Chaos and Composure
On Building and Launching Reddit’s Upvoted
This week, we launched Upvoted alongside a talented group of editorial, video, and podcast folk. Building and launching a “startup within a startup” has been a unique, exciting challenge.
We were set to launch on Tuesday, but our plans spoiled when a journalist broke embargo. Only 14 hours early. No big deal. It was clear that the launch was going to deviate from the plan.
It’s okay. Deep breath. This is normal. This is good. Chaos is okay. It inspires creativity, requires composure, and cultivates new opportunities.
I started out pissed that someone broke embargo. Then I remembered a quote by Oscar Wilde:
“There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.”
Hey! People are talking about this thing I’ve lost sleep over. You know, the thing that only existed in idealistic conversations between Alexis and I. The same thing that now exists and gives people a voice that might not have one otherwise.
I’ll take the chaos.
When we first set out to build Upvoted, we wanted to make sure the product was different. Subtly so, not distracting.
We wanted to make sure we gave proper attribution to original content creators. We wanted to make sure our editorial process was transparent. We wanted to create context between the content and the communities.
I feel like we did a great job at achieving that with our first version.
Here are my favorite Upvoted features:
Attribution PMs
This feature is pretty simple and unpolished. It’s probably the least pretty feature on the site. But I think it’s one of the most important.
In our CMS, there’s a field for the original Reddit source URL for every article we publish. We use that URL to grab the username of the original poster. Then our bot (u/Upvotedbot) crafts a personal message to the user telling them that we liked their content and featured it.
When I first pitched this feature, I didn’t quite foresee the response of our recipients.
It’s clear this feature serves as more than a promise to transparency. They were excited that their content was featured, and thrilled that we let them know.
We’re going to work on making this feature more quirky and human in the coming weeks.
Attribution and Stats Sidebar
Remember that Reddit source URL from above? We actually use it for this feature too. You know the saying — slay many fowl with a single pebble.
The original creator, community, and stats are integral in helping set the context of our stories. It’s important to give credit where credit is due. So, we built a sidebar that details exactly that information.
The best part is that it scrolls with you as you read the article (on desktop), so the context of each story is omnipresent. Right now, it’s at the bottom of the article on mobile. I’m currently brainstorming how to make it more visible on mobile. Throw any fun ideas my way.
Comments Exist!
Some press outlets mentioned that Upvoted doesn’t encourage comments. Some said it doesn’t “allow” comments. My only reply to that is:
We opted not to use Facebook comments. Or disqus. Or whatever. Reddit is one of the best commenting systems on the web. Why reinvent the wheel?
Every article posted to Upvoted will have an attached thread on the r/upvoted for discussion. Our artificially intelligent friend, u/Upvotedbot, even shows up from time to time.
We also wanted to create a new place for people to discuss the articles. Especially since these pieces are companions to what happens on Reddit. They might take a different angle than the original post. They might be a follow up from a popular thread, a profile piece about one of our interesting users, guest pieces from our community, or even a segue brought about by a discussion. This is my favorite piece so far.
Popular Communities
Upvoted functions a wee bit differently than Reddit. On Reddit, there are tens of thousands of communities called “subreddits.” Upvoted only has twelve topics. Each topic serves as an amalgam of many hundreds of subreddits. We wanted to make sure we could give a nice shout out to some of our favorite communities on Reddit.
Enter the Popular Communities bar. Each Topic page on the site (e.g. Science/Tech) has a block on the right side featuring eight interchangeable Reddit Communities.
The best thing about Reddit isn’t the individual. It’s the collective. You’re not judged by how many followers you have, or what you look like, or how much money you make. You’re judged on your ideas and interests. Calling out some of the best communities is necessary.
What are your favorite subreddits? We’ll be changing these in and out frequently, so feel free to throw some suggestions my way.
Honorable Mention- Mobile Sharing
It’s really simple, but having an easy way to share articles was important to us. These buttons scroll with you as you read your article. They open up the corresponding mobile app on your phone for native sharing (if you have that app). And they’re pretty darned cute.
Maybe I’m biased, but I find myself sharing at least one article a day just because it’s super easy.
Check out Upvoted. Let us know what we’re doing right, wrong, or in-between.
The product itself won’t determine the success. It has to be a perfect blend between editorial, video, design, and product. That excites me because the video and editorial teams are already killing it. It’s their first week and they already got an “A” from Digiday. IMHO, they deserve whatever grade is above an “A.” I’ll ask our awesome editor what grade that might be.
Go read a few stories and give us your feedback (a.k.a. tell us how amazing they are).
We have a long road up ahead, but we’re excited to take the trip with you.
