Success! It's what we all crave. After my exciting 100 Post a Month challenge to myself it only took 8 days of posting to achieve an incredible goal of $100+ on a Single Post.
I'm super excited to give my experience and advice on how you can do this on your very own minnow account, to the best of my teaching ability!
Here's 10 Tips to Follow that I Did:
1. Don't be Reluctant to Plug your Article
Leave a thoughtful comment on a similar post that you actually read, and relate it to your post. I guarantee if you put a little effort people will like our contribution and not consider it spam. You can also earn rewards for commenting, in case you didn't know.
2. Write Long Posts when You have a Lot to Talk About
Maybe it was an autovote-bot (programming to vote up long articles) or a nice whale who read it, but my first $100 post was one of my longest; at 1,300 words. Despite the short attention spans these days, it's very much appreciated to be thorough. Better to have more than you need than less than is adequate.
3. Promote It: Free or Paid
I can't tell you how you got here, but many new users must be bitcoiners coming in. Transfer some of that bitcoin into SBD (Steem Dollars) and find one of the people that Promotes Steemit Posts for just a few dollars. It will definitely help jumpstart you if you have the funds to do it! There's also excellent ways to promote for free on other platforms like Reddit and on Steemit Chat.
4. Make sure to Introduce yourself!
New users on steemit should do everything they can to build their brand; and one great way is also well respected: Use the introduceyourself tag and tell a simple story of why you're on here, and if you like, your personal background or life story. Tell as much or as little as you want, but I'd recommend giving some substance people can chew on and appreciate.
5. Respect the Rep!
That little number by your username that everyone has, yeah that usually corresponds to the level of influence a user has on this site. I can remember just days ago when mine was 47 and now I'm at a cool 51 and still growing steady. Keep this in mind when you're deciding who to interact with and the behavior of users on here; this will show you how to make it big if you follow the model of those that have already achieved success!
6. Be Creative and Original
No one wants the same old tired information. Checkout this post, First Ever Recorded Live Child Birth On Steemit in 16 hours it's rewards are $175 with a post of a video and mostly images; they are being rewarded for being original, fascinating and entertaining.
7. Don't be discouraged by low returning posts
The post I mentioned about that made nearly $200, that user right now only has 257 followers who sometimes only made $2 per post, but also sometimes $10, $20 or $30. Rewards are not consistent. We can't predict what will be a success, but if you keep persevering and producing, you're just the more likely to be rewarded.
8. The Headline is Incredibly Important
Not only does your post need to be original, make sure to exemplify this fact in your headline. Frame things in a way that engage or trigger the mind to react like "wow, I have to read about that". Each time you pick a cool story also give as much thought to a good unique headline.
Here's Some of my Headlines that 'Failed':
10 Signs You're Dehydrated - $0.22
I spent a lot of effor ton this article so it was disappointing to say the least. I think my title was too generic, as any random health site could discuss the same issue. It's also an unappealing topic. I later changed the title to "10 Less Mentioned Signs of Dehydration" because it is at least more descriptive that my list is not common items. I got an excellent comment that I can no longer seem to find...basically recommended for this kind of unappealing topic to be correlated to a recent event, such as a marathon, or major news story about dehydration. Think about this tip when you're passionate to write about something that may still seem a little boring.
Out of Control Eating: Food is Too Convenient - $0.09
Since our steemit audience here is a lot of conscious Americans, I guess everyone is already familiar with this problem. Also because it was posted at 2AM could have dinged me.
STEEM Dollars up 1,200%?! - $0.00
Oh, what was I thinking. I was greedy making this short ridiculous post. I tried to jump on the bandwagon of a price anomaly that sounds bullish on Steem but really just a waste of people's time. Sorry for this one guys.
Here's some of my Headlines that Succeeded:
The Problem with Bitcoin ATMs - Use Case: Trying to Get Dash Locally - $2.39
2 Bucks is 2 Bucks, but really...this was only my 3rd post and I was super excited to get some rewards for it. Having no influence whatsoever way back then I was elated. I was speaking to an audience very receptive to cryptocurrency and giving my own personal experience that my slight expertise warranted.
