Clubhouse: First Impressions
If you don’t live under a rock, you’ve already heard about some app called Clubhouse by now. Currently, at 6 million registered users and valued at $1 billion, it has taken the internet by storm. Since it’s only available to devices running on iOS for the time being, and since you can only start using the app via an invite link, I thought it would be nice to give an insider look to those who don’t yet have access.
How it works
Very simple: You enter a chat room, and some people talk about random stuff. You can “raise your hand” and one of the speakers will let you speak as well. “Why an app with such a simple premise took off so wildly” is a multi-dimensional question. In my opinion,
Clubhouse launched at the perfect time: Due to the pandemic, people crave real conversations. Not podcasts, not YouTube videos: they had a ton of that already. They want conversations they can be part of, and Clubhouse gave it to them.
Another reason why it took off so fast is that it’s very simple to use. Enter a chat, leave if you don’t like it, jump to another one. No strings attached! One nice feature is that you can schedule talks in advance and people can set reminders. Like a live podcast!
On your timeline, you’ll see your friends and the rooms they are in. This creates an organic environment, where people’s friends and their friends’ friends gather in a room, like in real life.
Its future
Once the hype dies, it’s difficult to predict what will become of Clubhouse. Do you remember the ad-free version of Instagram, Vero, that got a similar level of attention, but died off pretty quickly against the monster that is the corporation of Facebook? It is possible, after the pandemic, that the interest in Clubhouse decreases rapidly.
Moreover, other giants such as Twitter and Instagram are already rumored to be preparing their own versions of “Clubhouse”, which might lower its survival rate even further.
Twitter is testing out its own Clubhouse, called “Spaces” already (see image).
Whatever the future may hold, Clubhouse is definitely something to check out if you can, and even hop right on, so that you can start building a community there already.
