There are many types of Hiver and a lot of them think it's up to someone else to promote the platform. Even bringing in a couple more people can help as they may tell others. I think we will grow in certain niches for now. Communities in places like Cuba and Venezuela will spread the word and they have more to gain.
Promotion incentives would help, but who will put up the funds? It does seem the Leo crowd are doing more than most with Threads being very active.
Somehow we need to reach a critical mass where people have enough friends or fans here to make it worth posting just for the engagement. The rewards are a bonus. I know some are getting disillusioned with the corporate platforms and we need to exploit that.
RE: It pays to write on Hive, not to promote Hive