5 Websites that Steemit will Overtake in Popularity by the End of 2017 - $10.97
This was my first major success. After I wrote this I reached out to my friend @bullishmoney who generously cross-promoted it for me. Sometimes that's all you have to do is reach out to the right person you feel would love your article. In general this was an exciting post for steemians to enjoy, @bullishmoney probably had the better headline with "Steemit Is Already More Popular Than You Realize!". He earned $48.69; a Win-Win all around!
Opting Out of the System - $32.76
BOOM. With this post I felt like I made it to the big leagues and my effort was finally paying off. I'm sure this post went organically viral because of the popular philosophy we all have here to buck the major corrupt system.
9. Create an Original Image if You Can
Once again use the whales and dolphins as an example. The Great content creators usually have their own custom images, often with text overlay of the headline. To find copyright free images (to play it safe) select "Labelled for reuse" under google images 'usage rights' under their "Tools" dropdown.
10. Timing is (Almost) Everything
I've often failed on this one. I work late, and often enough post in the middle of the night. Research I've seen and my own results show that you do get a bit of a leg up by posting during peak hours, possibly 3PM to 6PM Pacific Time in the US.
11. Comfortable Reading
Comfortable reading means spacing out paragraphs, categorizing by using headers like I have in this post, as well as throwing images in there (something I'm neglecting here because this post is about teaching rather than entertaining).
There we are. I originally had only 10 tips but that's pretty cliche these days and tip #11 is definitely important I think.
Words: 1,241
Effort: 50%
Purpose: Education & Inspiration
This has been Mike Parker and I'm a Steemian!
Really nice and interesting ..........thanks for all the tips
wow how'd you make $17 on this comment?!
No kidding. I'm so confused by this place but I will persevere!
These Are Definetly Some Great Posts, Thanks Bro :)
This post received a 4.8% upvote from @randowhale thanks to @steemian69! For more information, click here!
Thanks. You definitely got upvoted
I love reading articles like this , lets me know the community is doing great.
you have a great one too :) steem on
This post received a 3.0% upvote from @randowhale thanks to @mikeparker! For more information, click here!
thanks randomwhale
Thank you for the observations; it is difficult to stand out out on this platform.
Just like building any small business; the beginning is rough; until you establish yourself. Build your brand by providing value for the community. In some sense it is largely entertainment value, often times just improving people's moods and sharing stories.
Thank you Mike for the response. You nailed with the above response. Many people are also looking for answers about crypto's, the wild financial swings, and more honesty in social media. Thank you for helping me
Again thank you! I have been working as a freelance writer, but its always what my clients want. I have been looking for a creative outlet for a long time for things I want to write about. Still dipping my feet in the water, and not expecting much! I have so much to share and enjoy what others are sharing. That alone is worth its weight in gold to me :)
Welcome to steemit!
Hope the tips really help you. gave you an upvote and liking your spiritual-esque work
Thanks Mike!
That's a nice topic and good stuff to think about.
I'm new myself and still trying to find the right way to bring my stuff and make it stand out.
I make vlogs about my work as an indoor skydive instructor.
It is as exciting as it sound but now I need to get it out there :-)
I'm sure the part of the titles will apply to me...
I would appreciate it if you could give me some advice on what titles would fit my topics better...
Anyway,
Best of luck and regards
Well sounds exciting enough; are you in california?
I would say:
Get your images brighter, more personable perhaps your smiling face looking out of an airplane
Make your TItles more about the personal experience than the physical setting (wind tunnel)
something like
"My first wind tunnel experience:
"Family has a Ball in Zero Gravity"
just some thoughts ;)
Thank you very much for your feedback!
I will take it in account.
It's true, I'm still a bit clumsy with it but I'm very motivated to put in the work and follow the learning curve.
