Reddit is a famous American online platform where people post their content. The content can be any form, including text, links, graphics, images, etc. The other users will vote on each post using the upvote and downvote options available on the platform.
While downvote indicates the unpopularity of the post, upvote means that the post appeals to the viewer well. Being a public content-sharing platform, upvotes are the only possible criterion to find the top creators.
Along with measuring popularity, the number of upvotes under a post also signifies many more elements. The section below explores these elements and explains why your posts require upvotes to rank high.
Purpose of Upvotes
The reasons why upvotes are significant in Reddit are as follows.
1. Help Rank the Content
Being a free platform, nearly billions use Reddit daily. This means billions of new content are posted every day. It is difficult to monitor all these contents and judge them individually. The upvote system enables the platform to evaluate the content easily and pick the top posts.
2. Filters Out Subpar Content
Another vital purpose of upvotes is that content not up to the standards gets pushed backward automatically during voting. When a post does not get enough upvotes, it is slowly filtered out of visibility and ensures that only high-quality content gains broad reach.
3. Encourages Positive Behavior on The Platform
One of the common issues public media platforms face is the presence of negative content and creators. But with the upvote system, only high-quality positive content is earned more visibility and reaches the front page. So, the positive content creation gains reinforcement through the upvote system.
4. No Discriminations Caused
In many media, passive and active discriminations occur regarding race, age, social status, etc. But with the upvote system in place, only the content and its quality matter.
How does Upvote Influence Ranking?
When a post on Reddit receives more upvotes, it gains more visibility on the platform. Eventually, the post will be featured on the platform’s front page or suggestion page.
This brings more attention and further engagement to the post, making it go even more viral. So, through this process, the content and the creator’s ranking increase significantly on the platform.
The upvote process and the resultant high ranking also enable the creator to have constructive feedback. With increased attention comes high criticism and feedback. This helps the creator to make necessary changes in the next post to appeal to even more masses and earn an even higher ranking.