Project #QualitySteemit: Calling all fellow Whales, Dolphins, and Quality creators: Let's Promote Great Content!
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://s20.postimg.org/rs1jpxivx/quality_steemit.png)
Hi Steemit, Fede here. I've been on Steemit since the beginning and I'm one of the top 50 contributors.
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://s20.postimg.org/3os8huw2l/steem_whale_ranking_federico_pistono.png)
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://s20.postimg.org/v0nhj70t9/federico_pistono_presentation.png)
I have been fairly vocal about the need to attract more talent and to promote quality content on Steemit, instead of whatever happens to be on top due to circumstances and, in many cases, chance/luck.
Lots of whats on "trending" is less deserving than other content that should really be up there. I rarely flag content (I do it only when I think is absolutely necessary), and I'd rather focus on positive reinforcement and on promoting great content, rather than downgrading shallow posts.
As a Dolphin/Whale I want to promote great quality content, including (especially!) that from small, unknown creators
The problem is that I don't have time to look for it every day. I have work to do. I can't sit through the "new", "active", and "hot" filters for hours a day, yet I'd like to contribute to a community that I think has a lot of potential.
Steemit is growing too fast for its own dev team to keep up, there are too many crappy submissions to go through, and it may be a long time before the proper changes to the algorithm are implemented. And even if we collectively made some pull requests on github to fix it, it may not be in the interest of the creators to do so.
If there's one thing I learned in life is this: don't complain, fix the problem instead!
Here's what I gather:
- Whales and Dolphins like me are the deciding factor in making content visible on "trending".
- We should use our power to promote quality content, and it should be easy for us to find
Which brings me to my proposal:
Project #QualitySteemit
The goal is simple:
To find promote quality content, so that it gets the attention it deserves
- If you are a dolphin/whale, add a comment below stating your support for the project, and send a request to join our private channel on steemit.chat
- If you're a small fish but you think you create high quality content, add a comment below featuring your best 3 posts (your best, not your most popular!), and send a request to join our private channel on steemit.chat channel
In both cases remember to include you Steemit username. In the steemit.chat we will figure out the best way forward. Some ideas include:
- sharing of posts that have not picked up on trending, but should
- a "secret" tag that creators can use when they make something special and put a lot of effort into it. This can be #QualitySteemit at the beginning, but probably will change over time when spam bots and non-quality creators begin using it too
- invitation of rising talents to our private channel on steemit.chat
Over time, this will create a virtuous cycle, which will attract more quality content creators to the platform and foster an even better community.
Clarification: Quality content != Boring Stuff
I read johnsmith's post on why whales voting crap content is (supposedly) good for the community. I thought it was pretty funny and somewhat astute. I can see the merits of the point he's making, though I think if we just attract millions of shallow and clueless people, the site will be shit and eventually die.
I understand Steemit needs signups, but we can't just have lots of crap content punctuated by some amazing posts, it's unsustainable. If all great creators leave (and they will, if things don't change) and if Steemit doesn't attract new great creators, it won't last.
Quality can be fun, too
A beautiful photography shot, a short story, a good joke, a funny and cunning video, an interesting exploration on whatever, these are all examples of great content that can go viral and attract lots of users, and yet are not shallow and stupid posts.
Here's an example. Michael Steven (Vsauce) is amazing. Most of his videos have to do with Math and Science and the Natural World, and yet he was able to gather almost 11 million subscribers on YouTube. That's because he makes great content, not boring stuff.
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://s20.postimg.org/69ywobl99/vsauce.jpg)
I remember clearly an incredibly insightful talk that John Green gave at VidCon a month ago. He shared how at the beginning Nerdfighteria had an incredible engagement, lots of people commented, created, shared, organized meetups, projects, bought t-shirts, etc. Then when they scaled too quickly, they attracted spam, hate speech, engagement went down, discussions stalled, and generally become more shitty. His point: some growth is good, but unbridled growth for the sake of growth isn't necessarily a good thing, it can actually be harmful.
Here's something he said that really stuck with me:
Creative projects don't exist to create revenue. Revenue exists to fund creative projects.
-- John Green
Couldn't agree more.
Where to find me:
Great post @federicopistono - I think the correlation between quality posts and engagement is also completely related. Whether the purpose of the post is to inform or entertain it's all beneficial.
