- exceeded my Steemit bandwidth. ARGH!
As I am reading this post, could feel my battery being recharged and it is -- fully charged by the time I finished reading this article. Four super bright lights on my battery...
WOW Angie, you are a superfast charger!
Glad to know you are feeling recharged now @patlu. You know you have it in you. Just persevere and keep at it. You will get there someday. Have faith.
Funny la ini full battery charge! Hahaha
Pls take this as a friendly comment. Meme and motion gif is nice and funny, but it gave curator a doubt of whether it's even "original". Even when you run out of picture to post, make screenshots! Put up a catchy title. What happen to my upvote column?! Enlarge it and post it! That makes you a good photo and catchy enough. Who doesn't want upvote? Make use of open ended questions when you have this kind of engaging topics. Everybody wants to participate into something, not listening to a set of rules. Rules can be found on army camp.
I wish you have fun. Chinese curator team will drop by shortly to give you some support.
Thanks @davidke20 on the photo comments. Yes some are not original hence there is a source info. This post is to address some of the concerns posted by newbies recently, and to boost their spirits. Hopefully they wont feel demotivated too quickly.
Done.
I'm here to support already.
Good one Angie! Very encouraging for newbies like me. After 3 postings it felt like I was losing steem when I didn't get the votes I was hoping for. After reading this I understand better and am more motivated. Thank you
Hi, I felt the same way too ! Here's my not very high upvote . I am fairly new so it's not worth much. I too will persevere in blogging here. Will look out for your postings ! All the best.
Keep writing, learn from others and distract your mind from thinking or comparing. Treat it like just posting on Facebook or blog, except that here, you get votes that can be exchanged as $ later on. Just have fun and let it flow.
Trueeeeeee. I feel a platform is a platform. The key is to have fun & focus on the values you'e giving 1st. Give, give sometimes more giving then get. It's just the law of this life ;-) Great post Angie!
My dear bling bling sista @kedeeismalasari yes betul! Kita type away je. Have fun and siapa baca and respon, it means we have done our job dah...hehehe.
Very spot on @angiechin28 . Your points are all valid especially on the expectation part. A lot of people come to Steemit with the hope of making a lot of money or become a "whale" in a short period of time. They think it's easy. It's not. Even for us who have been around longer, it is still not easy. I am going to resteem this. It's a gem.
Thanks @coloringiship, this platform can make money BUT need to spend time and put effort. The only way to keep disappointment at bay is to just have fun while posting and don't expect too much. Wanna be a Whale ah? Jadi Ikan Buntal level also not easy! Lols!
@angiechin28 Very well written imo. You have given much points for not just newbies but also a visit down memory to others what new steemians face. When I joined, there were not many of us in teammalaysia. If you go back to my earlier postings my earnings were mediocre. But as teammalaysia community grew, I got more support as I get to follow more steemians. Will resteem this. Thanks!
Agreed @francesaw, you guys (the early adopters) are inspirational! The dedication is admirable. I truly think we should not compare ourselves on who writes better & who doesn't because this platform give equal opportunities for everyone to learn. Community growth will definitely come with the support , so its important that we continue the tradition. Just have fun and write away.
@ocd @originalworks
Well said Angie. Here’s my $0.01 for you!
Aiyah terima kasih @ladylei, kasi resteem to boost other newbies spirit is more important. Gambateh!
Ok boleh!
Alright, good explanation. Thanks, for encouragement.
Welcome @pizzapai. Anytime!
Keep going, keep posting, enjoy this platform and communities. Dont focus on return or payout. Those are just a bonus.
Yes enjoy! Like posting on blog and Facebook lor, except that we get paid here, even if its 0.02.
Hi, I was beginning to get a little disheartened too but I am determined to persevere. Your post definitely helped to give me a little boost ! I thought I was the only one not securing upvotes ! In any case, I have decided to plough on cos this will also give me a chance to relive my memories in the future. I am fairly new, so my upvotes has little impact....but you have mine ! Trying to learn the system as I go along !
The learning never stops @iceskatermom. I too feel like these newbiew in the early days, but as I pick up my writings, I take it easy and just do it for fun. Btw, I love your handle! I wish I could ice skate! lols. I can only imagine falling and landing on my butt!
With the right explanation, newbies will understand. I myself was roped into steemit because of its monetary opportunity. But I realised that monetary shouldn't be your main reason to be on steemit.
We need to contribute in adding value to our fellow steemian lives. In any way, you could possibly think.
Thank you for sharing.
Agreed @papanog. Steemit is like an ocean, so much to learn from others experience. I get new recipes, tips and even valuable reviews from other Steemians postings. The money is just a bonus if people upvote. I think people feel that effort should always equate to value and in this case, since they are on a platform that pays them when they contribute, they expect to get it always. Its all about setting the right expectation so you dont get disappointed.
Thanks! This is helpful and encouraging! Will share your post to friends who are new to this platform!
