Smart Media Tokens (SMTs) are already changing the Steem dynamics before they are even released. @appics, @actifit and @steemhunt lead the way of successful bounty incentives for users to promote, delegate Steem Power and use their application. Each of these tokens will have a value eventually and enfold its own compounding interest - just as Steem does already.
Appics paved the way
We see a whole new way of marketing and user incentives powered by the Steem reward system and the hope for future profits with SMTs. @appics was the first to implement a bounty system early on to reward people with shares for the upcoming XAP token. It will be used in their Instagram-like mobile application to reward photos and videos. The bounties accumulate by upvoting and commenting posts on Steemit and Facebook as well as Retweeting posts on Twitter.
There are also many more manual bounties where you can fill out a form and link to contributions on all sorts of platforms. This slow and often neglected until further investigation by the bounty hunter and a team member.
The final bounty payout is based on a fixed share of the overall XAP distribution pool from which bounty shareholders will be distributed according to the amount of shares one has acquired compared to all existing bounty shares. So, it is not really clear what one will get in the end but it opened the door for bounty hunters and paved the way for others to build on this concept.
Steemhunt With The Most Integrated Approach
With the start of @steemhunt we see a deeply integrated Steem solution that rewards not just upvotes and comments for the main account like @appics but also resteems and upvotes for Steemhunt posts, moderators, a simplified version of rewarding posts and most importantly the delegation bounty. This means there are tons of ways to earn HUNT tokens every day, long before they start their actual ecosystem with the proper SMT.
Think about what this means: This goes far beyond the marketing approach from Appics. With the delegation bounty they have received a massive interest from all sides to give the project Steem Power to upvote the Steemhunt posts and make this platform immediately thrive. Because now people can make money by using the platform right away AND earn HUNT tokens (or at least the promise of it but I am pretty confident that these platforms as well as Steemit will deliver).
Actifit Accelerates Its Own Development
While Appics is still merely a promise, Steemhunt already works and has a great website. Here comes @actifit with a very basic everyday and everyone mobile app that counts your steps and pays you with daily Steem upvotes. This is revolutionary in terms of simplicity and I can totally see how millions adopt this idea just like that. And again, the promise for a future AFIT token via Actifit posts, upvotes, resteems and, of course, a delegation bounty makes this project thrive right away.
The lowest viable product is their Android application with which they put the apps into the hands of basically the entire developing world. An iOS version is promised and on its way. The app still looks very basic and could profit from some fancy design update - and so does their auto posts to the Steem blockchain. But that is all something for later. It works and each day there are already dozens of people who earn Steem and AFIT tokens that way. I know many people who would create a new Steem account just for that who would otherwise not touch Steemit.
Conclusion: SMT Bounties Are A Business Accelerator
Giving a promise for a future Smart Media Token is something that can move mountains here on the Steem blockchain. And rightfully so! If these new apps will be able to create their own ecosystem and make people earn, trade and hold their tokens - and chances are great for that, I think - then all of them are basically free money which we can earn now. And this is a great motivation to make people use your apps and hand over Steem Power delegations to your project which will enable even a small idea to become something more.
If you think about a new SMT idea then this is something you should certainly consider. With a proper bounty system and a clear usecase, ideally in form of a working application, you can elevate your project massively. Make use of it and bring us the next big thing!