Are you a seasoned social media marketer? Or a business owner? A wide range of social media platforms can enable you to raise your brand awareness, connect with potential customers, and engage with your audience. These platforms allow social media users to acquire information related to their lifestyle tips and in the decision-making procedure for product research.
Social media platforms are the fundamental pillar of individuals’ lives. It’s not a matter to deny that internet users across the globe use social media platforms for their own pleasure. In 2021, there were around 4.48 billion people, and in 2022 more than 4.74 billion people were using social media. According to Kepios’ detailed study, there would be 4.76 billion social media followers globally in January 2023, accounting for 59.4 percent of the entire global population. And, with smartphones and internet connectivity, you can expect to see these numbers grow even higher. Around 4.65 billion social media users that are 58.7% of the global population, are utilizing social media as a main source of information.
Let’s talk about a few web3 substitutes of renowned web2 technology-based social media platforms that individuals use daily.
According to a recent report by consumer intelligence firm Talkwalker,” decentralized social media platforms are shaping up to have the biggest impact on social media channels in 2023.”
Web3 Social Media Platforms: What Are They?
Creators may own their work and keep it permanently on public blockchains using Web3 social media platforms. These are some of the platforms that allow users to tokenize content as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and utilize cryptocurrencies to establish financial incentives for audience interaction. Furthermore, there are a plethora of popular Web3 social networking platforms that integrate privacy-preserving ad features to enable users to tailor their online experiences.
Users may receive crypto incentives for generating, watching, and sharing content on social networking networks that leverage web3 technology. In general, authors benefit from a strong publishing structure that increases their earning potential and protects them against irresponsible de-platforming.
Web3 Social Media vs. Traditional Social Media Platforms
It is possible to identify web3-based social media systems from conventional social media platforms, whether decentralized or centralized, in a few ways. They are most likely Web3 platforms if they are decentralized. Otherwise, they are most likely standard social networking sites.
One of the founding goals of conventional social media platforms is to keep users on the site for as long as possible. This often entails restricting what material may flow across platforms and, in certain cases, restricting what other sites you can connect to on a specific platform. By limiting the presented material to what is available on the parent site, you encourage people to remain on that platform. Decentralized social media usually does not restrict where the material originates from or where connections lead users. In essence, it aids in the democratization of content dissemination.
Web3 systems should ideally function on both a permissionless and a trustless basis. In other words, you will not depend on third parties to get access to the platform or to manage your conversations with other users. This should help with community formation in the same manner that Web2 social media platforms promised but ultimately failed to deliver.
To make things easier, we researched and compiled information about the top web2 and web3-based social media platforms in 2023. Some will be familiar to you, while others might sound new. It’s recommended to go through this list to learn more about the social media platforms that might be great for your brand.
Web2-Based Social Media Platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Whatsapp, Linkedin, Snapchat, Telegram, Pinterest, WeChat, TikTok, Reddit,YouTube, and more.
Web3-Based Social Media Platforms: DiamondApp, Audius, Steem, Minds, Plai Labs, Lens Protocol, Mastodon, Odysee, Supernovas, Entre, and more.
Web3 Alternative of Web2 Social Media Platforms
Facebook — Minds/Diaspora
YouTube — Peertube/LBRY/Dtube
Reddit — Aether
Twitter — Mastodon
Twitter/Medium — Steemit
Instagram — Pixelfed
WhatsApp — Signal/Status
Google Maps — Hivemapper
Spotify — Audius
Linkedin — Braintrust
Google Search — Presearch
Uber — DIMO
Here are a few of the most innovative Web3 social media platforms to watch out for in 2023 that are alternatives to web2-based social media platforms.
Minds
Minds is an alternative to Facebook & Youtube. It allows you to post videos, blogs, and images on Minds and set statuses. It’s also possible for you to securely message and video chat with groups or friends. It includes trending feeds and hashtags that allow you to discover articles of your interest.
