As much as I hate to say it. Steemit needs to move closer to Facebook / Twitter feel & surpass their functionality. One thing I hate about Twitter is anyone can follow you. So you have no privacy. Ironically it's what also makes it great. Open public comment.
A lot of the newer innovations Facebook has is because Google Plus did it first, then Facebook coppied them in order to attempt to keep their users. Control of who can read what you posted, integrated video calling, SMS, etc.
Google plus is great because you can follow people & topics from people / subjects. You can put people into circles, friends, family, co-workers and so on. Sharing with only 1 circle means only people in that circle will see what you posted. Post publicly & you could end up in your friends search results with your comments on the subject. When strangers subscribe they only see your public stuff. It's all easily controlled. Want to share your favorite blogger circle? You can share them as easily as sharing a picture.
Automatically fetching images from url's you'd like to share makes posts easier & more interesting. But Twitter limits your characters making it virtually impossible sharing a thought in complete sentences unless you post it somewhere then share the link.
Initially G+ wanted to integrate twitter & Facebook. Then Facebook threw a tantrum & G+ users made an extension to do it anyway. Add in Instagram Mashable Redit Tumblr Vine YouTube and other things Steemit could make an impact.
But there's another boarder that has yet to be addressed. Encrypting peer to peer communication. Posts, chat & video. While you "can" on G+ it's hard, impossible on Facebook & Twitter. Google lets you encrypt but they have keys to unlock it. You can use the raw back end & encrypt your own keys. Good luck sharing them with a person safely.
Having friends all over the world more & more countries are "monitoring" its citizens connected lives. I know someone who got a letter from their government for showing "too much skin" in a text message. Can you imagine?
Steemit needs to straddle that line between public & safely private, while simplifying what they have.
Filling a needed niche can fill a need while raising awareness & increasing demand.
