Twitter has been in a perpetual nose dive, and it seems like every day a new social media platform appears to replace it. Between being a Content Creator and just wanting to keep up with what mutuals are sharing, it is chaos. I decided to try out Lemon8 and Hive Social with zero mutuals on the platforms for one week and here are my thoughts.
Thoughts After Trying Out Lemon8
Lemon8 is a sister app to TikTok and a competitor to Instagram. There are a lot of similarities between the two apps, and several big differences. Much like on Instagram; creators who have a focus on fashion and beauty, food, wellness, travel, home, and productivity will fit in on this app.
The vast majority of recommended content fits in those categories. However, cozy gaming creators may also want to try out the platform, as there is a community around the niche. I spent a week consistently posting each day and noticed my cozy gaming flat-lays performed significantly better than my pictures of brunch or books.
I personally like that Lemon8 has elements of Tumblr and Pinterest as well. You have a lot of space to write captions and micro-blogs. There are also plenty of built-in templates to add text and effects to images.
From a creator standpoint there currently is no way to track analytics. Lemon8 has a views/impressions (it is not clear as to which the icon stands for) icon that appears on your posts. For now, you only have likes, follows, and comments to go off of.
Use Lemon8 With Caution if You Have Triggers
Lemon8 is very similar to Pinterest and Instagram when you first start using it. This means the For You Page is empty, and you’re first introduced to the All Categories tab. This and every other general category tab can be great to look at to find new accounts, however, you can also find things that may be triggering.
Wellness content is very prevalent on the app, which means there is a lot of unchecked misinformation. The standard clickbait photoshopped images with “How to Lose Weight Quickly” are constantly coming across my feed, even though I ignore and block those accounts.
There are also a lot of accounts claiming to know how to grow quickly on Lemon8 when no one knows because the app is still new. There’s follow for follow trains, like most social media platforms. Grifters are going to grift no matter the platform, so as always be careful.
There is also no “not interested” option on posts, you have to block the whole account which doesn’t solve the issue. Unfortunately like all social media platforms, I have run into a few accounts that actively celebrate watching people lose their rights and spread misinformation. I tried reporting posts, only to be told to just block the account by an automated support notification.
Thoughts After Trying Out Hive Social
Hive Social is designed to bring back the elements of social media a lot of people enjoyed. Hive Social was originally developed by two college students that wanted to take a different approach to social media.
There are elements reminiscent of Twitter and Instagram, on the app. You have access to a chronological feed which I hope always stays that way. This continues on the search pages for specific hashtags.
Hive Social welcomes a variety of content types from gaming, books, pets, art, anime, etc. When comparing it to Lemon8 that’s a huge plus especially if you have a lot of interests you want to follow.
Since the app is still being developed there currently aren’t ways to track analytics, outside of likes, follows, and comments. However, with how active the developers are on the app and across other social media platforms I do have a lot of hope for how Hive Social develops over time.
Which is More Accessible Between Lemon8 & Hive Social
Both apps lack a desktop version, so I can see Content Creators and Social Media Managers struggling to separate work and life. In addition, being able to use a larger screen to view these apps just makes things a little bit easier when you have visual impairments.
On that note currently, both apps lack the option to add alt text to images. This is disappointing due to both apps highlighting photo-sharing abilities. The ability to add alt text to images should be an industry standard by this point, especially on apps competing with Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr (all of which have alt text options).
When it comes to the legibility of text on Lemon8, I do like how it feels like Tumblr. Individual users can format their posts, and the app even provides some format templates for captions. This makes reading captions a lot easier for me personally.
Hive Social has the option to view topics in three different ways. The first is a standard chronological feed with posts that have images and text – similar to your home feed on Instagram or Twitter. You then have a feed that only displays pictures, much like the Instagram Explore page, except it’s chronological. Third is a text-only feed.
The text-only feed does become overwhelming for me, as information is very close together sometimes. I prefer the image and text feed, however, I know if I use that one I could potentially miss posts that lack an image attachment.
Is Lemon8 or Hive Social Zero Mutual Creator Friendly
A big thing I wanted to test during the last week was if Lemon8 and Hive Social were small creator (someone who has zero starting mutuals) friendly. I joined both apps on the same day and didn’t attempt to find any of our Twitter, Twitch, or even Discord mutuals to have a completely blank slate.
Like EVERY social media platform, there are going to be bots and people hoping for a follow-for-follow train. I saw a lot of “looking for new mutuals” type posts on both Lemon8 and Hive Social and just ignored those accounts. Those posts are a lot more prevalent on Lemon8, as it’s not a chronological feed and those posts get engagement, boosting them on the for you page.
I did have more organic interactions with other people on Lemon8, compared to Hive Social. People commented on my posts now and again, and I felt comfortable commenting on certain posts.
Hive Social did feel a bit lonely, with zero mutuals, just because it felt like yelling into a void. None of my posts had any engagement, I think I got one like the entire week (which I expected). I am definitely going to follow my existing mutuals that I know are on the app and give Hive Social another chance.
ChromaGlitch 
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