One argument i have heard a lot over the past one year on here is that steem needs a killer app to go mainstream and that will, in turn, increase the value of the platform and coin. Good. I have also felt this way for a lot of time too until i started asking certain questions.
Who is going to create this killer dapp?
A lot of us agree (excluding me) that steem needs a killer dapp, so the question is who is going to create it? Certainly not you because you feel someone else is responsible for that. Unfortunately, no one knows who that said someone is. And how are you so certain that the said killer dapp doesn't already exist? That's another angle i want you guys to explore.
What if we already have a killer dapp.
If so then why is the traffic not coming? Maybe because no one knows about it. Maybe it hasn't been designed and packaged for mass consumption because if you ask me there are a lot of good projects here, and giving out supposedly free money to people for creating content is a good enough incentive for the masses to come onboard. So what is the issue really? If i had $300-$400 worth of giveaways on twitter right now i guarantee you that my engagement level will increase drastically. Or maybe not. Come to think of it people need to know that I'm giving out stuff and trust that it is indeed genuine. Once i cross that hurdle of informing people and engendering their trust then i can make progress. A lot of influencers do this these days to get more engagement on their page which in turns bring a lot of business for them since their line of work has to do with influence.
So what am i driving at?
Well, it is simple: steem doesn't have a dapp problem. Like i said on twitter some days ago we have one of the most friendly communities within the crypto sphere. While other crypto projects are fighting for the top spot, we welcome collaboration. Our blockchain is open to developers.
So what is the problem?
I think everyone knows about that already: awareness and trust. A lot of people do not know about steem. You can walk down your neighborhood and ask 20 people about steem and they know nothing but you cannot say the same about Facebook or Twitter, or even recent social platforms like tic tok. Secondly, a lot of people do not trust anything crypto-related. It's like a default mentality. That's something we have to address. However recently i was thinking about steem not just being a coin but also a blockchain. Maybe we need to differentiate both if possible and talk about the blockchain aspect even more. If the prospect of earning doesn't entice people then maybe they can explore the services/games here for free and not get rewarded. Is that a possibility--using steem without getting rewarded because it seems the entire social sphere care little about that. They just want to share the pictures and thoughts, and be part of a community.
I personally think that for any project to scale it needs to be very inclusive. Steem hasn't reached that level yet.
Steem = content creators/investors/gamers/developers (exclusive)
Twitter/facebook = everybody (inclusive)
Now there are a few people who are skilled writers. I'm sure a significant number of people cannot write a decent article or are willing to read one when they can find the same piece of information in a concise manner on a microblog like Twitter. That's hard work. People are not willing to work hard. It's not in the DNA of a twenty-first-century man or woman to work hard. We want to work smart and less. Technology is making that possible. This leads me to another topic I will discuss some other day and that's microblogging being the current reality and future of social media.
Another thing i mentioned in this post is awareness. I think a lot of emphases is being placed on improving steem within the crypto communities rather than making it more appealing to the masses. That's not necessarily a bad thing but we can do more. Im also glad certain groups/dapps like OCD and streempress have begun to see this and are trying to solve this issue
The community can create the required awareness
Another argument is that steemit inc is responsible for creating the buzz around this blockchain. That's true to a certain degree. But at the same time, i feel the people who use this perform and have their monies here have a similar responsibility. As you have an interest in this blockchain called steem you also are obligated it. One of the reasons i started downvoting. Yes, there might be retaliation. I can lose my earnings in the process but if it in any way translates into an improved valuation of my existing stake then it is worth the risk.
Now there is this very popular foreign company in Nigeria called GNLD. They sell organic food supplements. They've been in the country for many decades but you can hardly find their adverts on any media, but 2 out of every 100 Nigerians know this company. How were they able to achieve this? through their network. Rather than pay media houses or newspapers to promote their products they turned to the people who already use them to create awareness for their products and rewarding them in return.
Proof of work
I think this should be another aspect of the steem blockchain that should be looked into. Value can be created in various ways and can be rewarded likewise. Steem scaling depends majorly on its network--community. They are the mouthpiece of the blockchain. I remember some months ago when @theycallmedan and @nathanmars would put out certain tasks for steemians to do, which they would be rewarded for. Might be a shilling steem under a post or voting. That was a powerful tool. A lot of steemians were pushing the blockchain then. We had so much buzz on Twitter. With the right incentive, people would even outdo themselves to promote steem.
In conclusion, i want to say that we are very much on track. It's only a matter of time before we start to rip the full benefits of being part of this project called steem. We just need to improve on the things we're already doing. I was one of the people who criticized the HF22 but it turned out to be a good thing for steem. No one has all the right answers but as we keep on sharing ideas and be intentional about how we want to move this blockchain forward i think we will scale in the long run.