First Impressions of the Newest Social Site: Pheed

The most buzzed-about startup in Silicon Valley launched this morning and I’ve been switching between work and my Pheed all day. All the while, I’ve wondered what element set these guys apart from their intimidating list of competitors: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (to name a few). From the moment I googled the site to now, their slogan has answered that question: express yourself.

The social design on Pheed encourages users to create original content. Users can easily upload video, audio, words, pictures, or even a live stream onto their Pheed. One of the first aspects of the site I noticed was the little “copyright this pheed” button at the bottom of each post I made. The mere presence of this button serves as a little, constant reminder that you should be posting your own content. The idea of original content on social sites has always been confusing, and Pheed has taken a massive step in offering peace of mind to their users (without making them dig through a mountain of privacy policy pages).

Another massive difference with Pheed is their incorporation of easy monetization. By upgrading to a premium account, you can charge others to subscribe to your Pheed. Many uses come to mind for this setup. Bands and DJs could launch new demos to their Pheed followers before the general public, social marketers could use it like a private “Secrets for Success” mailing list, or it could just serve as a way for internet celebrities to streamline their monetization strategy. Time will only tell if this subscription service catches any traction.

Overall, I’m excited. I always get excited when we get a new social UI from Silicon Valley. Over the next few months, we’ll see if Pheed can deliver on the enormous pressure set by their CEO’s statement, “The wheel had to come about before the car. There are stages, like how Friendster came, then MySpace, then Facebook, each one improving on and adding to the format. There was Twitter and now Pheed—the evolution of a genre.”