Thank you @maxyong
oh my. this is excellent! so well written I don't think you left any stones untouched. I had to share it with my community of newbies. we minnows always get discouraged and seeing $100, $200 posts in our newsfeed doesn't help at all! but yes I'm believing with you that as long as we keep at it, keep grinding and don't lose heart, we can eventually get better. thanks again for this amazing write up! :)
Thank you @calebleejl, its a collective thoughts and I feel the need to address it since we get these questions every now and then.
Really well written article. You've said everything that I want to say to a newbie who is expectant of receiving high upvotes without truely pushing their limits.
A lot of Steemians who are not committed on this platform will slowly wither out and won't/never get to that 50$ or 100$ upvote. This is the hard truth.
Though Steemit is supposed to be a fun thing, there is a certain level of commitment that needs to be involved.
From my own experience, when I started out, I spent 3-5 hours daily on Steemit. Now I spend more than 15 hours a day on discord and Steemit. constantly engaging with new people, communities and building my profile.
When i say to push your limits, it means are you engaging enough? On Steemit and on discord. Are you giving back to a community without expecting anything in return?
Lastly, ask yourself if you want to live off Steemit in the next 3-5 years. If so, do you spend only 2 hours on Steemit daily? I know we all have a life outside, I do too. But 2 hours on Steemit just isn't going to cut it.
Taken from my 147 days experience on Steemit
Agree @zord189. I don't think we all want to live off Steemit forever, lols. Thank you for engaging Steemians on discord. I learnt a lot from your posts too!
There are quite a number of very disturbing statements made by the commentator above. There are more than 1 way to touch your nose. Some people work hard on building on the quality of their work and then finally posting it. There are many good talents such as @edysveins and @afique and they are doing quite well without resorting to hours greeting people and building their 'relationship'. They don't spend a lot of time on steemit, but they spend a lot of time preparing their work to post on steemit and you can see it from the quality of their post. Many minnows are not lazy but they are just lost and that is when they need guidance. The people who introduce the platform to them need to show them a bit of the rope, not necessarily to spoonfed and guide them to the right community. If a community is based on talent, there won't be a situation of judging them based on their hours playing a PR pimp. Engaging is necessary but it is not a prerequisite to success. This is a level playing field, choose your game and decide how you want to play it. If that person is very happy creating good relationship all is good. If that person creates relationship through his/her work, it is also good.
To start saying this is the way to do it, coz I did it this way, is definitely myopic and downright hypocritical. It is an easy way of saying, please follow the leader in subtle whisper. To even suggest that I did it that way coz it worked for me, is akin to saying, pls see how successful I am, coz that is the way this game is played. That is just bloated ego.
Not that they are not pushing their limit... some of them didn't know how to do it in the right way... it's great if we can assist, educate and help them in their early stage... so they can understand the platform better and decide for themself it it suits them or not...
I guarantee without proper guidance from many great people i met here, i'm sure had left this platform in my 1st month...
Many minnows expecting some miracles... it's up to experience ones either to hate or to educate...
Agreed @sireh, most of them need guidance.
Great post. Everyone will think the same thoughts or experience the same thing at some point in their SteemIt journey.
I think SteemIt is similar to real life in a sense that not necessarily the best content will get the recognition it deserves and you often times can see post and articles of a questionable quality being upvoted with a high payout.
I do believe though that quality content will prevail and it will be the backbone of what keeps SteemIt a great space.
Thanks for sharing your awesome post :)
Many thanks @branlee87!
Thank you for putting this out there. Like many others, it is of course disheartening when your post that you worked hard on barely hits $1 but I always remind myself that I've invested zero money in SteemIt yet I'm getting something out of it, no matter how small.
Ever since I've started SteemIt, I've used more of my time on something productive and it was something me and my husband were looking to do. There's such a satisfaction when you write or create something, money comes second now but eventually it will pay off so we just gotta keep at it :)
Thats the mindset I have now @siren87. We invested only on our efforts and no money down to open the account too, so nothing is lost except time. No matter how small the value, we will eventually earn. Like stock market, the value always fluctuates too.
Nice info
Thanks!
Uplifting advice.
I guess I better plan out what I want to do with mine from now on. I like to think that I can do everything, but having a definite definition (lol redundancy) people can remember me by would do me a lot of good.
Time to go back to the drawing board...
You can do it @ohnoeshonoo!
Thanks for the info ^^
Welcome @akmalbastamam
Thanks.Well said and very helpful for a new comers like me
Welcome @padirazak
Thank you so much for this article. Super-informative for a beginner like me :D
Thanks @azmanzulkiply
thanks for taking the time to pen out simple directives like these, it's useful as pointers especially for the newbies and definitely a good reminder for the existing members too :)
Welcome @alimamasstory. Pleasure is mine.
@ocd-resteem
Hi @angiechin28, thank you for posting this. It is true I do ask these questions sometimes. I guess it goes down to the basics of marketing. Good reminder!