Mastodon* is in desperate need of a rebrand and a repositioning in the minds of the general public (imo).
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Before I continue, if I continue this thread (I'm sleepy) I want to acknowledge that strategy is easier said than done. I don't often appeal to authority on here, but I do have twenty years in marketing and business strategy. I'm just chewin' the fat rn.
The challenge is Mastodon's general approach. It's a community behaving like, and competing on the terms of, a market.
Ironically, Threads is a market whose leaders positioned the platform as a community. And they saw some relative success in that cosplay, even if it was short lived.
Decentralized vs centralized, whether technically correct or not, is a weak marketing message. Boring. Overly and needlessly technical.
It's communities and markets, man. That's the play. That's how you compete.
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The challenge is Mastodon's general approach. It's a community behaving like, and competing on the terms of, a market.
Ironically, Threads is a market whose leaders positioned the platform as a community. And they saw some relative success in that cosplay, even if it was short lived.
Decentralized vs centralized, whether technically correct or not, is a weak marketing message. Boring. Overly and needlessly technical.
It's communities and markets, man. That's the play. That's how you compete.
There's so many entry points to this topic, it's hard to know where to start. But, I think the most fun and interesting start is to dissect the strategies of other microblogging platforms. Particularly during the "great migrations." Then explore why it's perhaps impossible for Mastodon to compete on those terms without abandoning its core values.
This is a freestyle, so I ask for some grace in my words and the story's pacing.
Let's start with #Bluesky
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There's so many entry points to this topic, it's hard to know where to start. But, I think the most fun and interesting start is to dissect the strategies of other microblogging platforms. Particularly during the "great migrations." Then explore why it's perhaps impossible for Mastodon to compete on those terms without abandoning its core values.
This is a freestyle, so I ask for some grace in my words and the story's pacing.
Let's start with #Bluesky
Despite amassing over 30 million MAU, Bluesky doesn't have any homegrown celebrities. Why?
Bluesky's top 100 accounts are a who's who of late stage liberal twitter—just a bunch of bloated 40 year olds coming up with decreasingly clever analogies for orange skin and tiny red cocks. BS top 100 is also not very diverse which we may get to, idk.
I've heard Bluesky described as a millennial retirement home. Not exactly the vibe you'd hope for as a young media platform.
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Despite amassing over 30 million MAU, Bluesky doesn't have any homegrown celebrities. Why?
Bluesky's top 100 accounts are a who's who of late stage liberal twitter—just a bunch of bloated 40 year olds coming up with decreasingly clever analogies for orange skin and tiny red cocks. BS top 100 is also not very diverse which we may get to, idk.
I've heard Bluesky described as a millennial retirement home. Not exactly the vibe you'd hope for as a young media platform.
So it's safe to say that Bluesky's growth strategy was to cater to the big Twitter personalities, particularly the political accounts (whether that was intentional or not idk but that sure was the result).
The BS team parked user names for some Twitter celebrities, and when those people signed up, BS presumably used its algorithm to "heat" posts so that they'd gain back their followers fast.
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So it's safe to say that Bluesky's growth strategy was to cater to the big Twitter personalities, particularly the political accounts (whether that was intentional or not idk but that sure was the result).
The BS team parked user names for some Twitter celebrities, and when those people signed up, BS presumably used its algorithm to "heat" posts so that they'd gain back their followers fast.
Now, Bluesky never outright admits that it heated posts for VIPs. But if you were on BS during and after the migration, it's not exactly a huge leap in logic to conclude that the Bluesky algorithm favored some accounts over others.
Also, this is not an indictment necessarily. I'm not yet speaking to the morality of this strategy. Just that it likely occurred.
And, perhaps, the strategy of courting liberal Twitter has, or will eventually, come back to bite them in the ass.
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Now, Bluesky never outright admits that it heated posts for VIPs. But if you were on BS during and after the migration, it's not exactly a huge leap in logic to conclude that the Bluesky algorithm favored some accounts over others.
Also, this is not an indictment necessarily. I'm not yet speaking to the morality of this strategy. Just that it likely occurred.
And, perhaps, the strategy of courting liberal Twitter has, or will eventually, come back to bite them in the ass.
I don't particularly love the "Bluesky is a liberal eco-chamber" argument because I think it leads to silly conclusions (imo). But, its premise isn't wrong.
Bluesky handed out microphones to all the political accounts at Twitter. Naturally, it attracted the types of people who like what those folks have to say.
But those accounts are polarizing. Not necessarily just for their politics. But because after a decade, they haven't done much to move the needle. I think people want fresh voices.
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I don't particularly love the "Bluesky is a liberal eco-chamber" argument because I think it leads to silly conclusions (imo). But, its premise isn't wrong.