It’s not all about Minds; it also offers you other options to earn tokens for your contributions. You can use these tokens to upgrade your channel. It allows creators to receive direct payments from fans in United States Dollars, Bitcoin, and Ether. Minds is a decentralized open-source crypto social network committed to internet freedom, free expression, and privacy. Users may earn crypto tokens for their contributions to the network on the social media platform, which offers video content and blogs.
Minds, a web3 social media platform, is using blockchain technology to improve the experience and advantages for the community, with the goal of restoring people’s privacy and rewarding interaction on creator’s channels.The blogging platform and cryptocurrency network have 200K+ monthly active users and 1.25M+ registered members, and it is experimenting with a decentralized reputation system to assist users in understanding the reliability of individual users as rated by peers.
Aether
Aether is an open-source and peer-to-peer platform for self-governing communities with auditable moderation and mod elections. The nature of the content available on Aether is ephemeral. One of the most exciting features of Aether is that it is kept only for six months unless somebody saves it and its democratic communities. It’s of a P2P nature, so there is the absence of any centralized server. This way, it makes it possible for the communities to elect mods and impeach them by votes.
Mastodon
Mastodon, known as Fediverse, is a simple microblogging network that has been compared to an improved version of Twitter. The platform is not a single website but rather a worldwide network of communities that are not governed by a single authority. Mastodon is effectively a decentralized version of Twitter.
Mastodon has been operating since 2016, but it has just lately seen fast growth as users seek a decentralized Twitter alternative. Unlike other social media networks, is ad-free, maintained by a nonprofit corporation, governed by inventor Eugen Rochko, and funded via crowdsourcing.
Steemit
Steemit is a blockchain-powered microblogging platform. It is an open-source project as the best alternative to Twitter or Medium. It’s an alternative to Twitter Median. It rewards its users with tokens if they make their contribution to the platform with the help of posts and interactions.
Pixelfed
Pixelfed is a reliable alternative to social media platforms, namely- Instagram. It utilizes the similar underlying open protocol that is mostly used by Mastodon, i.e., ActivityPub. Through Pixelfed, it becomes convenient for you to intercommunicate with Mastodon. Additionally, whether you’ve not ever tried it, theoretically, it’s essential for you to have the ability to do that.
It enables you to control your data and privacy. With the help of this platform, you can control the privacy of your images without any advertisements on the platform. It enhances your knowledge by providing you with similar fundamental basics of a photo-sharing platform. However, you do not have an algorithm powering the timeline; it follows a chronological order without collecting any of your data for a personalized experience.
Peertube
Pertube, the prominent alternative to youtube, is a decentralized video streaming platform. It was developed by the French company Framasoft. PeerTube aims to confront corporate monopoly. It does not rely on ads and does not track you. Always remember that your IP address is not anonymous here.
There are multiple of PeerTube available that allows you to host your videos or host them yourself. Only a few instances may charge money, while most are free.
DiamondApp
This social media platform, based on the DeSo blockchain, enables producers and their viewers to create a compelling online community around content, incentives, and ownership.
The platform is a new sort of social network that blends investments and social media, and it was designed from the bottom up as its own bespoke blockchain. Its design is comparable to Bitcoin, with the addition of larger-scale support for sophisticated social network data.
Diamond is a completely open-source project with no centralized authority, yet it nevertheless provides the online community with the same capabilities as Web2 platforms, such as publishing, sharing, and chatting.
LBRY
LBRY is a blockchain-based decentralization protocol that is a trustworthy alternative to Youtube. Besides the protocol, you can also get a digital marketplace powered by its cryptocurrency. This social media platform allows creators to offer various digital content like movies, books, and games.
Diaspora
Diaspora, touted as a Facebook alternative, was one of the earliest decentralized social networks. This was back in 2010, It did get some praiseworthy limelight in its initial years, but it got confined to only a handful of niche members. Diaspora is composed of pods just like Mastodon. It also allows you to register with a pod or host your pod.