Michael is one my favorite people in the world and for me, this generation's David Attenborough. Seriously. I'm a HUGE fan! I have watched every last one of his videos, multiple times, even his older goofy ones.
Thank you, Fede. I'm going to read through it all carefully once again and post my feedback. Looks great though!
I really hope this works out, Fede. It'll of course need a robust collaboration between many Dolphins and Whales.
I'm a fish, and here are three of my better posts -
Silence in Time.
https://steemit.com/fiction/@liberosist/silence-in-time-a-steemit-original-sci-fi-thriller-chapter-4
A sci-fi thriller story about a master assassin who is hit by retrograde amnesia. This is a Steemit original. (Posting Chapter 4, the latest - there are links to Chapters 1, 2 and 3)
(If you are wondering why it's sci-fi - those elements are coming soon!)
How Steemit could revolutionize the Arts
https://steemit.com/steemit/@liberosist/2qn7sy-how-steemit-could-revolutionize-the-arts
A short rumination on how capitalism has ruined creativity in the arts and how Steemit (or something like it) can take us back.
Why Whales are Stars
https://steemit.com/steemit/@liberosist/the-whales-are-stars-a-cosmic-analogy-for-steemit
A fun analogy looking at Steemit in cosmic terms.
I'm on steemit.chat. Hope to hear from you :)
And once again, let me profess my fanboyism for Vsauce!
@all
I'll be looking at all the submission for the next few days and post an update.
Keep them coming!
Hi @federicopistono Thanks for starting this initiative. Checked your blog but didn't see an update, though I see you've been very busy with some other things as well. Did you get a chance to review the submissions? I've made some higher quality posts since posting here last time so here goes:
~$4,000: Power Up SteemIt! Make The Power Up Pledge.
~$300: I Just Announced STEEM & SteemIt.com to 142 Members of the Blockchain Meetup in Phoenix, AZ!
~$350 Power Up SteemIt! Make The Power Up Pledge. #poweruppledge
I think it would be great to have a group where every half day there is a new "moderator" who looks over the submissions. At hour 6 and hour 12 of their 'shift' they choose some number, say three, great articles out of all of the submissions. Then they send out an email to e.g. a MailChimp group which people can subscribe to - and they make a short summary post announcing the top three for the past six hours and post that with the #QualitySteemit hashtag. This way, people can find high-quality pre-moderated articles that may be from authors whom they otherwise would not have been exposed to. What do you think?
Hmm, I like the idea of a "secret tag" but I've eventually investigated that all the previously announced secret hashtags do not work as they are supposed to.
Check my research here: Secret STEEM Hashtags: Do They Work?
Really, I hope your tag #QualitySteemit will do that better.
True story!
Not sure if I qualify as a dolphin (maybe a small one), but I would be interested in supporting quality content.
According to my estimate >10K STEEM POWER and more you're a dolphin (top 5%), at least as of now.
https://steemit.com/survival/@venuspcs/the-horror-that-was-my-childhood-a-tale-of-survival-against-the-greatest-of-odds-part-1
https://steemit.com/fiction/@venuspcs/the-truck-driver-stuck-in-a-different-time-how-i-wound-up-living-54-years-in-the-future
https://steemit.com/fiction/@venuspcs/my-next-book-the-time-traveling-cyberpunk-mother-trucker-chapters-1-10-for-steemits-review-and-comments
1°
https://steemit.com/it-steem/@cheftony/steem-italia-come-funziona-steem
2°
https://steemit.com/it-steem/@cheftony/steem-italia-guida-per-il-mining-1
3°
https://steemit.com/steemit/@cheftony/hashrate-and-hardware-comparison-page-update-1
my target is to create an aquarium blog in ita-eng, but now I think it's better to write something about steem and how it works.
Sounds reasonable, it’s so interesting to observe evolution of this social structure, and the way this community is going to solve quickly appearing challenges and difficulties.
From my side, i’m ready to do my best to help with a #QualitySteemit
Well, if to compare me with an English speaking sea, my vote is not so powerful, but in russian community I can be considered as a dolphin)
Also the platform itself is new to public, so some people are coming here to «hit-and-run».
And I can’t really imagine, how you can hide any «secret» hashtag from the bot-owners, so we’ll see.