It wouldn't tell well of Steem blockchain. Steem is a platform that markets itself as an uncensored, freedom loving and disruptive place. Placing Ads would be counter-productive, they will be just like other social networks.

Personally, I love that there are no ads. I'm here for the community and the content that community creates, not for random Ads. This is a luxury that the traditional social media platforms do not have. Without advertising, most social networks would have limited options to generate revenue. These networks will only enrich the shareholders, and not the content creators/ users, like ourselves.

Another reason why I wouldn't want Ads I that it takes screen space for posts. I've always had a huge issue with social media sites taking up so much space with Advertisements. It iwas honestly a breath of fresh air when I learnt about the Steem blockchain. I've been sharing most of my contents here since then. Facebook has been so annoying for many years because of this Ads feature.

How do Ads work?

Ads generally generate profit for the wealthy by luring people into consuming and spending way beyond their means. You see why people love Steem, less temptations the buy what you don't need.

It would difficult (or obtuse) to see Ads that are "unobtrusive". That is because the whole point of marketing and advertising is to get noticed, to be annoying, to be disruptive, to get noticed.

Another issue is the use of targeted advertising, because it involves tracking and thus privacy invasions. Don't forget that Steem advertises that it is uncensored and offers freedom. Targeted Ads could be done responsibly, but the most profit is to be gained by sharing as much information between the network and the service as possible. Also, allowing them to hold on to that information, or even own it for later resale. That's definitely not what most Steem users would want. And that's the most common form of advertising nowadays.

Advertisements are annoying because of an element of anxiety and dissatisfaction. This is because advertisers want to force the viewer to buy products and feel good afterward. And annoying ads are more effective, as it stands out from a litter of advertisements.

Most tech enthusiasts these days have some sort of Ad-block installed on their browser, to prevent these annoying adverts that pop up everytime you click something on a site. I actually paid money for a premium account in a network one time, so that I wouldn't have to look at any advertisements.

Personally, I do hate advertisements, as it appears to me to be really manipulative. However, that's just my opinion.

If no Ads, how can Steemit Inc make more money for server costs?

Some steem dapps already make use of beneficiary rewards. Steemit Inc could take this into consideration. I'd prefer a small cut off my rewards than you splash a platform with Ads.

What about Dclick?

As for Dclick, they are still in an early phase, the product is still relatively new. It wouldn't be sufficient to cater for the server costs (which costs millions of dollars per year). As Ned Scott mentioned, Steemit.com is supported by an expensive system of Full Nodes that support steemit.com and many other social apps.

An alternative to Ads would have to be considered for Steem to remain an uncensored, and a freemium blockchain.