Dtube
Dtube is famous as a blockchain-based YouTube clone, the same as Steemit. Here, the word YouTube clone refers to the interface in a way that is too similar to YouTube.
Like other blockchain-based social networks, Dtube is governed by DTube Coins (DTC). It allows the creator to earn when someone watches or interacts with their content. In addition to this, it becomes possible for the users to use the coins to promote the content or cash out from partner crypto exchanges.
Signal
Unlike the Facebook messenger app exposed with the end-to-end encrypted chats in WhatsApp, Signal doesn’t track you, share your personal information, or invade your privacy.
Signal uses its open-source Signal protocol to provide you with end-to-end encrypted messages and calls.
Braintrust
Braintrust is a web3-based and decentralized social media platform that is the substitute for Linkedin. Its users with a community of knowledge not only own it but also control it. It has a specific ability to serve the requirements of its users, which makes it a more effective and efficient social media platform than other platforms. Additionally, hundreds of Fortune 1000 companies rely on Braintrust, which has 700,000+ members and is considered one of the most reliable talent networks in the world.
A few additional web3 social media platforms that are not the alternatives of any web2 social media platform-
Presearch
Presearch is the alternative to Google, a prominent decentralized search engine that rewards its users for doing searches. It also allows users to switch between multiple platforms & search engines and offers them a more diverse search experience.
Presearch operates on blockchain technology and rewards users with PRE tokens for conducting searches. However, the users can withdraw these tokens when the user reaches a balance of 1000 PRE. In addition to this, this platform offers a maximum of 30 searches/day and allows users to earn up to 3 PRE daily.
Audius
Audius is a blockchain-powered, decentralized music streaming service provider that empowers producers via social media features. This music platform is a substitute for Spotify. The network is owned and operated by an open-source community of artists, fans, and developers, and it has its own cryptocurrency, AUDIO, which provides musicians with higher income and control.
Audius features one million tracks, over 250,000 active artists, and around seven million monthly users. Although Audius does not plan to compete with established music streaming services such as Apple Music, the upstart streaming platform has carved out its own niche where music meets Web3.
Steem
It is a social blockchain that creates communities and allows users to earn direct cash streams by paying them for sharing information in order to introduce the benefits of blockchain to the online social networking sphere.
Steem enables the online community to become shareholders and earn value for developing and publishing content using Steem-based social apps, and it is presently the only blockchain that can power actual applications through social apps such as Steemit. Furthermore, the platform reverses the concept of traditional social networks by providing a quick, free, and scalable blockchain-based alternative.
Mirror
Mirror is a web3 publishing platform that prioritizes privacy and decentralization. It enables users to produce and share their own content while also letting them manage the revenue of their work.
Mirror offers its customers a number of options, such as an editor, reader view, social network integration, and web3 wallet support. The Mirror Dashboard also allows users to simply install web3 apps right into their site.
Plai Labs
Plai Labs is a one-of-a-kind creature in the Web3 universe. It has created a full-fledged metaverse social media platform called Massina and plans to create video games for Web3 environment. Its initial attempt into that game arena is called Champions Ascension, and it allows players to earn prizes by playing. While the game is still in its early phases, it makes use of the unique feature of employing NFTs as the primary character design. While all NFTs are now created in-house and must be obtained via an auction, the business intends to allow consumers to contribute their digital assets in the future.
Upon consideration,
Social media is everywhere. You can also launch your web3 based social media platform with the help of a leading web3 development company. Every individual is using it, from a teenager who’s trying to go viral on TikTok with the latest dance to an 86-year-old grandmother who’s using Facebook to track down long-lost friends. With a plethora of new social media platforms popping up every day, it is a challenge to figure out which one will be most valuable for investing your time and money.
So it’s a must to keep in mind that not all platforms work for every business. If you have the desire to boost customer engagement, increase your reach, and create unforgettable brand experiences, no other social media platform is as advantageous as the web3-based platforms are.
