I’m writing a second post about Clubhouse not because it’s directly related to Covid as such, but because it’s riding the social wave of the pandemic. Or, perhaps the digital wave, which is more like a tsunami. Launched on a platform of innovation (being audio rather than images or text), the app has created something new and engaging in the age of lockdowns.
This new app – and it really is new, only one year old – is going gangbusters. The Financial Times reports that Clubhouse is the fastest-growing social media app in the world that has been ‘willed into virility’ by a tight-knit band of Silicon Valley insiders.
It’s gained so much traction in such a short while, that yesterday it was banned in China. That kinda reveals its influence and reach.
“for a little while, the social media platform Clubhouse provided the rare opportunity for cross-border dialogue on contentious topics free from the country’s usual tight controls” – New York Times
And that facebook is trying to clone its audio chatroom style speaks volumes about its potential. And that it’s seen as a competitor or threat. I guess it will soon buy Clubhouse, and gobble it up into its large facebook fold.
Exclusivity continues to be the main theme. Smartcompany says the only way to gain access is to be invited by a current user. But here’s the thing, users only get two invites per account.
So demand for invitations exceed supply.
Honestly, what could go wrong? It sounds like a very exclusive yet noisy place with a lot of people standing on their respective soap-boxes. By all reports, it’s important to build your credibility on Clubhouse. You create a virtual chat room where people can listen to things you have to say.
‘But the key is you’ve got to come at it with both relevance and authenticity.’
One user says ‘everyone is on Clubhouse to give value, and this authenticity translates directly into followers’. Just saying, isn’t that an oxymoron? Or power to the masses?
It seems the old social media chestnut is right at home here. ‘Be your best self‘.
And apparently the world values that, because in January 2021, Clubhouse raised a further $100 million against a revised market value of one billion dollars.
Do drop in.