Thanks for resteeming this @paulag

I look at it a little differently. If I'm choosing to onboard someone, I want them to succeed here, and become a viable member of the community.

With that in mind, I think it would be worth my doing something similar to what @steem does with the initial 15SP delegation that reduces as the account powers up. In addition to that, until they find their feet (audience), I would consider helping them out as a beneficiary of my own posts for a while. This helps them Power Up faster to get my original 15SP back, but also with some rewards coming in, helps reduce the chance of them losing interest in the place as they grow their own following.

Of course this model is really only viable for new users that you actually know and not onboarding a random stranger.