Why Steemit Should Have An Affiliate or MLM Program Like BitClub Network or Genesis Mining
Should Steemit reward members for referring people to the platform? Maybe give them 10 SBD when their referrals meets certain requirements (kind of like how Uber or Lyft will pay $50 or $100 to refer someone who completes 20 rides).
Let me break it down for you:
Pro's of a Referral or Affiliate Program
More incentive for members to share the platform. Right now there isn't any compelling reason I should share Steemit. I don't get any money, recognition, or status upgrade. The only possible reason I would be incentivized to share Steemit is that it could lead to more followers. But this isn't a guarantee. It's one thing if someone who ALREADY has a massive fan base comes on Steemit, because then their following will want to read their content on this platform. A good example would be @jeffberwick. He has a huge YouTube and Facebook following, so introducting his followers to Steemit would equate in more devout followers, and thus more income.
The other benefit of me sharing Steemit is that is grows the community, and therefore increases the chances of this company to be around for years to come. The more active users = more stability and growth within the Steemit community. But for most, this reason isn't enough.
People are inherently selfish, and many come on Steemit to make money. So if people got paid (even a small amount), then they'd share it with more people (and even invest in paid advertising).
Cons
1. It could change the entire payment structure of Steemit. I'm not a programmer, but adding a complex MLM structure (or even a simple 1 or 2 tier affiliate program) could take a lot of time and money to implement.
2. Most importantly, the focus would be off creating great content and instead about pushing people through a funnel getting them to sign up. Many online schemes and even legit MLM's have failed because people sign up in the company to then enroll others, and there isn't a viable product. If we implemented an affiliate program in Steemit, there'd be a massive influx of new users JUST here to make money. Which is why Empower Network failed, because people got involved just to get others signed up.
Conclusion
Steemit is growing rapidly from pure organic growth. No incentives. No affiliate program. I believe that an MLM or affiliate structure isn't needed, and would degrade the value and quality of this platform.
What do you think?
Nope, affiliate programs bring out the worst in people to scam and cheat a system by signing up themselves etc. Also you are rewarded for bringing in other people. You should be promoting your pages which most likely means they are going to follow you and thus upvote your content which in turn gives you "money" I honestly would not change a thing about Steemit as its growth is rapid and there is no need for an affiliate type program.
Hi @bitcoinflood,
Your thoughts on this are similar to mine. In a sense, the MLM system is already in place in that if you bring people you know to Steemit, they are likely to upvote your posts because they know you. This is already bringing in a lot of new people and will likely exponentially grow the platform.
Let's say someone didn't have a big "network" of friends, but were really good at paid advertising and building a list. So they could drive thousands of new members to sign up. Wouldn't that be a good thing, in the end? More members? And is each member "worth" something to the Steemit founders? Like is there a monetary value for each new sign up? Or no?
I think there's more of an incentive for the content writer or person good at advertising than for the founders of Steemit. If I could get a lot of people to follow me on Steemit, that's probably more valuable to me than it is to the founders of Steemit.
I may be wrong about that, but I don't think so. If you have looked at the Steemit growth over that past few weeks, it's incredible. Over 20K people in just a week or so. That's 10% growth of user base in less than a month. Whatever they are doing, it's working!
Agreed!
agree
I have same thought here, with referral or MLM, spamming and bot registration will be order of the day, as more users will have more alabi and fake accounts that will be dumped once the bonuses are achieved.