You know I love you eroded. Full on homo.

Seriously though, I'm sure plenty of people notice your impact and generosity on here, bud. Keep on being you, suckah.

I lub you too. We have talked many nights about how things have changed here since we each started. I know you see the same problems I do. I thank you for giving me an ear to bitch in and I will always have one for you as well, on and off of steemit.

I can say from DM's and the replies on not only my contest page, but maybe more telling are the replies on the pages of the entries from those who were featured that I think they do help.

When someone is starting off on steemit it's just so hard to get noticed and hard to start conversations with people. The contests that are out there allow people to find a niche and engage with other people they may have been afraid to interact with otherwise...or worse their approach may have been viewed as spammy and then they get flagged.

The $$$ rewards tend to be pretty small, but I remember when I first started being excited winning like .35 SBD from a contest and then the next day winning another .25 SD. Back then SBD was under a $1 so the value was nothing, but winning was really cool.

Little things like this helped me stay committed to steemit and convince me to add cash into the system. In turn I have referred a few others who now own steem as an investment and my Brother Inlaw is here blogging...well posted twice now but it's a start. He owns 3000sp due to my recommendation which may not have happened without contests...so do they help, I think so!

I agree with you! Even some of my local friends who joined thinking they didn't have anything to offer Steemit have made friends and earned SBD through meme contests and the like. If there hadn't been a meme contest, they might not have stuck around long enough to get the hang of the platform.

This is great to hear!

This is all great to hear. I know many people are new to blogging as I myself am. I've never really been to direct on any social media platform prior to steemit. I have had Facebook since 2007 and started it for games only. I have since then added direct family and a few friends but still have not really ever cared for it much.
I agree that contest gives people a foot in the door so to speak. I don't really care for the types of post that make trending, nor the ones that were trending prior to bid-bots. Most of the time there was little to no engagment but plenty of comments.
I am glad you stuck around as I find you doing more to help the platform than many of the investors do.
Thank you for sticking your head in here and replying.

You've definitely impacted me. Every single thing you've done for me is noted and accounted for. I appreciate you, not all will, but such is life.

Awe, I lub you too. You are one of my oldest friends here. I have seen you give back as well. Do you think there is more user retention hosting contest? I know you host them as well, do you get a lot of sub 50 Rep users entering?

Not typically. I think contests are fun sometimes, but I don't think they hold a ton of benefit other than that. Fun.

That is indeed the thing I am trying to figure out. You know I have covered contest covering so many different topics with so many different entries it is really hard to tell. They are fun, sometimes they are a ton of work as well, lol. I guess I need to go back and look at former winners and see how many are still active on the platform as a whole. I know a few users left almost directly after winning a very large prize that changed their quality of life. I would have guessed that would have kept them posting but it seemed to have the opposite effect at least for two users while SBD were spiked very high. Thanks for responding, I have more to look at.

I notice! I'm one of those "every little bit helps" kind of people, and I think contests are a great motivation for users to post original content when the proverbial creative well is running dry.

Yes! Indeed we are in a time of every little bit can help. I am glad you see this from the angle I do them from. Not everyone is able to produce original content daily without a little push from the platform. I admit my contest sometimes come from that dry well or a day when I am in too much pain to sit through a long thought out post.

OMG :O I think i'm in loveee!
Thank you so much! Of course you have helped us a lot!
You made of my week, a better week, continue with your generosity and congratulations! not everyone is generous today and that is something very nice! hugs and kisses for you.💋😄🌈

[IMAGE: https://steemitimages.com/DQmY2crDWfykZ2YKqWPUo15LAftztDR33RaSaUdjbDAJcax/image.png]

You are very welcome, your picture was wonderful and I am glad the prize helped make your week better. I know the money really helps where you are and I am glad that steemit is able to help make your life better. It really helps me see the potential of the platform to make a change in the lives of those in places where things are not easy. Thank you for entering my son really enjoyed your butterflies.

Oh!!! WOW, no entiendo mucho su idioma, pero realmente estoy muy agradecida con usted, me siento feliz, y sin duda es de gran utilidad para mí este premio!! Muchísimas GRACIAS. Amor para su vida! 💚💙🌷

De nada. Tu foto fue increíble. Realmente me encantó y mereces el premio.

[IMAGE: https://steemitimages.com/DQmXQMB7qARLKFHEKjNdz3tPQatUt5QposFvfsVSMDZh9nN/images%20(12).jpg]

I can state from the questions and the answers on my challenge page, as well as perhaps all the more telling are the answers on the pages of the sections from the individuals who were highlighted that I figure they do help.

When somebody is beginning off on steemit it's simply so difficult to get saw and difficult to begin discussions with individuals. The challenges that are out there enable individuals to discover a specialty and connect with other individuals they may have been hesitant to associate with otherwise...or more terrible their approach may have been seen as spammy and after that they get hailed.

