Bald Eagles are my favorite photographic subject. Their visual acuity is phenomenal as is their ability to concentrate. This image reminds me of this text from "Buddha". "To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him."
This post is inspired by posts and comments I have read in the last couple of days from @dan, @ned, @stellabelle, @charlieshrem, and @dollarvigilante.
This is the definition from the Wikipedia Free Encyclopedia for “Value Proposition” I will be using as the context for my post.
“The phrase “value proposition” (VP) is credited to Michael Lanning and Edward Michaels, who first used the term in a 1988 staff paper for the consulting firm McKinsey and co. In the paper, which was entitled “a business is a value delivery system”, the authors define value proposition as “a clear, simple statement of the benefits, both tangible and intangible, that the company will provide, along with the approximate price it will charge each customer segment for those benefits”. In a modern, clear cut definition, Labeaux defines a value proposition as a statement that clearly identifies what benefits a customer will receive by purchasing a particular product or service from a vendor. According to Hassan, however, there is no specific definition for Value Proposition.”
Point Number 1
Wordpress.com hosts approximately 76.5 millon blogs. None of those bloggers have any chance whatsoever of generating any income from their efforts internally regardless of the quantity and or quality of their content. Yes, they can join Google Adsense or some equivalent and hope that their SEO efforts realize visibility in the ocean of content that is generated every 24 hours.
Compare that environment with Steemit as it exists today at only 70,000 or less active users, no plugins, no ability to upload images, etc, and it does not take a rocket scientist to see the massive opportunity that exists today on this “beta” platform. No one, especially the developers, can accurately quantify the value of the Steemit/Steem platform at 1M, 10M, or 100m active users. Let us posit, for example, Steemit at equal size to Instagram with 400 million users only 10% of which are regular posters at one post a month. And, let us assume that by the time the platform has gained that level of critical mass (400m users) the search capabilities are equal to or better than Google search or Bing is today. What is the Steemit value per unit of equity, however that is calculated, at that point looking forward?
Point Number 2
Let’s look at Facebook since that is mentioned so many times in discussions about the positioning of Steemit/Steem. Given the concept that is the current basis for the execution and user facing parts of the Steem platform have at its core financial value flowing to content creators and curators, I can see no unsolvable barriers, technical or infrastructure wise, that would prevent Steemit from eventually bypassing Facebook in terms of critical mass and global reach. The technology is already there today to handle a site of that size and capacity and, because the founders chose to go with their own implementation of a blockchain, the developers have the freedom to quickly adjust to market conditions and dynamics. Let’s for the sake of discussion, add this part of the “Value Proposition” to point number 1 and calculate the possible market cap of the platform.
Point Number 3
Next, I would like to point to the many posts I have seen suggesting the some particular post is over-valued at $25k, etc. Well brace yourselves people for we are going to see $100k and $1m posts and apps soon. Why? Just look at the Apple Store for a point of reference. If a twelve year old whiz kid could make $1M on an Apple app in the closed ecosystem of Apple hardware and software, imagine the same twelve year old whiz kid building a killer app for the Steemit/Steem platform that has a potential of exposure to billions of users on day one due to the completely open ecosystem. Remember, no ecosystem exists yet for the Steemit platform because we are still in “beta”. I sincerely believe that we are going to see $10m paydays as a result of the Steemit platform as it exists today when all the awesomeness in terms of features and internal and external apps are available for general use and enjoyment. Again we must take into consideration that the platform will undergo many changes as it responds to the realities of the global consumer market.
Now add this to the points number one (1) and two (2) and see where are in terms of calculating a potential amount for the Steemin/Steem “Value Proposition”.
Point Number 4
Here is another very exciting possibility to think about. In one of my earlier posts I mentioned the Picasso "The Women of Algiers" painting that sold last year (2015) for $179.3 million USD where the seller paid $31.9 million for it back in 1997. In this transaction, and all the other ones like it we see in the media every day, how much of that flows back to the artists? Now let us imagine a new paradigm, Steemit, where that artist does not have to have been dead for several hundred years in order to participate in that exchange of value. If the artist only gets a very small fraction in the form of consideration, we now have fuel for a renaissance in creativity and innovation due to there being a reasonable financial incentive in addition to the joy an artist/innovator receives from the act of creation and visualization driven by outstanding talent and vision.
Now, add this element to the equation that points, one, two, and three bring to the calculation of the future value of the Steemit/Steem platform. Are you beginning to get the picture of “The Sky is the Limit”?
Conclusion…For Now!
It is only natural that we will see many projects that are competitive with what Steemit is today. I see that as a very healthy environment because the Steem community, which includes everyone of the total “us”, will have to survive its own internal challenges while remaining a leading innovator and contender in the crypto and social media landscape.
It will be survival of the strongest, best innovators, and most inclusive players in the months and years to come. These four points add up, in my humble opinion, to make Steemit/Steem the most compelling and potentially profitable “Value Proposition” available in the world today!!
