"So... I heard you're a regular in the WOTW contest? ... I've got some sensitive information that I think you'll find quite valuable..."
"Show me the money..."
"Alright, alright, jeez. Just put that down, I've got a family."
That's correct. I've got some interesting information to share which I think you'll like.
My focus this week has been on the Merit System for the WOTW contest and I feel like I'm finally starting to get the very basic framework of it to a standard that can be used for testing. I'm not doing anything fancy with scripts or AI, just good old-fashioned manual curation and some spreadsheets.
Here is the current state of the system. I'll go into some of the specifics below.
I've decided on a split system for Post Quality and Engagement because after some feedback on the previous week's entries, I've realised that although engagement is important and should be encouraged, it shouldn't jeopardise those who haven't got the time.
I'm going to have two prize pools for this to work, the post quality prize pool being around 2/3 of the sum, engagement being 1/3.
Let me "quickly" explain a few of the points from the image above.
You'll notice when looking at "Title/Clickworthiness", "Imagery", and others, that there is a query that comes to mind.
"What happens if someone has a Prominent Tagline but not a Relevant Thumbnail or Interesting Title?"
They'll receive one point. The same applies to Imagery. If someone has an Emotive image but it isn't well-positioned, relevant, or in the right context, they'll receive one point.
I'm sure this is going to intrigue some strategic minds who will try to game the system to acquire a bunch of points, but heck, that'll add to the fun and I'll always hold the final verdict if I feel someone is blatantly taking the piss (I'll more than likely commend them for their efforts though).
I've decided on Overkill and Repeat Images as the main deductions for now as I can't really come up with anything else that holds more importance.
The Overkill grade is to try and balance out the points in the Creative and Informative sections as well as having the "Convoluted" deduction there for any posts which don't really make any sense/point.
The balance between Creative and Informative needs to be tested. It's not something that I can personally figure out without having some kind of data to work with (that being everyone's posts once they've seen this system in action). Higher point deductions may be added after testing (I'll inform everyone).
Repeat Image is self-explanatory, although points can still be gained if it's used in a better context/position compared to someone else.
This is a bit trickier. I had a brief discussion with 
I don't want to squash creativity and inspiration by limiting the points for short-form entries but there is a definite imbalance when it comes to grading them in comparison to longer forms of writing. I'm unsure how to balance this out in a fair way so I've left the deductions blank for now and I will test it out as we go.
I touched on an idea surrounding engagement and short-form posts during that discussion and how the shorter posts may generate greater engagement which could be rewarded. We'll see how it plays out.
The fun one. The highly subjective one. The one that may land me with more enemies.
I've racked my brain with how to judge these categories but after a discussion with 
I will see how this goes for a week or two, and if there are any issues, I'll look towards getting a couple of other judges (who are non-biased) who can grade all the posts on both and we'll find the averages.
This seems like the easiest and most fair solution while also being the main element that holds the greatest sway in the point system (and rightly so).
As I mentioned before, the engagement points are going to be separate from the post-quality grades. I'm still not 100% with the way this will work, but here is what I've come up with so far.
Quality: This mark will be based on the "worst" main comment to a post (replies are not included). For instance, if you make 10 superb quality comments, and then 1 Poor quality, you'll get a Poor grade. I don't make up the rules... oh wait..
Quantity: I'm unsure about this. I really can't be bothered to figure out the percentages accurately (hello 
Comraderie: Again, I'm not too keen on following upvotes, but I'd like to encourage it. I also think this category is necessary because it encourages cross-communication between members which further improves engagement, which makes for a better experience, which leads to a stronger platform.
Suggestions are welcomed and quite frankly needed for this.
Here is that sensitive information which will hopefully get some of you thinking...
Next week there is going to be a shock to the system.
The word for next week is Bizarre... I've come up with an idea that will blow your socks off.
If you comment on a #pob-wotw post next week, you are automatically disqualified.
Zero engagement during a week where all the posts are going to be bonkers. How's that for a social experiment.
There are two main reasons for this:
I'll make sure the rules are blindingly clear on the contest post on Sunday and I may or may not encourage people to point it out to others in their posts...
Are you thinking "Whatever, I don't really care"?
What if I told you the 1st place prize is going to be 500 POB?
The prize pool for next week is going to be in the region of 1200-1500 POB with five winners being chosen from all of the posts. Big tasty.
Attention to quality will be rewarded as I'll be using the merit system to select the winners (with some minor adjustments being made to assist with some of the points I mentioned further up the post).
Here are some links that I think will be handy: Grammarly / No Bullshit Markdown
As usual, please let me know what you think. I'm wanting to make this contest as balanced and fair for all as I can without hindering creativity, so any feedback is greatly appreciated.
Make the most of the sensitive information with the time you have. I have a feeling things will be poppin' off as soon as Sunday rolls around.
Don't forget to write your post for this week's POB Word of the Week!
There is 525 POB (liquid) up for grabs. That's about 735 HIVE at today's current price.