The $$$ rewards have a tendency to be entirely little, yet I recollect when I initially began being energized winning like .35 SBD from a challenge and afterward the following day winning another .25 SD. In those days SBD was under a $1 so the esteem was nothing, yet winning was extremely cool.

Easily overlooked details like this helped me remain focused on steemit and persuade me to include money into the framework. Thusly I have alluded a couple of other people who now possess steem as a venture and my Brother Inlaw is here blogging...well posted twice now however it's a begin. He possesses 3000sp because of my suggestion which might not have occurred without contests...so do they enable, I to think so!

I concur with you! Indeed, even a portion of my nearby companions who joined reasoning they didn't have anything to offer Steemit have made companions and earned SBD through image challenges and so forth. In the event that there hadn't been an image challenge, they won't not have adhered around sufficiently long to get the hang of the stage.
I await your next post!!!

Did you really just reword @thedarkhorse's response and make a post out of it?

you have been flagged for being a lazy thief. If you aren't sure about why then read this

I tend to forget about and inadvertently miss contests because I’m busy. True story.

I think that some contests are better than others. As goes with challenges.

The more inspiring, creativity-inducing it is the better. But overall building a sincere and meaningful connection is for me the most important. This of course can be the hardest thing to gauge because every third person on here is a manipulative human cunt bot or sw combo of that.

I’m not too jaded or anything. Even tho I do try to give people the benefit of the doubt.

Yeah I dunno how I ended up here or what I’m talking about either.

The less bullshyte the better. But when there’s essentially free money involved you’re gonna have to deal with bullshyte.

The end.

Very true.

I have seen your generosity first hand everyday since my first week here . I do my best to emulate your action . It's who you are and its impressing !

I thank you, my friend. I was also honored to be invited in to be a judge on the curation contest you guys worked so hard on to build and keep going.

We are honored to have you! And I've only known you a week, and you've made a difference to me :)

This is great to hear, it is not all for nothing.

You just received a Tier 0 upvote! Looking for bigger rewards? Click here and learn how to get them or visit us on Discord

Dear friend @erodedthoughts, as far as I know you are already very good & kind as a Steemian...
And you also care about other steemians...
I think the problem lies with other whales, who do not really care about minnows, so after a month or two of joining Steemit they are disappointed because they are relatively not getting anything, even though they have created quality contents...

Regards, hope you always healthy & happy there ...☕🤗❤

I am new enough to remember the 1st months growing pains. It always meant more to me to get the real comments more than the money. I like the social aspect of steemit much more than the financial side of it. Both are great when combined together.

Yes, really agree with you...
The sosial aspect should be far more important than the financial side...cause the latter can be resulted from the first...
May be I am a little bit sad cause I have spent a week to write an essay, but no whales even glanced at my writing...:(
But it is ok, i'll try harder to give my best for this lovely Steemit community...

☕🤗❤

Omg!!! omg i am so excited, thank you!!!

You are very welcome, you did a hell of a job with those crayons.

Contests are a good way for redfishes and minnows like me who don't get a lot of upvote earn SBD and help in making the account stronger when we start out.

I like joining contests as well if I can do it haha,

I do them to help the little guys earn faster. I don't have an account changing vote so this is how I return to the community.

I can say from contests I enter, I'd rather have fewer winners who earn more than the other way around. So like minimum $5 SBD or I don't usually enter. But then, I'm picky about my contests too. Although, I love the meme contests every time. And a few others I'm more loyal to. I think it's great to see people giving back like you are. Good job on here.

I, myself do not enter many. I do the weekly meme challenge every so often but it is more for the fun of it than the prize. I get trapped in enough 7-day challenges that I don't often get to do any contest. I did get a nice coffee cup and deck of cards when I started.

Yeah, I feel like the meme challenge is more for the fun of it. And if you win, it's all a bonus.

This post has received an upvote, minnowboost, AND post promotion courtesy of @littlescribe!

To see the promotional post click here, and be sure to upvote it so I can support more minnows like you in the future!

This was very kind of you @littlescribe

Yes, the contests help a lot. It brings out the best in us, and can actually help us find our talents as well. When you have so little Steem power on your first day, it seems impossible to get anywhere. Even small contests mean a lot to plankton, as the curation rewards tend to reward the bigger accounts, even if your vote is timed perfectly. Thanks for posting this.

Yes, the whole system is set up to reward users in a top-down fashion. I think I may start doing some things with @steembounty and see how that works for users.

Very true, I wrote a proposed change to the curation rewards here, that I think would be awesome. https://busy.org/@giddyupngo/if-i-could-change-one-thing-about-steem-better-curation-rewards-for-plankton

Not a bad idea to be honest. Everything is built top down as it is that is why we have 1 million accounts signed up and roughly 50k using them and you have to guess 20k of them are bots of some sort.
I think the numbers speak for themselves, people feel slighted when they join. The biggest advantage to retaining new members and giving them a chance is bid bots, if we are going to be honest about things.

I agree, thanks for reading it, hope the idea gains some traction. Bounties may be a way to make things more fair in the mean time. I may have to try one. Take care.