I put this Tweet out yesterday and it was something that was on my mind.
I had some responses from @dickturpin, @unklebonehead and @recording-box, but obviously Hive is the better place for this discussion. Some may know that I have been a keen commenter from the start and recently clocked up 50,000. I think that has played a large part in how well I have done here. Lots of people know who I am and some choose to support me.
So I obviously think commenting is a good idea, but I see many people who hardly do it, or perhaps do not do it so well. Some accounts do more posts than comments, when I think you ought to be making at least ten times as many comments as posts. Not only does it get you seen, but it can also earn well. I have had comments make several dollars, but regularly get good rewards. I still would not say that you should see it primarily as an income source as that can lead to spam-like behaviour.
On the old (dead, but possibly revived) Tsu platform we suffered a lot from 'Nice post' comments from people desperate for a like. So far that has not been so much of an issue here, but as Hive grows we may see more of it. I do get some comments that seem to lack sincerity. Telling me that my running is good for me is not really adding anything of value. I get that language can be a barrier, but there are substantial communities who are not using English. Do not just comment on posts by big accounts as they may get plenty of responses and spread their votes thinly. Engage with posts you enjoy that interest you so you have something to say. The author will probably welcome the engagement (or at least they should), especially if they do not get much otherwise. Responding to comments can lead to more regular support. I spread several dollars each day across replies to my posts and comments.
Even the most viewed posts (mostly by Splinterlands) are often getting less comments than I do. They need to get their many thousands of players active on the social side of Hive where they could be earning well.
Although trending is not where I go to find posts it could be seen as an ad for Hive, but it can give a false impression. You will find posts that get huge rewards, but little engagement as they are there due to support by the big curation projects plus all those who follow their trails. Even if they have comments then many may be automated. We have at least one rampant comment spammer plus all the bots.
I just think that more actual social engagement would be good for Hive. It would make content creators more keen to come back even if their rewards are not great. People post on other platforms for no reward as they can get an active following there. Hive does not yet have the critical mass to make it attractive in that way, but we will only achieve it by building the community and not losing good people.
On Twitter @dickturpin said "The problem is, for a lot of posts what can you say?". You do not have to comment on every post you like, but if you have something to say then why not take a few seconds to say it? Even a "Well done!" for someone's achievement may be appreciated, but the best comments are those what make the conversation continue.
You can also compete in the Hive Engagement League by @abh12345. Even I struggle to even get in the top twenty there.
I get that a lot of people are just chasing the money, but I have always tried to make this platform fun for me. I have done what I can to help others and had a lot of kind words for doing so.
Hive was intended to be a social platform and I think it can be a bit lacking in that respect. We can each play a part in fixing that.
What do you think? Suggestions on Twitter included 'canned responses' (Peakd has 'snippets') or the ability to respond to a video with video. The latter would need some development, but many things can be done with what we already have.
Hive five!
If you are at 50,000 I wonder what gangs talking is at. He comments on everything, lol!
But seriously, my biggest problem is time. I just dont have enough between producing 2 or more podcasts, live streams and exploring all the stuff that Hive has to offer. But I do go through and read and vote.
But a lot of the time I only have time read 2-3 posts and vote at any given time each day. If I comment it's because I could think of something that didn't come off as a canned response. If I can't think of something to say or my comment turns into a mini post on its own then I just don't do it. I will give a 100% up vote instead.
I wish I had more time or even do Hive full time. But that's just not an option for my situation yet.
Time is always an issue. Have to find the balance for creating and engaging. I do believe that some creators don't come to Hive as they already have too much to do elsewhere. Taking on another platform adds a load of work.
I really ought to get back to doing my podcast.
!BEER
And I will put more effort into commenting as well!
Yes you should!
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I have to agree that a lot of posts are low effort. Even interaction can sometimes feel cheap; something like:
-> low effort post
---> nice post
------> thanks
----------> you're welcome
Lol.
But I frankly I don't mind; I just don't bother with that.
There are a lot of genuine creators who put effort into writing or recording well thought out and researched content, and have also been consistent as to improve their writing, speaking or editing skills. These are the accounts I try to discover, follow, upvote and engage with.
One of the reasons is you can have insightful conversation about something that interests you. You might learn something new and who knows, maybe even make a new online friend.
