So you have followed every Tom Dick and Harry. Your following list reads 100’s, may be thousands, but none of them has followed you back. So your followers list is a miserable 2-digit, may be even 1-digit integer.
Instead of the serious high reputation whales you were targeting, the only follow-backs you get are from your same lot, 25-score newbie’s just joined.
Why doesn’t the 65+ reputation whale fall for your bait? Why won’t they follow back? You wonder. Well. Look no further than the simple fact that you are a bad follower. Period.
Let’s pretend I am the 65+ reputation score big whale with lots of steem power to pay your rent with just one upvote! And you somehow happen to follow me.
I see you on my followers list, but for every daily post I make, I never see you comment or even at the very least, upvote my posts, for the sake, not even of money - I mean, your vote is worth $0.01 at best – but for the sake of, God knows what!?
Why would I, for goodness sake, follow you back? In fact the really serious High reputation, abundant steem power whales even MUTE you so that your posts/comments never show in their active platforms.
So the question is: What does it mean to be a Good Follower
To understand what it means to be a good follower, start by asking yourself: “Why do you want followers?” Whatever your motive, it has along its trail, the desire to earn.
And that is perfectly okay. That is our advantage as Steemitians
Ideally this is how the trail involving followers occurs: each time you post on steemit, your post will be filtered out of the composite bunch of posts coming in all the time. It will consequently show up in the select feed of your follower.
Your follower will easily, and quickly access it. Of course he will then read it, and share in your writing. That should be the most important thing.
But then it is also likely that he or she will upvote you, may be even further resteem your post for the benefit of his/her own followers, and by extension, your benefaction as it will widen the reach of your post
This is how it profits you the followed author.
Does it answer the question of what it means to be a good follower? The answer is no, but at least it should have by now given you a good background for appreciating the need to be a good follower
So are you following anybody? Yes. And yes. You have been following every person whose post shows up in the various tags.
But the question is, and this is really important. Indeed, most important: when was the last time you actually even just read what those you are following wrote?
Do you even know that you have a feed to which their posts show? each time they post?
So if you are not reading their posts, much less engaging in informative commentary, of what value are you to the authors, to those you claim to follow?
How do you profit them, either in terms of the sheer pleasure that they are being read or even in terms of Dollars earned if you upvoted them, never mind that you command a $0.01 upvote value?
So what is the secret? Simple: if you want quality high curating followers, you need to start being a good follower.
The truth is, whatever the time you log in to your account to start posting, chances are somebody you are following has already posted.
So why not make visiting Your feed the first thing you do? Go there, read the posts of those you are following, start constructive discussions, if you are the first to comment, or join in the discussion, if you are a little late for the party.
The author of the post will read your comments. Nothing is more rewarding to serious members of the steemit community, than reading and sharing in the commentary of thoughts, ideas….in their posts.
And if in your commentary you should prove useful, why would not that person follow you back? Yes, the quickest way to know whether or not someone is worth following is to read their comments!
So again, you might need to make sure your comment is worth, otherwise you are better only upvoting the post, never mind that with a low 25 or thereabouts’ reputation, you offer very little value, but at least the commitment, the interest, is demonstrated. And that is enough to win you a follower!
This is not a guarantee, by the way, that you will get followers using this etiquette, as there are many other contributing factors, but at least it will put you out into the pool of those worth following.
There you have it, beginners/minnows, start growing your list of Followers. Climb above your 25 reputation cap!
well said buddy..liked it...:)
Well enough. The pleasure is mine. We are all still down and have much to learn, far to climb. I am glad you find this helpful. Thanks
The words I like the most..
The commitment and interest.. I feel these are the only ways to earn a living on steemit.
I love every bit of this article man.
Keep sharing.. Oh, @swissclive recommended it for newbies..
Thanks @joecxt. Glad you find it useful.
And, yes, @swissclive has been very supportive
tho this post may seem old @okusarobert but believe me, it aint old for we minnows because if many of us could just grab this few etiquette here on steemit, i believe we would all be swimming in the pool of riches one day. but the thing is many of the minnows and newbies are in a hurry to make money, to most of them, its always ''take, take, take'' not knowing that in life u have to be a servant before u can be a master, the more u render service to others, the more u go up. the earlier we realise this, the better for us. thankGod for folks like, @swissclive @humanearl and the rest of them(they are many, i cant mention all here) for tirelessly posting guides like this that we newbies can follow. im glad uve joined the train.. i wish to join soon.. im following you, for i want to continue seeing quality posts like this. keep it up bro! im following u, for i want to continue seeing quality post like this. keep it up bro! feel free to follow back.
You analyze the issue of minnows really well @happymichael. And i am glad you find my thoughts here useful. Lets remain in fellowship, and keep growing together.
