5. Posting

So, you've been commenting, upvoting, and gaining followers all over Steemit.

Great!

You have an attractive avatar and people generally recognize you. They've seen your Introduction Post and therefore know what you're all about and what you're interested in sharing with them. They're getting a feel for your style and are eager to hear more of your own views in your own words. And now that you have a following, there will actually be people there to see your content!

It's time to post.

Be authentic

The fact is, you're probably not an expert on any topic. At least not enough to speak with real authority. If you are -- great! You are likely already established and have a good brand, which means you've already brought your own audience to Steemit from YouTube or Twitter and you probably have no reason to read this, lol

But if you're one of the rest of us -- if you're like ME (I'm like you) -- then you probably have a wide range of interests that have build up a rather interesting personal set of skills and knowledge.

It's that skill set and knowledge that people want to see.

Steemit is a great place to be raw, real, and authentic. People will quickly realize you aren't a bullshitter and will appreciate your content on a personal level.

In that sense, too, you should really care about your audience. They could be doing any number of things, but they're choosing to pick up what YOU are putting down, so be respectful -- be yourself.

Be eager to FAIL

You've got to try new things.

If you came here to try and ride the waves of whatever is trending in the hopes of making some quick cash, you've come to the wrong place.

Steemit is constantly changing and evolving, and there's no way you're going to be able to keep up with following behind it.

So you'll just have to LEAD IT.

This means that you must be a trend-setter. You have to post about that thing that you don't think anyone will be interested in, and be totally prepared for nobody to be interested in it.

As a personal example, I had put off posting about a subject that is very personal to me -- Peaceful Parenting -- because I didn't know what the response would be, and I sure as Hell didn't want the response to be nothing. However, I dropped that fear and posted my honest views on the topic, and it is one of my top-performing posts ever.

You've got to be excited about failing, because it means you've done something daring and unique, and those sorts of gambles will pay off if you are really working at this.

Use good images for thumbnails

This one can come off as a little clickbait-y, but trust me.

You want people to actually see what you're posting, right?

Well, you have to draw them in.

If you've already done the work I've laid out, and you have your following and reputation, then adding a eye-catching image as your thumbnail is the last hook you need to really seal the deal with your audience. The first image you put in your post will be the thumbnail.

Do some studding into the psychology of color, and research what it is that draws people's eyes. Generally, these colors will perform well:

• Black and white
• Yellow
• Blue and red

Have a signature

End your posts with a little something-something.

On YouTube they call this an "endcard", and it's a way of asking your audience to follow you and upvote your work, to direct them to other work that you are doing, or other affiliates that you have, links you want to get out, newsletter -- whatever you want.

People do this part in many different ways, because it's unique to you, but I would probably advise you to be mindful of the space you're taking up on the screen.

Some people have huuuuuge endcards/signatures. And, in my opinion, when your signature takes up more than the content of your post, it becomes a thing to scroll past and ignore.

Personally, I keep mine on the small side because I'm not trying to ask everyone to do a bunch of stuff that they might not be interested in doing right now. And the affiliates I do have, I try to keep relevant to the community in general.

"How often should I post?"

This is a very frequent question.

The answer is: as often as you like.

Some people believe that there is an golden amount of posts per day on Steemit -- that if you post juuuuuuust often enough, that it'll make you more likely to get recognized and have your posts start trending.

I, however, have not found this to be the case.

My blog is very active and I post a lot. Some days, I'll earn a payout of $50, on other days it'll be $370. So I don't really think it matters how often you post, so long as you're posting regularly.

Reply to comments

If people take the time to consume the content you produce, and they leave a comment, it's important to respect that enough and try to respond to comments.

If your blog develops like mine, there will be some times where this will seem like an overwhelming thing to keep up with. Between responses to blog posts and comments, I wind up with a hundred comments a day or more to reply to. But this is why I say you need to treat it like a job if you want it to pay you like a job.

Make a point of taking the time to respond, whenever you can.

Some posts will be spam, or link-dropping, or the like. Use your discretion to sort those out from the authentic comments.

Celebrate your victories

When something good happens, tell us about it!

It could be in your home life, work life, or Steemit stuff -- if something good happens and you're excited about it, share it with us!

If you look at my blog wall on any given day, you'll probably see a lot of milestone posts. I do that partly because I am excited about it, and I consider this a good community to be an enthusiastic and positive person, but I also do it because I want to inspire other people.

INDEX:

• INTRODUCTION
• The Introduceyourself Or Introduction Post
• Commenting and gaining a Following
• A STRONG AVATAR
• Be mindful who you follow
• Posting
• BONUS!

Follow me @shayne