I think this is a really important question and I'd like to separate on-boarding from the challenge of actually keeping people on board. Getting people to join is an external marketing issue tied to the ease and speed of getting and starting the account (I'm not going to go there - those technicalities are beyond me).

I also acknowledge that I'm in a particular demographic which, I suspect is underrepresented on Steemit (there are lots of us around who may be interested, and who produce great content), and who would be interested, if Steemit were de-mistified and user-friendly. We are the 55+'s and mostly women.

Firstly, on front-ends: Steemit.com, as a creation platform, for folk like me is daunting: coding is not in my genes and I'd rather learn it by osmosis (I've learned quite a bit), but I think that the more user-friendly, "catholic" front-ends like @steempeak, @partiko and WordPress via @steempress (@steempress.io) from @howo and @fredrikaa are more valuable to Steemit as marketing tools than those dedicated to a particular tribe.

TMI, but I tend to use the first two for my "Steemit/blockchain-only" content and the latter for everything else. In some respects this includes a bit of low-level advocacy about Steemit as another vehicle for sharing one's content - with the potential for earning.

All of that said, I am going to weigh in on the retention issue. Knowing that you don't really want to go there, so forgive me for just getting this off my chest.

Here, I'd like to suggest collaboration with already excellent initiatives on Steemit that are working hard to help noobs navigate the rough and steemy waters of a social blockchain. And, before I continue, I'd like to distinguish between their work and the valuable work of curation initiatives like @ocd (yours) as well as @c-squared, @qurator and @curie. Again, I think they're separate and are critical to maintaining, of not raising, the quality of content - and engagement - on Steemit. There are other "quieter" curation and support initiatives that I've benefited from, and for which I'm extremely grateful, like @appreciator who also does great work supporting other initiatives - like @yourtop3 - among others, as well as @helpie.

Three initiatives that, in my opinion do good work, and which have been essential to my remaining on Steemit, have been, in this order: the Power House Creatives (formerly @steemitbloggers) founded by @jaynie; @pifc which is run by @thedarkhorse and SteemTerminal founded by @brittandjosie with @xcountytravellers. This last, with their @heyhaveyamet initiative is critical for noobs. I wish it had been around in my early days: I'd not have disappeared for six months. I only came back because of PHC.

Before I get on to my third suggestion, I'm going to nail my colours to the mast (again): I'm not a fan of tribes; I also don't get the gamification and the creation of tokens. I may be a bit of a lone salmon, but that gives you context (as does my demographic, to which I've referred).

There is a third category of "communities" which, IMO, deserve attention and these are the ones which focus on interests. I have an eclectic range of interests - not all reflected in my posts, but certainly reflected in my engagement. The discord groups that emerge from common interests and then spawn their own accounts are, I think critical to Steemit. These include SteemitMammas, cooking, plant-based food and lifestyle initiatives; music interest groups of which people like @nickyhavey and @bengy are part. Naming them is not important, but what is, from a marketing perspective, is that folk are attracted not by the potential of earning crypto, but because of being able to engage with great content and like-minded individuals - the social aspect cannot be ignored.

In summary, then, I'm suggesting that retention is integral to the marketing and new account creation. At the risk of sounding either snobbish, or like a control freak, I think that there are levels at which people operate, and into which they can and will settle - with help, and as they ease into the often rather turbulent waters of Steemit.

My tuppence worth.

Fiona