Bluesky handed out microphones to all the political accounts at Twitter. Naturally, it attracted the types of people who like what those folks have to say.
But those accounts are polarizing. Not necessarily just for their politics. But because after a decade, they haven't done much to move the needle. I think people want fresh voices.
If I were a betting man, I'd wager that the folks at Bluesky are asking themselves two questions:
1. Is there a large enough audience outside of Twitter for the top 100 accounts? (No)
2. Can BS distance themselves from Liberal Twitter 2.0 now that they've created this monster, and attract new voices? Younger voices? (
)To recap, Bluesky used its *algorithm* to gain users, despite heavily promoting their "build your own experience" ecosystem.
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If I were a betting man, I'd wager that the folks at Bluesky are asking themselves two questions:
1. Is there a large enough audience outside of Twitter for the top 100 accounts? (No)
2. Can BS distance themselves from Liberal Twitter 2.0 now that they've created this monster, and attract new voices? Younger voices? (
)To recap, Bluesky used its *algorithm* to gain users, despite heavily promoting their "build your own experience" ecosystem.
DANCE BREAK 
This thread is brought to you by Photographs & Memories: Jim Croce's Greatest Hits
Jim doesn't make "dance music" per se. More like swaying music. So, sway away. I'll be back in five minutes.
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/photographs-memories-his-greatest-hits/1509297879
Youtube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6hA3DNhDECjwU9ZKgngqc9_Vk-uSRR63&si=IE1T9vz80Cg6UBZU
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/17PK4yXNTBKQg5BSRIPvtd
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DANCE BREAK
This thread is brought to you by Photographs & Memories: Jim Croce's Greatest Hits
Jim doesn't make "dance music" per se. More like swaying music. So, sway away. I'll be back in five minutes.
Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/album/photographs-memories-his-greatest-hits/1509297879
Youtube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6hA3DNhDECjwU9ZKgngqc9_Vk-uSRR63&si=IE1T9vz80Cg6UBZU
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/17PK4yXNTBKQg5BSRIPvtd
Back. Side note: I'm firmly on the left. Just in case anyone discovers this thread and hasn't heard me speak on anything else.
I don't identify with liberals all that much these days. I dislike the term "leftist" because it has lost all of its meaning and is now used to describe someone who criticizes corporate democrats but isn't a conservative.
So, I'm on the left. Abolish #ICE, the surveillance state, and healthcare insurance companies. Less corporate democrats. More democratic socialists.
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Back. Side note: I'm firmly on the left. Just in case anyone discovers this thread and hasn't heard me speak on anything else.
I don't identify with liberals all that much these days. I dislike the term "leftist" because it has lost all of its meaning and is now used to describe someone who criticizes corporate democrats but isn't a conservative.
So, I'm on the left. Abolish #ICE, the surveillance state, and healthcare insurance companies. Less corporate democrats. More democratic socialists.
Before we move on to Threads, let's take a quick detour to TikTok (stay with me lol).
It's hard to talk algorithms without mentioning TikTok's For You Feed. I think it's particularly relevant here, as TikTok offers a sharp contrast to Bluesky's strategy of courting established voices.
During lock down in 2020, I remember people talking about TikTok as the place where anyone could go viral...
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Before we move on to Threads, let's take a quick detour to TikTok (stay with me lol).
It's hard to talk algorithms without mentioning TikTok's For You Feed. I think it's particularly relevant here, as TikTok offers a sharp contrast to Bluesky's strategy of courting established voices.
During lock down in 2020, I remember people talking about TikTok as the place where anyone could go viral...
TikTok did something novel with its algorithm. They used it to build homegrown celebrities. This is especially true in the beginning of its popularity, during the pandemic (not so much anymore).
If your content was engaging and interesting, you'd make it to the FYP. It didn't matter if you had a preexisting audience.
Funny enough, not many Twitter personalities were able to find an audience on TikTok. I distinctly remember a few of them even getting dragged off the platform. C'est la vie.
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TikTok did something novel with its algorithm. They used it to build homegrown celebrities. This is especially true in the beginning of its popularity, during the pandemic (not so much anymore).
If your content was engaging and interesting, you'd make it to the FYP. It didn't matter if you had a preexisting audience.
Funny enough, not many Twitter personalities were able to find an audience on TikTok. I distinctly remember a few of them even getting dragged off the platform. C'est la vie.
On to Threads. The most interesting of all.
It's impossible to cover the entirety of Threads' strategy. Their parents have endless resources and cash. They tried a lot of stuff. Including, but not limited to, their tried and true methods of amplifying anger and resentment.
But it wasn't its algorithm that made the threads strategy so interesting. It was their ability to mimic Mastodon.
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On to Threads. The most interesting of all.
It's impossible to cover the entirety of Threads' strategy. Their parents have endless resources and cash. They tried a lot of stuff. Including, but not limited to, their tried and true methods of amplifying anger and resentment.
