I am not doing any chatting, but I agree with the rest of your ideas.
Commenting works the best for me and also watching and particapting in certain tags. I like #freewite by @mariannewest and other challenges. Also - steemiteducation is good if you write tutorials.
It is possible to make money here right at the start. I wrote this post for discouraged minnows
Make Money Blogging on Steemit Top Tips and Checklist for Better Results!!
And this is a list of challenges to post into so your are not posting to no one. This is Part Two and leads to Part One.
https://steemit.com/steemitchallenges/@kalemandra/daily-and-weekly-contests-and-challenges-part-two-day-by-day
This is one hell of a great guide!! Very thorough!! :D
Thank you so much! I give it out many times a week. The poor minnows gasp here :)