We ran Web Monetization learning program, and this is what we learned

Uchi Uchibeke — Fri, 19 Mar 2021 14:35:51 +0000

After joining the Web Monetization Challenge at the AfricaHacks 2020 Hackathon, participants wanted to learn about Web Monetization. So we launched the Web Monetization for the Passion Economy Fellowship. The program brought together Content Creators and Builders to learn about Web Monetization for the first time, create content, and build solutions to enhance free, fair, and transparent open revenue models that gave the creators and consumers the power back.

Program Process

Weekly reading list, event, and milestone submission
Mentorship from the AfricaHacks team and the Web Monetization community
Content creation challenges
A Hackathon
Access to tools and products ranging from cloud, marketing, sales, operations, and other tools needed to run an early-stage business.
Airtime and internet data from Chimoney for all participants
Coil credits for participants
A year of egghead.io for all participants that demoed

Highlights

Projects

The participants built so many unique projects. Some that stood out to us are:

TREBLE: Victoria Ayodeji created a TREBLE, a platform for web monetized live events where users can stream music or live shows with payments streamed to the Artist's wallet. Read more
Express Disposed: Muhammad Umar Inuwa and his team created a prototype of a platform for African Creators to host and earn from their content
Trotro Live: Godfred Addai Amako, Michael Akala, and Isaac Avoseh created Trotro Live, a digitized system to know actual 'government' or national fare when traveling via minivans taxis. Read more

Participants

For Cohort 1, active participants from Canada 🇨🇦, Nigeria 🇳🇬, Lesotho 🇱🇸, and Ghana 🇬🇭 and a mix of Builders and Creators. Many participants were new to web monetization, so it was inspiring to see them go from newbies to web monetization builders and creators in 6 weeks. Some comments from participants are:

Michele David said:

I have never thought of blogging or writing articles until I joined this program. And with the deadline on every breakthrough, I have learned to be self-disciplined and eager

Victoria Ayodeji said that:

I had no idea what Web Monetization was until I enrolled into this program. I learnt a new way to monetize contents without using ads to invade users privacy and that is, Web Monetization using Coil.

Now, I can categorically say I'm pumped enough to pass down the knowledge to the newbies.

Content

Michael Akala created a Content Channel for Educating content creators to monetize their content on youtube and blogs.
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTtQoKrwvU0&feature=youtu.be
Victoria Ayodeji published an article on how to use Coil for web Monetization as a content creator. The article featured a step-by-step guide process of implementing web monetization on Coil.
1. https://coil.com/p/Victoria/How-to-Use-Coil-for-Web-Monetization/CPdkurJSN
Rachael David published articles on monetizing Hashnode blogs and all the steps involved in adding web Monetization as Content Creator on Hashnode.
Lebohang Bernard Motseki published an article on different revenue models used in Web Monetization. The blog post explored each revenue model's pros and cons and how content creators and product builders can use revenue models.
1. https://motseki.hashnode.dev/different-revenue-models-for-online-creators-ckkv42lim03v3bxs11ile0f1n
Isaac Avoseh published articles on what Africans need to know about Web monetization and How Content Creators can successfully use Web Monetization in their work.
1. https://sunsearch.hashnode.dev/what-you-need-to-know-about-web-monetization
2. https://sunsearch.hashnode.dev/how-to-become-a-successful-content-creator
Tanoh Jean Achile published an article on how technical and non-technical people can monetize their blogs.
1. https://achiletanoh.hashnode.dev/how-to-monetize-your-blog

Learnings

Overcommunicate: We learned the importance of overcommunicating because we initially assumed that participants would follow the program calendar and event app's schedule and study materials. But we were wrong. We later realized that we needed to include more live events to provide reminders, handle Q and A, and have peers lead sessions. We also leveraged the text/SMS reminder feature from the AfricaHacks virtual learning and lab platform to send timely reminders for upcoming deadlines and events.
Provide multiple touchpoints: If we combined the milestone-based program structure on all AfricaHacks programs with progressive content reveals and byte-sized content summaries, we would likely have provided a better experience and had more engagement. This is because many participants were not always connected or were busy with other engagements. A daily 160 character text/SMS highlighting a critical point with a link to further reading would have helped.

Opportunities

Builders and Products

There is an opportunity to support projects like TrotoLive, TREBLE, and others to take them from MVP to launch in the next 4-6 months. This could bring us closer to having Artists like Burna Boy, Davido, Wizkid, and others hosting web monetized live concerts on something like TREBLE, which will drive traction to the ecosystem and increase subscription to providers like Coil.

Creators and Content

There is a more enormous opportunity to engage and attract creators from Africa. This is because, from a recent clubhouse room, many content creators (mostly Yotubers and bloggers) of African descent who were in a room I spoke at have never heard of Web Monetization. It felt like magic when they learned about the potential of it.

A Web Monetization Course

There is an opportunity to partner with online learning platforms to create a Web Monetization tutorial for both Builders and Creators.

Appreciation

The Web Monetization for the Passion Economy program is made possible with the support of:

Participants for joining the program and making it engaging and worthwhile for us
Grant for the Web for supporting Africa's Journey to host a Web Monetization Hackathon and additional support of the Fellowship program
Coil for the Coil credits and guidance
Hammed Babatunde for coordinating the program
Christine Dikongué and the Marketing team for developing and implementing marketing and promotional plans for the program
Chimoney for powering airtime and internet data for virtual event participation and crypto prizes for giveaways and winning teams

You can apply for the next cohort when we launch at apply.africahacks.com. Please, comment or email team at africahacks.com to work with us.

Internet blackouts suck but you can still stay connected

Uchi Uchibeke — Thu, 15 Oct 2020 04:22:06 +0000

When Internet Service is shutdown (Complete Blackout)

A complete blackout happens when all local mobile network operators turn off access to the internet.

All local mobile network operators turn off access to the internet. They go offline, and WIFI and cellular data do not work. Sometimes, even GSM goes offline, especially when off-grid.

How to get connected

There are two scenarios:

You want to stay connected with close family, friends, and associates
You want to communicate in a social setting as you do on Twitter, Facebook, and others.

One-on-one communication with Friends, Family, and Associates

Bridgefy: Bridgefy enables you to keep in touch with friends without the need for the internet or SMS. You communicate via Bluetooth and with thousands of users over a long distance. Download Bridgefy for Android and iOS.

Offline Social networking

Manyverse: Manyverse is a social network off the grid. Features include posts, threads, likes, profiles, and more, but data is stored on your phone and works offline and online. Download Manyverse for Android and iOS.

When certain websites, Apps, or IPs are blocked (Blacklisted)

Mobile network or other parties block access to specific websites, apps, or domains.

How to bypass

On Android:

Download any of the apps below
Psiphon (Free)
Private Internet Access (2 Month Free)
Complete the setting and activate VPN
You will now be able to browse the blocked website or use the blocked apps.

On iOS (iPhones):

Download any of the apps below
- Psiphon (Free)
- Private Internet Access (2 Month Free)
Complete the setting and activate VPN
You will now be able to browse the blocked website or use the blocked apps.

On Windows:

Download any of the apps below
- Psiphon (Free)
- Private Internet Access (2 Month Free)
Complete the setting and activate VPN
You will now be able to browse the blocked website or use the blocked apps. OR
Use Naija Browse

On Mac OS:

Download the following
- Private Internet Access (2 Month Free)
Register and complete settings, and you should be good to go OR
Use Naija Browse

Stay connected!

Forem: AfricaHacks