but add an icon that lets you know that it's a promoted post.
I like that idea a lot. It's been something I've been throwing around here and there for quite awhile now. Then, with the simple push of a button we should be able to hide or show promoted posts as well.
I'd like to be able to scroll through the feeds and drop a large vote(I miss when the value was high and my vote was worth $10) on a minnow with the hopes someone else would then notice, then people start piling on.
Awhile back, people didn't like the piling on effect(it used to exist) but that was because it was happening to the same in crowd far too often. If it's done right though, that's how we get good quality trending posts day in and day out. Just finding those diamonds in the rough. That's so hard to do these days and someone always comes along and bumps them down with a paid for vote or two. So frustrating... but I won't go on another rant! LOL!
Weeeeeell I think it would need to be done per individual post because if there was a global button to turn them all off, it would be a similar problem as the current Promoted page. Promoting a post would add very little additional value.
I think the key here it trying to tread the line of making it valuable for a legit user, but not valuable for spammers, or as @javicuesta mentioned someone trying to use it as a business plan to milk the system. Thanks for stopping by! I knew you wouldn't be able to resist this one ;p
The problem is by who or how is determined a "legit user". There should be some trusted curators that allow some user to get to the trending page, somehow like it´s happening in the MSP, that you can be banned if your content doesn´t meet the rules or guidelines aproved by the mayority but that´s a hell of a job that´s not likely to be done.
The posibility of filtering content is as easier solution that migth work. Making the job easy to the people that want to curate quality content. I don´t know if Smart Media Tokens will have some effect on this since I don´t really know the posibities that they open, but I think (I trust) the platform will continue to develop and will find a way. :)