What Is Clubhouse and Is It Worth the Hype?

Jan 13

It seems like all anyone is talking about - the latest social media platform to surge in popularity. Its creators Paul Davison and Rohan Seth began building it less than one year ago, right at the start of the pandemic, but have already taken the social media world by storm. Yep, that’s right, we’re taking a closer look at Clubhouse and asking: is it really worth the hype?

So, what actually is Clubhouse?

Clubhouse is an audio-only app which allows users to have conversations and form communities around topics that interest them. Currently, Clubhouse is still in its private beta phase which means that you have to be invited by someone who’s already a user to join and gain access to the app. Much to many people’s frustration, it’s also only available on iOS currently, meaning Android users have been missing out so far. Throughout its beta phase, it’s also being continually reviewed and improved by the company, so there’s a possibility some features will change slightly before it is opened up to the public. We can expect its community guidelines, for example, to be “robust” and “evolve as the user base grows,” according to its creators. As it stands at the moment, though, its main features include:

Audio-only communication
The app is structured around ‘rooms’ of people talking to one another
All rooms are open, meaning you can enter into the audience of rooms (it’s unclear whether this will change when the app is opened up to the public)
You can virtually raise your hand to be invited to speak by the room host/s
Conversations can’t be saved or recorded
Community guidelines and rules are in place to protect users

What makes Clubhouse different from other social media platforms?

The Clubhouse app is different from other social media sites in that it doesn’t focus around popularity and engagement metrics like followers and likes. While you do have your own profile which allows you to follow users and others to follow you, the main focus of the app is around your unique interests and facilitating conversations and building communities around them. Clubhouse therefore feels like a natural progression towards the more positive, community-focused social media that users have been shifting their demands towards throughout the pandemic - something we’ve already seen reflected in Facebook’s focus and expansion of its Groups feature.

We tried out Clubhouse and here’s what we thought...

With all of the buzz around Clubhouse building on social media lately, we were desperate to give the app a try for ourselves. After a week or so of exploring the possibilities of Clubhouse - following other users with shared interests, dropping in and out of rooms and getting a lot of notifications - we set up our own room to chat about our social media weekly round-up. Here’s our quickfire review:

The ‘rooms’ format is a great way to foster open and meaningful conversations as it allows speakers to engage with one another, lets listeners contribute their thoughts to conversations (if the host/s allow it) and unites people by their similar interests. If you’re looking to find your tribe, Clubhouse could be the place to do it.
Another feature which helps towards encouraging meaningful conversations is the audio-only feature. We found that people are really valued for their thoughts and contributions to conversations and there’s definitely less pressure when the anxiety of being on camera is taken away.
The no-recording policy also relieves some of the pressure often felt by speakers and perhaps allows them to speak more openly and confidently. This is a double-edged sword, though - having seen the role social media platforms have played in the spread of misinformation, encouragement of violence and other social issues, Clubhouse has a tough job ahead trying to ensure that the content on its platform is safe and stays within community guidelines. In addition, the lack of ability to record conversations may be a barrier to brands and businesses operating on Clubhouse.
While Clubhouse insists that its goal is to open the app up to the public, it’s hard to imagine how exactly that will pan out. Logistically, for example, having more users on the platform might make it difficult to keep the kind of ‘open door policy’ that it has now. It’s unclear how the huge influx of new users will affect how the platform runs further down the line.

So, is it worth the hype?

Our verdict? Clubhouse is definitely worth the hype if you’re looking to join or build communities and searching for a more relaxed way to communicate and expand your connections. With its vanity metrics stripped back and its ‘open door policy’, it is a truly social social media platform. Whether Clubhouse will be able to maintain this past the beta phase, though, is something which very much still remains to be seen - and something we’ll definitely be keeping our eyes on.

Already on Clubhouse?

If you’re already a Clubhouse user, make sure to drop in to our social media weekly round-ups every Friday at 11am. Keep an eye on our social media for the links each week (or follow our co-hosts Lucy Hall and Emily Watson). If you’re not on Clubhouse (yet), don’t worry - you can still access our weekly round-ups here on the SocialDay blog every Friday too.