Thanks to an amazing community, Steem has grown a lot as a currency in a short amount of time. It is easy to get excited and jump on board immediately with Steemit.com (a smart choice, if you haven't yet!)
Lets take a step back and look at steem from a few perspectives you may not have considered.
If you've read my more serious posts, you'll know that I derive value from cryptos based on their distribution, trading volume and consistency. While there are many other factors at play, I hope to provide a macro-perspective of Steem's current place in the market using the following mixed-methods analysis:
Steem vs BTC
An obvious comparison we want to monitor is STEEM vs BTC. As you can see, Steem is tracking nicely with BTC, however I just wanted to show BTC as a comparison for whats to come.
Steem vs ETH
As many of you know, ETH surpassed BTC daily trading volume on May 30th. ETH hit $210 per coin. The reason I bring up the ETH to Steem comparison is because STEEM and ETH are fundamentally similar, not in their blockchain set up or dispursement but because they are both currencies of the people. The concept of Proof of Stake, and SteemPower are both meant to be gained via alternative means than computational power. While you can gain both currencies through alternative means, it's my belief that both currencies will maintain a degree of consistency in the market in the future due to a barrage of stake holders that seek to maintain or increase its value. Currencies without this push will have to work twice as hard, or have a serious competitive advantage.
Steem Adoption & Accessibility
Steem has shown heavy support as Steemit and other platforms gain more users. While many are skeptical when something looks too good to be true, people understand steem as a currency and as a social platform. The barrier to entry is lower than any POW currency.
Even a 14 year old could amass a huge amount of steem because they've been equipped with everything they need to succeed in social media. The same is not true for coins like BTC, LTC, XRP, DGB or NEM. They are inherently less accessible.
Resources require a high degree of accessibility for them to be useful. If you do not know that there is food available to you, it is impossible for you to eat it.
A Crypto that is not accessible will be less distributed
Less distribution means less investors