They are trying hard to succeed but the gurus are getting all the pie.

NO, Steemit is NOT a "Zero-Sum Game"! Thinking like that will only cause people to become discouraged and QUIT. I am working with a gentleman now that is into topics that are barely even present on Steemit, and he is helping himself by Expanding his Audience and also his talent! English Second Language is a handicap, but maybe you need to expand the audience of your native tongue. Get your people INVOLVED! Please do not encourage SPAM either, we have enough! But I do like your comment about helping them become better content creators, however. I do that as well. IN FACT, I wrote an article suggesting a gentle warning to spammers, instead of flags. It did fairly well!

WE MUST HELP THE SPAMMERS

to stop spamming by improving their CONTENT, and Then they will improve their income. Trust me in this :D