#followfriday posts are a great way of discovering new people on HIVE to engage with.
Exactly! Sometimes I don't have something to say on a post I like, and thats OK too. There are a bunch of tokens like Pizza and Beer you can send to show your appreciation. The @stickupboys even came up with the awesome idea of creating a bunch of GIFs to interact with their audience. So sky's the limit.
But yeah, comments are an amazing way to build relationships here on HIVE, one day I will make it to 50,000 haha.
(I have quite a ways to go)
I am getting a bit picky about quality of comments. I get some people who leave a fair few on my posts that are borderline. I will support those I actually enjoy. This post has had a fair few anyway.
!BEER !LUV
I've been spending a fair amount of time recently re-thinking how I intentionally interact with and create posts on Hive. So your post here is very timely for me.
This is important to point out. And it has been one of the difficult things for me. My career is fitness and I'm arguably a subject matter expert in that field. For a long time it interested me, and I thought maybe I'd find joy in interacting with the fitness communities on Hive like Actifit and Exhaust. But the truth is that as I prepare to retire from fitness work, consuming and interacting with that kind of content just isn't exciting anymore.
This took me some time to learn this about myself. And I've found I get more joy from reading posts from folks that are writing on things I know less about. It does make contributing to the conversation harder, since my knowledge base is smaller. But I guess the thing to do then is to ask clarifying questions in the comments to keep the engagement up. Maybe that kind of thing would work for others also finding themselves wanting to be social on a post where they perhaps don't have the knowledge or vocabulary to be adding to or counter-pointing a discussion.
I agree that more social engagement is necessary for Hive to attract more users. When I write content I try to remember to finish with a question to spark engagement, like you did in this post. I don't always remember, but I think that just as people should strive to comment more, so too should folks writing posts try to prompt that engagement. I think that's part of good blogging.
All that said...
Nice post.
!PIZZA
I really think anyone can find something of interest on Hive. Fitness has been fairly big, but there is lots more. I am encouraged to keep on posting as people seem to enjoy what I do. It's not just about the money.
I don't think I would be a fan of canned responses. If you aren't going to take the time to type it up don't even bother wasting my time. That is just my opinion though. I was looking at my account the other day and I think I am somewhere around 30k comments. There is a user that posts stats on the Leo side of things and I usually try to make sure I am in the "most comments" section of that post.
You are one of my most regular commenters and I appreciate that. I don't worry too much about not topping the engagement league as I would have to spend a lot more time on Hive to do that.
Yeah, I gave up on the Asher stuff a while ago. This one on Leo is pretty managable.
You are very right - goes for all social networks that the interaction is one of the most valuable things. I am only at almost 10.000 :) But it seems I can't write short comments so sometimes it tires me.
I would say that the most valuable thing by being on these decentralised networks is that I can communicate with people from the whole world. That wouldn't happen the same way in Facebook.
I do actually get more engagement on Hive than I have had on any other platform, so it could be worse. It's great to hear from people all around the world.
!BEER
You need to stake more BEER (24 staked BEER allows you to call BEER one time per day)
Positive
So I gave this some thought last night based on our conversation on Twitter, and in the same vein, you mentioned "A string of random thoughts cobbled together" I mapped out a response prior to this post that I've only just read. People can disagree if they like, but I would argue that in the high 90% range, posts that are submitted are not really in the "Conversation encouraging style." I recently did a post "I was human email" while I think it's a pretty good and possibly an informative piece of work, I wouldn't say any of the paragraphs was written in such a way that Joe Bloggs would leap to their keyboard to ask "What's a pound note?" although having said that, it's probably a key element that would be an easy way to comment. As you know, I work in Sales, and one of the hardest parts is Cold Calling; everyone hates it because you're going in blind and can be told to "Fook Off" by even the most professional of companies. After a few weeks and months of that, you give up, so I understand why some folk might be reticent to comment on a given post especially if they disagree with something. One of the less stressful calls telesales people can make is a soft or warm call: "Hi, you bought a widget from us a couple of months ago; I was wondering if there was anything else we could help you with?" so maybe elements such as Pound Notes woven into a post might encourage people to comment?
