"Houston, we have a problem." - famous phrase which dates back to 1970, NASA Appolo 13 mission. Let me rephrase it for this post: "Steemit, we have a problem"... As a community and as a platform.
Let's start with pure numbers because they don't lie. Specifically, the latest data from Steemle. As you can see, Steemit adds 1000-2000 new users every single day. You can stumble upon posts and comments full of optimism, ramblings that Steemit will take over Reddit and eventually Facebook.
If the userbase is growing, why the heck you're complaining, @saulius? Where is the problem then?
User growth is an important metric in the startup's world. Although stats show that Steemit is getting bigger, in reality, it's not. You see, user engagement and retention are metrics that are as vital as user growth. They basically show how sticky is a product, how active are its users. And these two graphs below perfectly sum up Steemit's problem.
Meanwhile, the number of Steemians is growing, its user engagement is decreasing. Imagine yourself driving across the country. You pass a sign that says "Steemtown, Population of 60 000, 10 miles left". When you finally reach the town, you notice a number of abandoned houses, empty commercial properties and 30 000 Steemtown residents at best. That illustrates Steemit current situation. Users are abandoning the site and I could only think of two reasons for such behaviour.
#1 Constant, daily circle jerking. I'm guilty. You're guilty. Everyone is guilty of it. But let's face it - we're just players that play by rules... Set by curators cough Whales. Compare Reddit and Medium front pages to Steemit trending posts. We're like that Instagram girl who is so fucking full of herself. Steemit content is simply not compelling enough for newcomers.
#2 Over-promises. When people read posts like this or this, they come here with too high expectations. The truth is that for every trending post, there are hundreds that make pennies. For every top rated Steemit author, whose posts receive 100 upvotes in the first 30 minutes, there are a number of users who seek for attention like puppies from your local animal shelter. That's the true reality of Steemit and when it finally hits new users, they leave.
We have a problem. We need more compelling content, better curation and rewards distribution or Steemit will end up like that app on your iPhone, last time opened in January.