What I am trying to figure out is, if this platform will actually be worth it for the majority of content writers/creators.
My worry and what I personally see is a very small few with the voting power to actually reward a post. The majority of us mean squat with our votes. Was it rigged to be that way from the start? I don't know it's possible, or maybe an oversight? For this to have any longevity that issue will need to be addressed or this won't gain enough traction for the majority to stick around.
As more people join, I see the reward distribution getting extremely diluted to the point where no content creators (ones who do this for a living) will stick around for a measly few bucks on a post/article they spent hours on, where they could have spent that time on other outlets such as Upwork as an example.
Today is a perfect example of what I am saying, I released a post that I started working on before I even found Steemit (planned to use elsewhere where I know it would have done well) but I thought I would release it here in hopes it did well. So far it made .72 cents, by the time it pays outgoing by past experience it will be half that. In total I had well over 20 hours into the post if not more (didn't keep track as it was just a project I was putting together in between other work.) .72 cent return on 20 hours is a very bad return on investment, the sad thing is it got some votes, but quickly faded into the void because it never had a chance in hell of one of the very few people here that can actually make it noticeable to garner traction equaling a reward for all the time spent.
My other issue with the system is, people vote by their own personal interest. My guide was on Filipino Food wrote at a level for the masses to use and understand. It seems the mindset here currently is the content needs to be written on the level above the majority, which in my opinion is a mistake if anyone wants Steemit to become a true social media platform to compete with a giant such as Facebook. What one person deems useful, helpful and good another may not, but you @dan @ned @whales have too much voting power to allow decent content that others might find valuable that someone else may not have that actually has the voting power to keep it noticed and rewarded for it.
This got longer the some of the damn posts I have seen with thousand dollar payouts, so I think I will leave it at that. If things remain the same as they are now, I am afraid my internal unshared thoughts of Steemit might come to fruition which would be very disappointing as it has a potential to be a great thing for writers and content creators, I just hope personal greed doesn't ruin it.
❣ Jen ❣
It was very purposefully designed that way. Think of it like a corporation. Voting power is acquired by purchasing shares. The more shares in the company you own, the more votes you have. Don't mistake it for some kind of hippie commune where everyone has an equal voice. The platform takes shape according to the preferences of those who invest the most in it and have the most at stake. The key to a satisfying experience here is to be honest about the reason you're posting. If you are posting things you like because you want to share your art and get your message out, then be happy with that outcome and forget about the money. If you want to make money, then you have to accept that you're getting into business and making products for people. As in any business, the key to making money is listening to the paying customers and giving them what they want. Actually, I did a video on this topic a little while back. Link is here
If this is the case like you said, I have to question longevity here.
Of course, I am here to make money, anyone who says they are not at this stage of the game is either delusional or a liar most likely, it is pretty much its whole selling point to the masses.
❣ Jen ❣
Hi jenelyn. In my opinion, the Steem network has many advantages that would still make it desirable, even without the opportunity to make money from posting. Just think about how insanely fast transactions and blocks confirm on the network. We have ~200 blocks confirmed in the time Bitcoin has 1! And on top of that, there are zero transaction fees. The truth is, that many of the applications that we were hyped about being made possible by Bitcoin, can probably be done more efficiently on the Steem network. The money-for-blogging aspect of this experiment is just one facet.
That is all foreign talk to a content writer and creator :P But, the good thing is Steemit has got my attention and I need to do a ton of reading up and some studying on what you are talking about, so thats a good thing. Bringing new people into the world previously unknown.
If that's the selling point, it shouldn't be. I mean, "a way to make money" can mean a lot of things. The point is that money is paid to content creators rather than to centralized owners of the website. It doesn't mean there's a guarantee you can make money or that it's a path to riches.
And I don't think that's right that the rewards will be diluted as more people join. As more people join, there's also more attention and belief in Steem, and more money invested into it. So more of a middle class over time, most likely. And then smoother payouts (more people with some steempower) and less all or nothing based on whales.
Well it is their selling point, its says something about "your voice is worth something" in which they are referring to a payout. Which is great, I am merely saying the system needs some tweaking to allow more people meaningful voting power then it currently sits or the majority won't stick around.
Yes, I don't look at Steemit as a get rich or a path to riches, but I do look at as an outlet as content creator where I can get paid for my content and if the reward isn't on par with other outlets there is no point in spending the amount of time it does to write a quality article here on Steemit, thus leading back to my statement of I have to wonder about longevity of Steemit.
I don't mean to sound negative, the platform has a ton of potential, but I am just pointing out possible or probable issues that might affect its success if left unchecked. As you can tell am not one of those bandwagon jumpers, but I am defiantly giving it a fair shake and trial.
Actually steemit is a gamechanger, what means it is still not too late to get on the steem boat.
But you need to consider, it is worth to invest anything- it might be too late to get a good return, and the risk is kind of big because still, steemit is something new and we cannot say it is 100% sure that it will remain to for the next 2 years.
People trust steem network, so it is worth it to still get on the boat.
But times of enormous return from small amount invest here, have passed. Now we have to adapt to the current circumstances, and i would say working daily for your account would make a thing.
I would definitely disagree about it being too late to get a good ROI... but only time will tell.
I have not said it is too late, but im sure that it is too late to expect the same growth as you would have like a month ago over here.
Im just saying that it is not the same, but probably investing into steempower is still a great idea, it will yield a good return anyway.
I think we'll see much more growth in the future than we have ever seen in the past. I would not be surprised if the price reached $1,000 in a year.