Negative
While you constantly decry me for being cynical, I would argue I'm a realist. With that thought in mind, I would say that for again, around 90% of the Hive userbase members are more interested in gaining curation rewards than engagement. I have to agree with you; I have seen comments on my posts over the years that I can tell has been written in such a way as to disguise what the author truly wanted to type: "Nice post, I upvoted you, please upvote me." 🤣
I don't know what the answer is; it did occur to me that when I look at news stories and blogs on the Internet, the 'comments' are very thin on the ground. Sadly, Hive is not Usenet or Twitter for that matter. Those platforms are designed and engineered towards engagement, hell Twitter (And Facebook et al.) has an AI and an algorithm specifically designed to show you Tweets from like-minded people or, at the very least, content that the AI knows you are interested in. As far as I know, Hive doesn't even have a feature that says: "Hey Pete, your friend Steevc has posted something." it doesn't have any of the features its competitors have in terms of bringing people together. All we have is awesome people like yourself who flog their guts out compiling data and posting, "Oi! Look at these people who live near you; wouldn't you like to be friends with them?"
Summary
I suspect communities would disagree with the "Lack of engagement" accusation. I know I have made more friends on the Ecency Discord channel than I probably have on the Hive platform. I suspect this is because of the instant communication it provides? I guess most of the Hive userbase is talking daily with each other either on Discord or within maybe gameplay (Splinterlands). I can't comment on 3speak as I don't really use it much.
Not sure that helps much but it's the thought that counts. 😉
Nice comment! ;)
My initial Tweet was inspired by seeing people putting out good stuff all the time, but getting no engagement. They may still be getting votes though. It just seems sad. As I said, people who are still struggling to make much could potentially earn more by commenting whilst building a following. I can make several bucks per day from comments, but then some of that is from people who don't get many comments, so I get a full vote from them.
I don't comment on every post I see, but I do enjoy the conversations I have and I wouldn't be where I am on Hive if I'd not done it. We can each decide what we want to do, but I think Hive benefits from engagement.
Do what you enjoy.
!BEER
I think what I was trying to get at was: Authors maybe need to think about writing their posts in such a way as to invite comments, maybe lots of "What do you think?" or "What are your thoughts on [How/Why/WhenWho]?" When I was first trained in Sales, they taught me always to ask "Open" questions, so stuff like "Do you [Agree/Like/Dislike] are closed questions because they only require one-word responses "Yes/No" I'm not convinced it's enough to create an epic piece of work and then expect a flood of comments without engineering a comment requirement either by making a controversial statement or one of those gushing enthusiastic offerings that generally make me slightly sick in the mouth but I know a lot of sheep love to be associated with. 🐑🐑🐑
!LUV
@dickturpin(1/1) gave you LUV.
H-E tools | connect | <><
Tap to help.
Leading questions definitely encourage responses. Do you agree? ;) Controversy can too.
There's plenty of potential for posts that are all about feedback, e.g. asking for help on something. Then the poster can reward the useful comments. Would be cool to have something like Stack Overflow that actually pays.
!BEER
If Hive ever becomes a Forum, I'm off, running for the hills screaming. 🤣
I've always said it can be more than one thing. Not everyone is a blogger.
I think this is where the confusion creeps in. It's hard to separate the fact for example I'm NOT on Hive I'm on Ecency what I write on Ecency is committed to Hive so therefore the same can be said (As you say) for everything else 3speak, splinterlands and MyShittyForum interestingly the solution actually creates a problem. We should stop talking about Hive and talk about the Dapp of choice but that then fosters a sense of tribalism and also means that people could start saying "What the hell is Hive?"
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BEERKING.Engagement is indeed important Steve and been at it for a long time. I was a regular in the top 10 of the #egagementleague and hard work is always rewarded.
Been keeping an eye on the "revived" Tsu and it's nothing like the original. I don't think that we will ever have such fun again, as it was not for the income, but rather for the engagement that counted for everyone.
I've not looked too much as the new Tsu. I'm happy on Hive and my friends are here. It's enough to keep me busy.
!BEER
Agreed and I will also not go back to the the new version of Tsu.
Hive is more than enough for me.
Good night my friend.
!BEER
Oh yes, there will also be no return for me, as hive keeps me busy when I am not working.