But it wasn't its algorithm that made the threads strategy so interesting. It was their ability to mimic Mastodon.
When Threads launched, Zuckerberg's strategy was to determine which aspect of Mastodon were the most appealing, then he positioned Threads to be that until he didn't need to anymore.
Threads pretended to be a community-driven, decentralized platform with a techie vibe in hopes of stopping the flood of users leaving Twitter for Mastodon.
When he accomplished that, he changed threads dot net to threads dot com, and it's on to the next one.
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When Threads launched, Zuckerberg's strategy was to determine which aspect of Mastodon were the most appealing, then he positioned Threads to be that until he didn't need to anymore.
Threads pretended to be a community-driven, decentralized platform with a techie vibe in hopes of stopping the flood of users leaving Twitter for Mastodon.
When he accomplished that, he changed threads dot net to threads dot com, and it's on to the next one.
What Mark Zuckerberg saw in Mastodon and what he tried to replicate is what makes Mastodon special.
Zuck tried to replicate the feeling of community you get on Mastodon. Some Fediverse leaders sold us out, and tried to help Zuck, which is upsetting to me and a topic of a different discussion. Anyway,
Zuck saw community as Mastodon's most valuable attribute. And I think there's value in his observation.
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What Mark Zuckerberg saw in Mastodon and what he tried to replicate is what makes Mastodon special.
Zuck tried to replicate the feeling of community you get on Mastodon. Some Fediverse leaders sold us out, and tried to help Zuck, which is upsetting to me and a topic of a different discussion. Anyway,
Zuck saw community as Mastodon's most valuable attribute. And I think there's value in his observation.
I want to talk a little about the Communities and Markets dichotomy because I believe it to be a more effective communication strategy than decentralized vs centralized.
So I want to share some thoughts I wrote a couple years back. And why I believe Mastodon is or can be positioned as a community, and why other platforms are markets.
It's been a challenge for me to articulate this idea. So I've been writing here and there. Here's my first toot that attempts to explain
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I want to talk a little about the Communities and Markets dichotomy because I believe it to be a more effective communication strategy than decentralized vs centralized.
So I want to share some thoughts I wrote a couple years back. And why I believe Mastodon is or can be positioned as a community, and why other platforms are markets.
It's been a challenge for me to articulate this idea. So I've been writing here and there. Here's my first toot that attempts to explain
Again, It's important to note that this, whatever this is (lol), is not a debate whether or not Bluesky is decentralized, or if Threads is part of the Fediverse.
This is an outright rejection of the decentralized vs centralized, and Protocols Not Platforms dichotomies as a way to improve the www and undo the harms of the "platform era."
This is an exploration of what I've been calling Communities Not Markets.
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Again, It's important to note that this, whatever this is (lol), is not a debate whether or not Bluesky is decentralized, or if Threads is part of the Fediverse.
This is an outright rejection of the decentralized vs centralized, and Protocols Not Platforms dichotomies as a way to improve the www and undo the harms of the "platform era."
This is an exploration of what I've been calling Communities Not Markets.
That said, if you are interested in a deep dive into the concepts of decentralization and whether or not Bluesky meets its definition, Christine Lemmer-Webber has two fantastic and compelling essays on the subject.
Not to out myself as a nerd but I've read both twice and they're really good, imo.
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That said, if you are interested in a deep dive into the concepts of decentralization and whether or not Bluesky meets its definition, Christine Lemmer-Webber has two fantastic and compelling essays on the subject.
Not to out myself as a nerd but I've read both twice and they're really good, imo.
Let's talk markets.
A markets is a vessel for extracting value for a small syndicate of beneficiaries (ie venture capitalists). How a company brands their tech stack is less relevant. If an extractive force exists, it's a market.
You can simply call it "ad-tech" and you'd be correct. But that term lacks all the fun analogies of spaces where people dwell.
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Let's talk markets.
A markets is a vessel for extracting value for a small syndicate of beneficiaries (ie venture capitalists). How a company brands their tech stack is less relevant. If an extractive force exists, it's a market.
You can simply call it "ad-tech" and you'd be correct. But that term lacks all the fun analogies of spaces where people dwell.
Unrelated: it's a tragedy that William H. Macy wasn't the father in The Grinch Who Stole Christmas (2000)
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Unrelated: it's a tragedy that William H. Macy wasn't the father in The Grinch Who Stole Christmas (2000)
Since markets need value to extract, they need a governing system to ensure that the right kinds of content is discovered.
This is the algorithm's role. Algorithms are the invisible hands of the market.
Algorithms influence the way people create content and frames social media as a way to make money. Every post is a sales pitch. Attention is currency. These platforms are quite literally open air markets, not communities.
