![](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmdAnsvxuKhXLHHwm2LiJoSBezaPDaVfsYcAS5zfqDHcwG/image.png)

<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Steem_logo.png">Image Source</a>

# The problem

Steem has suffered from poor new user retention for quite some time. There exist about a million accounts but only about 60,000 accounts that are active on a daily basis. A lot of new users have signed up and started producing content expecting to make easy money and quit in short order after finding out it is not so easy. Many have come on board with the idea in mind that Steem is Facebook with money. While the value of Steem has gone up its value relative to the value of Bitcoin has gone down. It is patently obvious if you look at the <a href="https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/steem/#charts">all-time chart</a> of STEEM on coinmarketcap.com. The chart shows the price of STEEM in terms of both USD and BTC.

# What to do about it?

There are content producers and content consumers. So far, Steem has been the province of developers, crypto-enthusiasts, early adopters and content producers - mostly quite amateurish at that. If mass adoption takes place only high-quality content producers will be able to make money on Steem by being rewarded for content. A few percent of the current crop of Steemians (all current Minnows, i.e. those having > 500 SP, included) stand to reap the benefits of being early adopters and investors - thanks to their owning Steem Power.

It's no use advertising Steem as an easy way to make money for the masses. A lot of new users already have come on board in the past year with dollar signs in their eyes and have been disappointed. It is going to get even more difficult in the future when the reward pool gets stretched thinner and thinner as a growing number of users of an increasing number of apps compete for their share. For people to want to set up accounts on Steem and want to use it they will have to be content consumers rather than producers. Having Steem accounts will have to provide them with tangible benefits other than rewards. I will mention a few potential benefits in the following.

## Identity management across many different websites, forums and other platforms

Facebook or Disqus accounts are popular options for logging in to websites, discussion forums, chats etc. Why not  Steem accounts? This will require creating a Steem account to be easy. The upcoming Hard Fork 20 (Velocity) be of help.

## Free-to-use borderless  payment method

STEEM and SBD - or any Smart Media Token - can be used to not only pay for online content and services using the Steem blockchain but transmit payments between users. 

## Facilitatator of interaction between artists and fans

The fans can easily support their favourite artists by sending them cryptocurrency or upvoting them if they have sufficient Steem Power. It will be easy for artists to host interactive sessions with their fans on DLive, for example, while directly monetizing their sessios through upvotes and transfers of STEEM, SBD or SMTs. Some content producers on Steem already do that and it's very easy to see how that could expand a great deal. Direct interaction between artists and fans is a growing trend and Steem is in a perfect position to facilitate that.

## Gaming platform 

<a href="https://steemmonsters.com/">Steem Monsters</a> is a great example of how Steem can facilitate games with tradable digital assets.

## Steem Power as a tool to command the attention of the crowds

The Steem White Paper speaks a lot of the attention economy. With Steem having a large number of users buying Steem Power will be lucrative for businesses as it will give them control of the reward pool and network resources. Control over the reward pool will allow them to reward their customers and gain their attention to advertise their products.

# Conclusion

There needs to be more fiat flowing into the Steem ecosystem for the price of STEEM to be supported. Steem cannot be marketed as a money making opportunity to the consuming masses but a way to gain access to products and services they want to pay money for. The great thing about the Smart Media Token protocol is that it allows each token issuer to define their own rules on how to reward users tailored to their applications. Building fiat-to-STEEM gateways like the Steem Monsters team has done is essential.