!BEER
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BEER.Hello @steevc
I share your opinion, there are many people who only publish and forget that Hive is a social network, and that its success lies in the interaction of people; That is, they do not contribute to the growth of our company
I have read in a report on social networks that comments are as important as publications, and in many cases, the incorporation of new users or investments largely depend on the comments on a post.
Some time ago I read a post, where the author mentioned that compensation is very good for the wallet, but the comments were good for the soul
Have a beautiful evening
That's a nice way to put it. There is more to life than money.
if it seems great, and since then I have always present it
I agree with this. Community after all is built through social interaction. Not didactic broadcasts.
Perhaps one trick is to finish a post with an open question. That way it prompts that reader to feel like responding. What do you think?
I see what you did there ;) Open questions invite a response.
I asked one guy why he hardly ever commented and he said "I'm a content creator!". He's still not making much.
Exactly, interfaction and a few comments builds a community spirit and drives better engagement. This in turn will lead to people making more from their Hive experience.
The one thing that I learned in the last two years is to not worry too much about the reward that you get on posts. I will definitely not get richer through my posts but it will give me ideas on how to navigate. Engagement cannot go wrong.
If you keep engaging your followers will grow and your posts will do better. It's all winning.
Yes, I practice this, I am from Twitter if that makes sense, like I was using Twitter before Hive and I think I get it from Twitter where I like to comment on post even if it is just to say good job :)
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BEERKING.Cheers. It is partly a habit that can turn into an obsession if you are not careful.
!BEER
50000 comments already? I'm around 17000... but I agree, comments are important for engagement... I guess I should improve this point.
Time is a big factor, but I'm at the PC a lot. Just have to make the most of your Hive experience.
!BEER
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BEERKING.I enjoy a comment, sometimes leading to a full conversation back and forth, it's great. I can't give much with my vote @ $0.03 so try to make up with it by commenting where appropriate, sometimes all i can say to an art piece is 'nice work' but it's usually appreciated as i wouldn't say it unless i genuinely liked the piece. Not that i don't like the votes, don't get me wrong but sometimes a comment can make your whole day (needing the appreciation of strangers is a creative persons curse). I'm trying to build my account up and believe me i could use the money instead, but i believe that this has HUGE potential.
Don't worry about what your vote is worth for now. Give value with what you can do otherwise. It's a marathon, not a sprint.
!BEER
Oh dear, can't it be a nice sit down? A nice comfortable chair..
You can have a marathon TV session instead :) Hive is a box set, not a Tik Tok :)
My TV watching isn't what it once was, i just listen to music, maybe 6 hours a day, never seen a Tik Tok! Ha, just had a memory of my nan, she had all these clocks in the kitchen, tick tock, hmmmm, isn't it funny.
I don't do the Tik Toks or some other platforms. There's not enough time.
Exactly (in reference to GIF).
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BEERKING.There's nothing better than getting comments on a post, as it shows that people have read it. But, mainly it's a good way to meet new people and have a chat. Sometimes I read a post but, haven't got much to say by the end so I leave an upvote, or reblog it. I try to avoid making comments saying "wow, cool post." Because I find it a bit disengenous and seems like I haven't read it.
Yeah when money is involved I think a lot of people will be chasing it, but, I've found that a lot of people on here are just sound people interested in social interactions and just want to use Hive because they've lost faith in the major social media platforms. Like me, I've barely used any other social media platforms since finding Hive. To be honest, the thing that brought me here was to idea of earning to use social media. But, the thing that made me stay was.... earning to be on social media haha no, the people I've met. The communities I've found and the idea of everything that Hive is.
It's a great platform. But, there is a chance that 90% of people online are bots. Not just on Hive but, on all social media in general. Who's to say though.
!PIZZA
Well bots don't tend to write good comments.
I said long ago that I came for the money and stayed for the community. In the early days I was making cents. The algorithm was more skewed back then. A lot of my posts made nothing, but now I can give out decent rewards.
!BEER
I've noticed that with the rewards for myself, they seem to be kind of random really, but I try to put the same effort into each of the posts I write regardless of what they might earn and I'm just keeping at it. I've really enjoyed my time here on Hive so far. The way I look at it, even if something only earns 1 cent, it's 1 cent more than I would of gotten anywhere else.
It can seem random, but then you are competing with thousands of others for votes and it depends on who sees and likes the post. Have to build up regular followers who support you and that takes time.