Cheers!
Wow, this is soo explicit, thank you @okusarobert, your tips will definitely come in handy
I am glad you find the tips useful.
I am honored.
@okusarobert
You write very well.
My impression is that many new newbies do not read blogs like yours, but just plow right in and then end up being disappointed by the fact that nobody finds them and nobody follows them back. I know. When I started on the steam it in August it was just like that. I had to write a good Thousand comments and blog before people started to notice me..
The one thing which really comes out of this is that if you are going to write a comment on someone’s post, make sure that it is meaningful and much more than a couple of words. I have noticed that large numbers of comments are very short and I suspect the motive of quite a lot of these is simply “hey I’m here, please look at my profile and follow me”. In other words just trying to draw attention.
In this case, I have decided to follow you because of the high quality of this blog.
Hopefully all your blogs are of the same quality and I will find that out as I come across them in my stream.
Reading through your comments, just stroke me about a decision i have being trying to make for sometime now,
i am new here and am not actually a good reader, i literally do not write... Lol
I meet a mentor last december who is really great at speaker and writing and i was greatly inspired that i always visited his page atleast 3 times daily.
Normally i am a cool and reserved person, i do more of commenting than posting, however joining this platform and meeting folks like you, @swissclive @okusarobert, i think its my calling to join writing
I have a quick question for @swissclive and @okusarobert
Do you think persons who dont express themself or post on social media i.e facebook, instagram, twitter etc, have low intellectual?
You say it all to well. Thank you, a thousand times, for your acknowledgements and your follower-ship, and re-steem. I am committed to quality work. And will make sure to remain faithful.
Many times, my kind, that is, beginners/minnows, who start off with quality work, slowly degenerate and trade off quality for quantity, for the sake of trying to gain attention. I am conscious, fortunately, of this risk, and will make sure to overcome it.
Thanks for honoring me.
Great reply, @swissclive! I'm following you now because you are obviously one of those thoughtful people who really adds value to the platform. This reply is proof of that!
Cheers!
@mitneb
I am honored. Thanks a lot. And o, @swissclive is invaluable
You're welcome, @okusarobert!
Cheers!
@mitneb
Thank you @mitneb . Please join me and other valued steemians in helping newbies understan the rules and etiquette and how not to be seen as an annoying spammer.
Thanks for the information
Still new here and have alot to learn
You sure do, And you will. Otherwise welcome to the community
Good article @ocusarobert
very helpful
Regards, steemians
Glad you find it useful. Much thanks.
U are welcome😁👍 @okusarobert
Thanks okusarobert. I think you make an excellent point. I do try to go directly to my Feed first thing to read on some of the posts of people I follow. One right now that I enjoy watching his videos is David Packman. Really good stuff. Btw, I'm Following you now. Thanks again :)
I am grateful. very.
Hey, this is a very good post, especially for the newcomers to the platform. Keep writing good content, you will advance fast!
I agree. And thanks. Actually the success of this particular post is evidence of how quality content is finally rewarded.
if there was ever any doubt, then the success of this particular post, is evidence.
yep, and also thanks to @swissclive you got lot of exposure and also payments :D
@swissclive has honored me a lot. I can only pledge to writing more posts worth such honor. I am grateful.
Thank you. Sounds like some good advice.
Brent
It will help you progress farther on steemit, I trust.
This is like day 3. Still on such a learning curve here. I will certainly try to add it to my routine. Just glad to know what that number means. Do you celebrate the New Year in Uganda?
Brent
That number, 25, is very important for your success here at steemit. Work to make it rise, not fall!
You might want to look up a few articles dedicated to it. I hope i can assemble some links soon, and post for you.
Christmas and New Year are two of the most celebrated festivities in Uganda. Thanks
Good deal. Thanks for the response and have an awesome New Year's.
Brent
You too. Have great celebrations. Thanks
I shall do that, thanks.
Brent
This is well written @okusarobert
I will take the encouragement, in your writing, and in the evidence you have just shown, namely that quality content is finally rewarded.
I am also still a minnow, and a strong believer in the requirement for content quality. You might want to check out my own brief thoughts on something similar at https://steemit.com/photography/@ebitularmbert/my-thoughts-on-the-etiquette-of-posting-photographs-including-the-commentary
Overall, your advice comes handy. I have a great guide in @mitneb who dedicates much of his curation on newcomers with quality content.
I suggest you look him up to further promote this post. I am sure he will find it useful for the minnows/beginners he is intent on promoting.