Cheers!
great, stay motivated my friend; build the brand. Marketing is #1
Will you take a look at mine @Kimmydee2? It would be much appreciated if you get a chance. Thanks :)
DONE
I like your stuff a good range of interesting content. Keep up the good work.
thank you; enjoy the philosophy? What would u like to see more; tech, health, life
Yea man love philosophy. I enjoy all those topics.
get your post on and build that rep :)
Steemit honestly keeps on baffling my mind - I will faint if I get a 100 dollars for my posts hahaha
Your rep is higher than me! Make it happen!
I see most of your page is reseteemed
Great tips, this is how you get a $100+ post :)
@stackin you da man :) - Promoted this post as well; just building my brand
Thanks for the tips. I'm working on my second ever post for Steemit now and will implement what I've learned here. I'm using my own graphics and trying to make my post relevant and thought-provoking.
of course. Erick cool avatar. I haven't much researched resteeming but it is crowding your page, hard to find your original content - besides that; glad to have you in the crypto world
Is it true there's bitcoin or blockchain classes taught at MIT?
Thanks, made it from scratch on Paint haha.
There's blockchain classes which are more about cryptography. But there's also an MIT Bitcoin Club and a Digital Currency Initiative which have been great resources for interested students like myself.
Good point on the crowded page, I don't like that resteems look nearly identical to the author's posts. I've only made one post so far though so as I make more, I plan on being more selective on my resteems.
Actually, I just published my second post. Since it looks like you decided to go with a real name, I was wondering if you'd be willing to contribute your thoughts as to why you chose your name.
I want to be in for the long-term so i made the decision to build the brand around me. but I have other projects I could have picked a brand and may have other steemit accounts for those projects in the future.
I was worried of being diluted; spreading myself over different brands or risk a brand failing and then worrying about the name being not applicable anymore.
That makes sense. It becomes easier to start secondary accounts once you have one built up because you can direct your followers over there.
Haha, the brand dilution and the name not being applicable are two things I talk about directly because I went through the same thing.
and have the experience of building :)
Cool article. It's not easy working through all the disappointments. Glad you're making it work
it's true that it sometimes feels hard when your posts don't get the right attention.
But I feel this community is much much more accessible than other centralized ones (without mentioning the names)
Anyway... like you said, believe and steem on! :-)
thank you :) please share your story
haha... mine is pretty much the same as yours. It felt terrible when the posts I had written before got so little attention. But I understood that without a proper follower base and exposure, it would be difficult to get eyes to your blogs. But I've seen that consistency does make a difference. So does participating in contests and commenting and engaging with others :)
I keep it in the back of my mind that when I get bigger I will revisit the same topics I posted in the beginning if I feel they're important to share with a wider audience and/or deserve more attention.
The chicken and the egg problem. What comes first? Quality posts or Large Following? We have to give pretty good quality to build the following even though we may regret the effort as we don't see immediate rewards. It's investing in the future of building the brand.
Contests that's something I should do more of
Hahaha. I too think about reposting. Already done it twice xD.
But they did worse the second time :( maybe because i mentioned that it was a repost.
eorse? flag or erase?
Lol... worse* sorry. My phone is weird
Thanks will do. Good interesting advice.
good good
Thank you for this article. I have been trying to do some research on getting my content out and name known in a few months so I can have secent prizes at the start of my daily pick em for NBA. That said, I think I may have to make my own 100 post challenge as this is day 4 or 5 for me and I've only written 3 articles thus far. I will have funds to promote articles within a few days and hopefully that helps.
Thanks again for the emense amount of info in your article. For anyone interested in my daily NBA pick'em contest I mentioned, it is discussed at lenght here.. https://steemit.com/contest/@sixersfeds/nba-daily-pick-em-announcement
I think you got an uphill battle; there's a lack of interest in sports here:
http://steemit.com/created/sports - unless its UFC I guess?
yeah; some days I write 4 posts; some days im taking time away from technology
helpful post
great
Brilliant Mike!!! I am actually coming in just to blog somewhere that is worth my time and effort. Plus, there are great people to interact with. These are some of the best tips I've read today. Upvoting this post and re-Steeming for ya! Thanks with much gratitude!
keep up the good work. Followed :)
@mikeparker, why is all my stuff being greyed out? I'm really super new and I'm putting alot of thought and hard work into my posts. Seems like a waste of time, but I'm sure it's just something I don't understand yet???