Yeah that's true man, I think I've been pretty good on Hive so far. I've gotten to know a lot of interesting people.
I've noticed that with the rewards for myself, they seem to be kind of random really, but I try to put the same effort into each of the posts I write regardless of what they might earn and I'm just keeping at it. I've really enjoyed my time here on Hive so far. The way I look at it, even if something only earns 1 cent, it's 1 cent more than I would of gotten anywhere else.
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BEERKING.I believe to comment is the best way to socialize with others in the blockchain to create awareness and to boost one's account as well
So we agree :)
Of course yes
I finally made the top twenty in one of his Hive Engagement League posts! ...but it was for LeoFinance specific comments, so I'm not sure that counts. But still, I was pleasantly surprised.
Part of me thinks that most people don't leave many comments because it takes time and they don't have time (or they don't feel like they have time, but that feeling is hard to fight against them, so I have forgiveness for this attitude). But then I look at FB and see people making hundreds of comments on everything. Is it just that much easier to comment on FB? Or is there something else at work here?
Hmm. Anyway, I always try to do my part in the commenting fun, when time allows.
!PIZZA
Leo comments can be seen elsewhere, so they should count. I don't spend much time on their site as I have more general interests.
I'm not sure commenting is hard, but it is a matter of attitude and habit. As I said, there are real benefits to doing it on Hive.
I agree with you. Commenting gives this encouragement that your posts was thoroughly read, assimilated and then a response or feedback. No doubt that reward is also part of the chase but for good writers, of which i want to become, i want people to relate with me on a particular story or idea from the post. I spurs me to write more. That's why i also love engage with people so that we can exchange perspectives.
Commenting truly matters honestly.
It would get me down if I thought nobody was actually reading my posts. As I get votes anyway I feel I need to put some effort into them.
Yep, I like when people comment on my posts, and I upvote them if the are of decent quality. So, I comment a lot too, but still not enough, though your story inspires me!
It works for me and I hope it works for you too.
You bet, every little bit counts! 😉
Habit of engagement is best way to grow on hive blockchain. Thanks for sharing, I'll really put more effort to increase my way of engaging on others post
Engagement all the way! I think nowadays with some mobile apps available, being engaged has never been so easy and fun!
#TGSFT
Thank god someone finally thought about talking about hive OUTSIDE of it, we need more people like you who are actively advertising HIVE on other platforms such as twitter, quora, fb etc
There's a lot of Hive stuff on Twitter, including the weekly @hivechat. I would just rather have conversations here. Need to bring more people over.
In my first spell on steemit, comments made people notice me but for a while, it didn't pay off but I appreciate the friends I was able to make from comments in those days. Now, coming back to do the same has been quite tasking because school has been consuming and I have to actually read posts before commenting so I don't have to say 'nice post', lol.
People want sincere comments. I get some that really say nothing and those won't get a vote. Just do what you have time for and is enjoyable. Don't turn it into work.
I'm not trying to turn it into work but I'm trying my best to keep showing up every time so I don't just stop posting altogether.
funny comments matter even more :P
I like a laugh, but humour is personal :)
I was going to say, 'no comment' but that's a little cheesy. Oops.. already did it!
It would have been sad to get no comments on this post. Of course time is a big factor for many, but if they can post then they can do some comments.
!WEED
50,000 is impressive! Congratulations. This was 7 months ago so you're probably up a few thousand more by now. It's a huge number, seems unattainable but there it is, you've done it, it's not impossible and you seem like you're having a good time. Plus, you've not once resorted to automated spamming like the account you allude to. (Though I don't see any comments from them recently, hopefully they got the help they needed).
It's inspiring and a relief as it brings the number down to earth, if you catch my drift... It's nice to see that for the new starters. And there's hope yet for the social aspect of this crazy place, as long as we all get involved on a human level!
You're finding some of my old posts. Hive is fun for me, so it doesn't feel like work. The social aspect is really important to me.
I see you are putting out a lot of posts. Is there a plan behind this as you are declining rewards?
Yeah, bouncing around a bit with the "recommended" links at the end of each post on the Ecency front-end... it's a real mixed bag.
Just sharing the work of a legend
I'm all for experiments on Hive. I've played a bit with these picture generators. They can be great sometimes.
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