I think one of the biggest factors that will play into Steem's viability in the "public marketplace" is whether or not we start to grow our library of truly quality, original content. To a new user, or someone just scoping out the platform, this place looks pretty greasy. The quality of the trending page is largely deplorable, namely because we are in the "development and gold-rush" phase.
The developers are trying to figure out how to make it work, and the masses are trying to grab a bunch of quick cyber-cash for nothing. If we can get past this phase, and if we can retain the right people for long enough to get a base of valuable content built, I think this platform has the potential to become something special.