Wow, great story of your success and failed story..but it inspired me on how to get success by sharing your strategy..
great stuff
Thanks for your help,I`ll have this in my favs!
anytime! Let me know how it goes
Like your post
gracias; let me know how to improve
I am learning similar things as I go, it is so hard early on when you put in loads of effort and see next to no return and then when one of your articles blows up big it makes the effort worth it.
I have learnt you just roll with the low earnings and keep going and it pays off in the end :)
Just like building any small business; the beginning is rough; until you establish yourself.
yes exactly as I say for Tip #7
thanks for the info, it helps a lot :)
I'm glad :)
very informative
great to hear :)
Thanks ... This really got me educated as well as inspired... Going to work around the tips u gave ... Not giving up ☺
happy to hear. how long you known steemit? Seem to be growing fast
Great tips! It can be so frustrating to spend time on a post and not reach anyone. You present here a nice list of things for anyone to check to see how they can connect their content with their audience in a better way.
Thanks!
yes check it off the list of TO-DO's for growing :) I've been in marketing for years so that helps
it is hit or miss for most, just stay the course and be true to yourself
The hit is miss is ALL about Marketing
Nice info! Thanks for sharing. :)
make it happen!
Thanks for the great input!
I appreciate the tips!
Any questions as well don't hesitate!
Thanks
For me being new to Steemit this article was really helpful.
If you have any tips on how implement images on a mobile device that would be appreciated.
Again all around great info and thanks for sharing!
you're welcome there, any questions please don't hesitate
how many hours do you spend daily on this site
Some days 2-4 hours, some days 1 hour
average at least 1.5 to 2 hours. I work pretty fast when I'm writing. And I'm always multi-tasking researching things off and on throughout
Great question!
Some good tips in there, thanks! I am working on expanding my readership and another thing worth mentioning is don't make your posts too long. Longer is good, I totally agree, and my 2000+ word posts have earned me the most so far (even though I don't have that many posts in all), but as some of my readers suggested, breaking them up into easier to digest chunks improves your chances of "hitting the lottery". Cheers!
wow It's Over 2,000!
Good point on potentially breaking up long ones; never thought of that. I tend to write on the shorter side though. 800 to 1,300 words; maybe I'm auto-piloting at the sweet spot I hope!
This is very helpful in trying to create my brand on here. Thanks again.
anytime!
Thanks for the tips, I will certainly take some notes. One thing I haven't done yet it to create an 'introduceyourself' post. I will get that done today.
You better! Still waiting on it, are you being Lazy and Afraid?
This is a great article, going to upvote and resteem. I have been trying to advance closer to the big leagues myself! This was very insightful!
thanks man. Most want to be famous on here don't we :) Could we handle the pressure? ;)
Great tips you get here. My service help also. @mikeparker
This post has received a 100% upvote from @melowd. Thank You for sharing.
Wow, these are really good tips... planning on implementing them as I am interested in being "heard" in the community. Thanks very much for the valuable information.
anytime; please come to me if you need any more advice!
Now this is a post that I like :)
I wil resteem this to my followers (and for myself so I easier can find it again )
I dont think its only for minnows, I think regulars also can learn from this.
I deffinently agree that timing is everything, I do however think that what pays the most on steemit is travel and crypto, its like the 2 biggest things ive seen here, I havent seen anything comming close to that.
Thank you for sharing your experience
Thank you thank you; Maybe I'll be a dolphin soon; whatever that is. I'm sure people would say I have enough power to be called one already.
Yeah that's one genre I haven't touched on; travel; though I love it, often don't want to get that personal.
