I think I agree with you regarding the bid bots. I am not a fan of them in any shape or forms.

With regard to retention strategies, it became clear to me very early on that this is not necessarily a good investment of resources. For the simple reason that the one controlling the largest Stake operates under a very narrow view of what he thinks Steemit should be.

I see different uses for Steem and the platform. I see it as the ideal structure for creating gift economies within physical communities. There is a big market for attracting investors who would love to invest in something that will make a real world difference in peoples lives without burning lots of capitol.

People are self organizing systems. All we are ever doing is trying to meet our needs. So our role is to find out what those needs are and support agreeable methods for them meeting those needs.

However, the preferred moderation of behavior tool here on Steemit is the Flag. I see far to many instances of abusing users with this very blunt instrument which should only be used as a last resort imho.