Check out ocd-resteem. It is another place where you can promote this kind of quality posts. Here is a link to the article explaining more https://steemit.com/ocd-resteem/@ocd/ocd-introducing-ocd-resteem-get-resteemd-by-ocd
Thanks, again. @ebitularmbert
Great advice for the ocd-resteem, @ebitularmbert! And thanks for recommending me to @okusarobert for this article. I love it when people go out of their way to help each other. That's how we all grow! I'm a minnow, too! (Oh, and I am a lady :D)
Cheers!
@mitneb
You are welcome @mitneb. You are doing for us Minnows/beginners, an invaluable service.
I wish that all newbies would seek you out, as it would make their progress a lot easier, i trust. I am honored again.
And Oh, thanks for the clarification. Had actually thought you male!
No problem, @ebitularmbert, and thanks for the encouraging compliments! So many people do that I have decided to put my picture at the bottom of every article I write, and I also wrote an article about myself long after my introduction post to give a little biography and more pictures. I include a link at the bottom of my daily curation project reports.
Cheers!
@mitneb
The references have been very helpful, @ebitularmbert. I looked them all up. I am grateful. And thanks for sharing in my works, by the way.
at last i find something worth which i have to follow. Thanks for the post
Glad you find it useful. You might want to make it known to fellow minnows/beginners, of the same. I trust it is useful if we are going to succeed in Steemit.
Almost skipped this post... glad I didn't. You gave wonderful advice, it is advice that goes beyond steemit, into the real world. You must look at what value you bring to anything you are doing and to those around you. If you expect to just get something for nothing you will be disappointed.
Because when you do get something for nothing, you are a scammer in a way. Providing true value will profit everyone, but when you only leech, you take away, and in the end you know you didn't earn it.
Why am glad I read this? Because it is a great reminder that just commenting, honestly and truly is valuable, heck I know I love getting responses.
Thank You for you post. Blessing be with you.
You put it well @klevn. The idea of a true steemit community, for me, is that in which we each take genuine interest in the works of each other.
That way we afford time to share in their experiences, offering our honest opinions, giving honest encouragement, honest and constructive criticism... In the end, the idea is to be informed, but also to learn, and ultimately to earn. Thanks for your thoughts. I share them
Thank you for reminding me to slow down, read more slowly, and offer genuine comments.
Sometimes I get caught up in my own thoughts, and forget that just upvoting isn't as valuable as truly contributing my perspective.
I'm working hard to slow down, and to find true value. And I actually already know all this... lol.
Upvoting is about what most of us do! Hardly truly reading the post! This of course follows from the pressure of trying to make your own posts, so you come to think there is not enough time to read others' posts.
But true community, true value comes from sharing other peoples work, seeing their perspective, relating it, suggesting alternatives. Sincere and devoted writers take more value from such, that is, having their work read. if it is a story, having the experience of their characters discussed, having the moral of the story understood. ..
If it is an informative a post about cryptocurrency, the writer takes pleasure in knowing somebody out there has understood the metrics he has tried to demystify. Do you share the same opinion? How could it have been improved/said/done differently? That is what the sincere author who devoted much time to putting together, the writing i trust wishes, to hear/read. At least that is my experience.
Thanks again, for your thoughts.
Very truthful post with things to learn for us the beginners. To give example myself as a follower, in the beginning I didn't know the power of comments and appreciating the work of someone that published a post. Imagine what a surprise I had when a saw a comment rewarded with 3-4$ when my posts if they make 1$ in a good day.
So, the most important thing is to get involved and resonate at a certain level with the authors and get close, even emotional, to their sayings. When somebody is sincere and writes a post to share with others and also help others, gratitude needs to be given in return. Much appreciated!
Well said @cryptorg. The idea, as you so aptly state, is to get involved, share in the perspective of the author, relate to it, suggest alternatives. What could have been said/done differently? What is your take on the characters, if it is a story? What are your thoughts on the theme, if it is a poem? What do you make of the proposition, if the author is suggesting a new way to trade in cryptocurrency.
What have you not understood? What do you know about the same subject....
Such discussions are what make the cut, other than insincere only-attention-seeking 'great post', 'nice writing' ,'thanks for sharing' kind of posts. These kind of short comments should only come as a salutation or for signing off your elaborate comment.
Indeed the communication should be sincere and should add value through the perspective it brings from both sides.
I agree. Thanks again for your insight, @cryptorg
Thanks for sending me the link to this article, @okusarobert! It is a great bit of information for the super-newbies to get ahold of, and a good reminder to the rest of us. Commenting with thoughtful feedback, and also replying when people reply is a fantastic way to not only gain good followers, but it also pays in rewards. For a new minnow, making comments on other people's articles can be more profitable than authoring blog posts.
I just took a look at your blog page, and found your introduction post. I have commented on it, and am going to include you in today's curation report even though I couldn't upvote or resteem your intro post. I did this so I could say I've upvoted and resteemed this article as my daily post promotion for people whom I have previously curated. (haa, haa)
Cheers!