I love cryptocurrency too; just feel like I don't have any special expertise most of the time. I'm a big picture guy. I enjoyed posted like this sort of on the philosophy of bitcoin, Why Seg-Wit is a Trojan Horse
I guess I could start crypto/philosophy posts, great inspiration here :)
Good tips! And it does make a lot of sense c: Putting in just a little more effort can and does make a huge difference overall in how posts are presented. Keep it up man <3 followed and resteemed!
and overall the theme is to be positive about your own content; be happy with what you write, I should have said that. Our passions in action deliver good quality!
When I'm not that passionate about a post and just more greedy that's usually when I don't get the rewards.
It's key to try your best, everything else is a bonus~
do the best we can :) but not get overwhelmed
Hope for a miracle but expect to be disappointed. And 99% of the time you'll land somewhere in between and appreciate it :)
Yeah, the point is to have fun and learn new things! The making money part comes later c:
G'day. I like it. I'm going to try and follow all the tips in my next post and see what happens???
come back and let me know! It's also a long-term process and learning experience. Baby steps are more easier to eliminate to; but if you're not overwhelmed go for it! Do it ALL!
G'day Mike. It's been a while but I finally found some time to do a new post. I tried to use some of your ideas (not all as I had to do it in a hurry).
I would appreciate your honest opinion - be brutal if you must!!
Thanks, Wayne.
https://steemit.com/teamaustralia/@plumey/de-grid-me-4-how-to-build-a-simple-outdoor-bush-solar-shower-the-early-days-part-2
will do thanks
Nice breakdown - been meaning to create an original , custom image for a while. This weekend I hope if I don't fall into my customary procrastination mode ;)
And thanks for the headline examples, using your own posts.
yes; image and headline; im sure most people are voting just based on those alone
Very nice guide, you didn't mention much about tags except the introduceyourself, got any other tips on that front; picking the right tags?
Great critique.
There are not that many major categories that you want to pick for your first tag.
bitcoin
cryptocurrency
steemit
philosophy
life
those are the ones I know
start with the most important tag and then get more specific later to niche or less-related to your content tags.
You inspire me as a new comer. I read all the content of your post. Thanks a lot. I hope I can be like you. I will follow you.
Regard from Aceh, Indonesia.
wonderful :) my goal with the post, besides brand building ;)
How is it in Indonesia, have you been to USA?
Indoneaia is a big country.with many lopulation. It is ranked 3 in the wolrd. Today is our independent day.
Indonesia will be a good destination for.people or IT Company to invest their capital here.
We love sosial media, as well. Hehe
Wow..it will be amazing for my life if I can visit USA someday.
happy independence.
Will try that 100 posts a month challenge!
I'm approaching the end. I'd have to write like 50 articles to meet my goal; but the point is to set big goals; shoot for the moon and even if you miss you should still make it to the stratosphere :)
Tou are doing great, mate.
Your account is newer than mine but has more followers and more interactions than mine, make an article giving tips and sharing what you've learned and I'll be really glad to learn from you :)
yeah soon I'll do a sequel to this post because I have even learned a lot more in just a week. My followers are rapidly approaching 300 too.
Hi, i think this is an exellent post, i'll apply this advices and wait for good results, thanks for sharing this info, you earned this upvote, best of luck in your way here.
best of luck to you too
Thank you for this GREAT post! I will definitely try to keep these things in mind from here on out.
good luck and welcome to steemit
Very helpful information and attitude, Mike. It is clear you take the time to observe and learn, as you explore possibilities here on Steemit and express yourself, so thank you for sharing your process and lessons. Will look forward to seeing more from you. Have followed you - please follow me (-:
thank you; very kind words :) will check you out
These are surely very useful tips. But still not enough. At the end of the day marketing, interactions with other posts and luck plays the major role!!
all of it; all the time :)
Very useful information!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing....
of course!
Congratulations on this post, your tips are very useful.. I did not know about platforms like Reddit and Steemit Chat.
make good use of them ;)
Awesome! I was looking for a good breakdown like this.
glad to be of service :)