Background

I started on SteemIt in 2017. I left in 2018, returning in early 2021 to Hive and back on SteemIt when I found my original account's passwords a month or so ago. During my early days on SteemIt, I posted content about real estate investing and other random things that came to mind. On Hive, I have posted more content dealing with papers I’ve written for school and money-related issues as they come to mind. I have participated in contests and been engaging by commenting on other people’s content, often throwing out upvotes like candy on a parade float. I bank most everything I earn by staking it…

I create content on Hive within a few of the communities. I post in Ecency, Proofofbrain, and I curate in Stem. Outside of Hive and SteemIt, I have been creating content on YouTube for over 5 years. I have built 9 channels. I earn enough money from my YouTube channels each month to make a monthly payment for a nice car in America, and possibly a monthly house rent payment in Portugal for perspective. I’ve noticed a few things…

What I have observed

In my time watching what others post here, what I earn by posting here, and what I earn elsewhere, the coding and algorithms push their fingers in my nose to say, “Hey buster…here’s a pattern!”

If you’re here consistently, it’s a high probability that you’re here to earn crypto. You have goals to make more than you have and keep it that way. You’re in the right place; however, let me share some…things…

Algorithms and Code

Steemit and Hive are communities based on the idea that you create content and people have 7 days to tell you if it is relevant for the community or not. After 7 days, their collective votes end up in a payout-whether for a comment or for a post, it doesn’t matter. After those 7 days, your post will earn you nothing, yet it stays on the blockchain forever. In the case of some communities, like POB ("proof of brain" on Hive), it will continue to earn income for the community, but you’ll get nothing due to ads that show up around your post. You get nothing. The community gets rewarded (though I don’t know how those funds are used, to be honest)…point being-you get squat from the 7th day on.

Outside of Steemit, I post on YouTube. You get paid 55% of whatever the advertisers pay to advertise around, on, within, or after your content. It is forever. I have a video I posted in 2014 or 2015 (I don’t recall at the moment) that still earns me a couple pennies per day. I made the video once and it pays me forever…until YouTube changes its code/algorithm.

Acceptance

I accept these lines of code/algorithms. There is value in each one. I’ll make more in 7 days on a post on Steemit or Hive than I may make in years on a video, depending on the video, on YouTube.

Definitions

Evergreen content is information that you post that never changes. It is information that might as well be “law” in that it won’t change, ever, for the most part. For instance, my posts about real estate investing are foundational principles that will likely never change. For instance, a recipe on how to cook Chocolate Chip Cookies is evergreen. No matter who reads it in the future, it will always be relevant and worthy of a read.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Trending content is different. It is information that is important or entertaining for the moment but doesn’t really matter in a short period of time. Trending content includes posts about me running 3 miles in the morning, Kim Kardashian eating a cricket, or Steem’s price hitting $1. These are all fleeting moments in time that are really only interesting for a moment and then gone. Five years from now, my 3 mile run will not be searched, KK eating a cricket will have been digested, and Steem hitting $1 will have run its course, up or down…the celebration confetti will have been swept up and decomposed in the landfill by the time five years passes.

Photo by Joshua Chun on Unsplash

The Takeaway

Trending content is perfect for Steemit. Evergreen content is perfect for YouTube/blogs that consistently earn ad revenue forever.
If you are trying to maximize your earnings online from your content creation, you can obviously take advantage of the several platforms available to you, but my suggestion is this-trending content goes on Steemit for your one-time drug hit. Evergreen content goes on YouTube or similar for your IV (constant feeding). Obviously, you can post both on both...if your content is great, you might get rewarded (I have some great evergreen content on Steemit that earned $2 and some that got much more. I have trending content on YouTube that earned me about the same and will never earn any more, so you get what you get).

In terms of an investor, YouTube is passive income and Steem is ordinary income. Both are important, but know where you’re putting your efforts as it relates to the content you post.

Passive income: you don’t have to do anything, or you have minimal effort put forth, and your money earns you more money.

Ordinary income: you put forth an effort and you get paid for your effort-one and done. Trading time and effort for money.

Bonus

How to Turn Ordinary Income into Passive Income

Take your Steem earnings (or any community token for that matter, be it POB, LEO, SPT, etc) and learn how to delegate it for a passive return. To do this, you must Power Up/Stake your coins. I lease Steem Power on dlease. I’ve seen others who delegate to curation bots to earn a return. You can follow a curation trail that will vote people up, helping others earn ordinary income, while you earn passive income.
See my other posts on how to double your money…it’s evergreen content:
Also, don’t forget to follow me. You’ll likely learn something that will blow your mind 😉

Some evergreen reading material for you:

Dollar Cost Averaging Explained
How to Double Your Money