RE: The Beginner's Guide to Steemit: A New Initiative to Bring STEEM to the Masses
Hi @ethandsmith, I have seen several different initiatives to try and bring Steemit to the wider community, and I think this is definitely something that works best as a collaborative project. The idea of writing in plain English allows the content to be translated in different languages as well because there are many communities that don't speak English but contribute a lot of content.
As you said, the introduction is definitely important, and we don't want to make steemit seem like a community just like any other social media network, so it is really important to find that point of difference. I think steemit might be the closest to what I have seen to 'effective altruism', where people are willing to help each other in the most effective way possible through a blockchain system, whether it is by teaching, learning, collaborating or direct donation to another individual - and that's just the beginning. It definitely isn't just going to exist online because there are initiatives like @steemfreepress and @thesteemhouse in the pipeline too.
Off the top of my head, I think it would be a great idea to provide examples of the different types of users on Steemit and what they do. Another area people struggle with is earning SP and SBD by posting, but there's also plenty of contests around like @moneyinfant's list of writing contests and @artz's list of contests as well as @newbiegames.
Plus you might want to talk to the following people who have done a lot in terms of training, mentoring and helping newbies in their Steemit journey:
- @pennsif's course outline and the assoicated post: https://steemit.com/promo-steem/@pennsif/delivering-a-5-week-steemit-course-to-promote-the-platform-in-wales-anyone-done-anything-similar
- @markrmorrisjr's previous work on dolphin school provided lots of valuable material as well
- @davemccoy and @mudcat36 created the #newbieresteemday and #newbiegames initiative that helped new comers engage and built a great community so they will provide some good content and insights
I am trying to keep a list of people that might be good candidates for teaching different topics that are posted on Steemit that you might also find useful:
https://steemit.com/makesteemitgreat-again/@fibrefox/the-steemtopia-network-of-learning-update-more-fun-and-games
Hey @plushzilla! Thank you so much for this comment. I appreciate the time you took to leave this. I've got @markmorrisjr on board with this now. He recently joined us over at @thesteemengine, and he's been a valuable resource so far. Thank you for pointing me in his direction.
I'll get in touch with @pennsif about his Steemit course. That, too, will be valuable to this initiative.
The introduction is probably going to be the hardest part. We want to introduce Steemit to people as a new blogging platform where they can find community, but we'll need to use the fact that you can make money as the enticing and novel bit.
I also appreciate your suggestion about contests. I had not previously considered that, but those are very valuable in helping new users earn some liquid rewards.
Placing the spotlight on blockchain-based initiatives as you mentioned may also be a good avenue. Thank you for your comment again, and I look forward to getting your feedback as this initiative continues.
No problems. I am involved the @steemfreepress and it's great to see that other people also wanting to publish useful content to try and make it more mainstream and friendly for new comers. @thesteemengine and @isleofwrite are two great Discord groups when it comes to writing :)
I am happy to help and would be keen to see how this progresses. Looking forward to your next post!