@mitneb
You offer to do too much for me!!! I can't be grateful enough. And thanks for elaborating on the matter of comments and how they pay.
I will look over my introduction post shortly and read your comment. Thanks again.
You're welcome, @okusarobert! Glad to do it!
Cheers!
@mitneb
Reach post. Keep it u. Have learnt enough from this post of yours. It's more profitable as you said above to fall among the first three persons to interact via comment on the post of the bosses(those with high steeming power)
Glad to know you have learnt from this post. I am honored.
well said @okusarobert you have a good writing skill keep it up man. one day your work will get all the stuff you deserve.
Thanks for the encouragement. I am honored
you are most welcome. it's our duty to encourage good writer. keep sharing your ideas
I will. Thanks again
It was really helpful for newbies. Keep supporting us we are the newbies.
Glad you find it useful. We all need to keep supporting each other. That way we'll progress much faster here. Thanks a lot. I am honored
i beg you some upvote as new year gift
here is my problem please look a it
https://steemit.com/steemit/@hasnain06/wish-you-happy-new-year-can-i-get-some-upvote-for-as-new-year-gift-your-upvote-can-help-me-a-lot-to-overcome-my-current-crisis
VERY WELL SAID!
This write-up is just it, I will hold on to this link, so I can always refer to the newbies, I bring on board, when you tell them about steemit and they are already thinking their one post will give them all the SBD they desire.
Thank you for this insightful post.
That would be great @adejoke. Let us try to help each other so that the platform is not abused. Thanks
@okusarobert Hello there! I'm newbie and i just started days ago. Felt a little disoriented but I am very glad I read your post. Very helpful for a newbie like me. Happy New Year! i will be watching for your next posts.
I am glad you found this useful. I trust it will enable you quickly, but constructively make a name in this platform. Thanks
This is actually one of the steps in my daily routine here on Steemit.
I can't say I'm making hundreds or even tens of SBD per post, but my follower count is steadily climbing, and each day brings its own small rewards, both to my own account and in the form of new knowledge and acquaintances who may one day become friends. Best of all, I am enjoying myself, having fun writing and enjoying the writing of others.
You put it in the correct perspective. Indeed, you just reduced, correctly, i might add, my paragraphs into 3 points! I am following you!
I am glad. Especially as you are enjoying the steemit experience. Rewards will shortly come, and accrue. But the key is quality, engaging followers. You are on the right path, @moneyinfant.
Excellent publication, especially for me, that I am starting in this community, and my greatest desire is to share my stories, with each of the members, and learn from them through the reading of their publications.
Sincerely
oscar
I am glad you found this useful.
Share your stories, mate. I will read them. The community will read them.
I am very happy to welcome you,
Robert
thank you for this post, I am new here on steemit and you really gave me some new thoughts with your words, you made it sound so easy and obvious, thank you and have a nice day
The pleasure is mine. I am glad you found my thoughts in this post useful.
Welcome to the community @sarong
Hello there @okusarobert :)
As a newbie, I always try to figure out the etiquette first before I get myself into trouble, no matter which kind of community / group I join. Most of the rules - everywhere I've been - have some sort of sense behind them and are easily followed by always staying polite, and using my common sense.
When you start out in this community, it is more essential than anywhere I know to take the time and read some guidelines like yours. First of all if you have no idea, like me, about cryptocurrency and such things, but on a social level it is additionally difficult, because you are bombarded by these offers and deals (like vote for vote and such).
I didn't think it was very ethical anyway, I just believe it to be dangerous to sell it as "the only way". If people believe that, then there will be no change.
Therefore I am grateful to read this other point of view to using steemit in a better way than selling my soul ;)
Thank you very much, have a great day!
I am moved by your attitude, mate. I am following you!
This was an excellent post. Good job. Very wise for your Steemit years, unless you have another account already.
I am glad for the compliment @steemmatt. Very Glad. Thanks
I am so glad tgat you put this up. Why on eartg did I not read this before when I started out .Everyday I was writing around 25posts for real are good or atleast worth 'considering' .I have written around 100 posts and none of them blessed woth anything.
Your words made me understand what STEEMIT as a platform is.
Thank you for this post of urs.
I am glad you found this useful. Keep writing, keep commenting Doing so exposes you out to many people who then follow you, and upvote you as well.
Overall, the keys are patience and perseverance.
I agree , thanks for your article @okusarobert i learned a lot. Thats why we need to support each other for the better community .
This is another valuable article that I have read by you. Even though I have been on this platform for several months, I still learned something of value from this article.
I hope you don't mind but I had to flag someone today and I encouraged them to visit your page for helpful tips on etiquette that you have provided in your articles. Thanks for putting out great content!