The little fish are all counted equally on the 'hot' index. This means that if you are popular with the people, then the whales will see your post and you will likely get some big votes.
Everyone contributes in different ways, but every contribution matters. The key to success is to write stuff that appeals to the audience. The Audience is your fellow steem users.
Currently this audience is very interested in Steem and that is OK for now. Eventually it will diversify as people look for more interesting content.