There seems to be a movement among Hivers to ask and answer the question, "Why should anyone use Hive? There are many other platforms to get out your word, and many are better-known, why Hive?"
Following is my version of "Should I post on Hive?"
Sometimes I ask questions to myself and the answer is so obvious, so clunk-me-on-the-forehead obvious, that just asking the question reveals the answer. I don't think I'm alone here.
This car is awesome-fancy, but it's way out of my budget range. Should I just take out a bigger loan and buy it anyway?
Does this low-cut dress with the high hemline make me look skanky?
If you ask the question, you already know the answer.
My English teacher told me that I shouldn't answer a question with a question. She was right. But, it seems appropriate here.
Why post things elsewhere?
So, do you actually get something when posting elsewhere? Perhaps you get appreciation from others. That's real and that matters. But, there's something else that you get. You get used. It's actually a fantastic business model for those platforms. Here's a fictitious dialogue to illustrate:
Platform person A: Okay, we built the platform and got it ready to go. But, we've got no content. It's a blank slate, tabula rasa.
Platform person B: So what? We get people to sign up. They provide the content.
A: So, we don't actually have to come up with anything?
B: Yep. We just sit back at let the sheep do the work for us! And we get the benefits!
A: That's brilliant! But, why would they do that?
B: People like to post stuff. People like to holler out things and get their word out. Makes 'em feel smart.
A: What if what they say is actually pretty dumb.
B: Oh well, dumb happens. And who cares, they're creating content for us! Dumb content is great content because it makes the others post stuff to show that they're smarter and BOOM! More content!
A: I see. But, why else would they do it? Won't they give up after a while? What do they get out of posting stuff for us?
B: We can give 'em points. Most posts, more points. More thumbs up, more points.
A: What are the points good for?
B: The points are good for adding onto previous points. Say you had 1000 points, you write a post, and it earns 50. Add that to the previous 1000, now you're got 1050 points! They're also good for comparing your points against someone's else's points. If someone only has 500 points, you've got twice as many points. See how that works?
A: Can you use the points for anything?
B: Absolutely. You can add new points onto previous point. You can also compare your points to others' points. Two use cases right there.
A: Okay. Let's do this!
Why post on Hive...
So, back to my initial my if-you-ask-it theory and my initial question on Hive...
Should I post on Hive?
If you ask the question, you already know the answer.
