RE: Dealing with variance in commerce and Steemit: "The merchant approach"
Great post:)...I have had an online catalogue in a virtual world since 2007. I have also sold virtual currency as a reseller. In most cases, sales are dependent on three main variables: Price, Quality and Trends and of course regular injections of new products. Most stores that are successful have all 3 and have a good marketing campaign in place. There is no real secret if you have the variables the marketing and build a good client base you will succeed.
Steemit is something entirely different. Being active in the community building your Rep, and some luck getting exposure to a whale or two can elevate your success.
I see a few accounts that post four posts a day and don't earn huge amounts, but they chip away at it, and I think they do ok. Other users have found gold by being added to a whales list.
I see other accounts that post 2-3-4 times daily with great content and don't make a cent, and that's because they are missing the key components.
There is a definite type of material that gets more attention on steemit. If you don't produce it, you have to be either very persistent or a lucky SOB. Quality wasn't a primary factor in the beginning, but I think it maybe creeping in the door slowly.
A merchant approach may work for some, but without all the keys you can't open the door.
We can say that the similarity here is relevant to the demand/success equation:
In principle, if a store sells something in high demand, then they are more successful. It's the same with Steemit bloggers who provide content of higher demand.
Not all stores sell the same stuff, and not all stores generate the same revenue. Likewise not all bloggers write the same stuff and naturally their revenue differs.
Being a known store (established blogger), with high reputation and a lot of clients ("followers") can also increase sales (blogging rewards) relative to an unknown shop (blogger) with near zero clients (followers) or reputation.
It would be interesting to read some good analysis of what's underlying demand on Steemit. I've seen some crappy writing wrapped in a pretty wrapping that consistently gets high $$$ and many examples of the opposite. Maybe you should undertake this labor - you have the mind fo it.
I'll give it a thought and maybe I'll write something in the future :D