Thank you so much for the feedback and vote. I know it is a long shot. I did go through the effort to get users to convince an exchange through support tickets. It generally requires that the user already has an account. I think that users will gravitate to an exchange that already has the currency of interest. If STEEM is the currency of interest and it is not listed on an exchange, it is a challenge to get people to create an account just to fill out a support ticket.
Exchanges seem to be reluctant to list and support STEEM/SBD which perhaps stems from the complexity of the steemit wallet. With bitcoin for example, I can create as many wallets as I want with ease. Steemit is not so easy. The fact that exchanges have to run a node using software that they didn't create further complicates this. They need support. If Steemit Inc won't do it, then someone else needs to take over that job. Why not support the person that gets that job done?
One alternative is to just create a centralized exchange with STEEM as the central trading pair. The exchange can choose to include language options to help alleviate the language barrier issue with Steemit. Instead of people creating a Steemit account with no intention to invest, they would have options and feel comfortable to use STEEM as a currency as they would have options in their language. The exchange will have an advantage over other new start-up exchanges as the STEEM central trading currency is already a highly utilized currency with a large user base. The exchange would generate significant revenue for the owners from fees charged for trading just like other exchanges. Steemit Inc could do this which would create a significant revenue stream to support their operations. Excess revenue could go towards reward pool, funding new projects, or creating hacker bounties. They wouldn't need to rely on other exchanges to keep their STEEM node operational. Ultimately, creating STEEM trading pairs would allow STEEM to compete with other exchange based currencies that are actively working to edge out the trading pair kings such as Bitcoin and Ethereum.
What could hurt with this blog? This could very well benefit witnesses. Many people reading this post may not have put much though into voting for witness. I have found that folks are now reading this and getting interested in supporting witnesses. In fact, I read that witness voting is going up despite the user retention issue. I've had plenty of feedback asking for more information about witness voting. Clearly many people would do it if they understood it better. This visibility helps get users thinking about voting and many are actually voting.
Ultimately, users need stake in the voting. They need to know that voting is going to benefit them. Also, witnesses need votes. If the challenge can be accomplished, then that witness gets the votes. If that day comes, a post will be written with instructions how to vote that witness. I have a feeling that there would be more votes than is listed as I have had people ask me to include them anonymously. I'm sure that there are plenty of others that are secretly participating.
You ask "What could hurt with this blog? This could very well benefit witnesses."
How? Am I misunderstanding your message? You tell people to NOT vote for witnesses (until the witness can prove that she was instrumental in a successful listing).
You tell people to just "promise to vote later" (with no way to back that promise with anything). If people follow your call and refrain from voting then witness voting is increasing despite your blog, not because of it, right?
So how could that benefit witnesses, I don't quite get it but maybe I'm missing something
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I guess the benefit is that it can possibly reach the audience that had no idea about witnesses before for some reason. Those who knows what the role of the witnesses is, are already voting for them. Others maybe will take their time and read.
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I doubt it ... but ok.
There are already tons of articles about witnesses. Those who find out about witnesses from @socky get, at the same time, the message that they should NOT vote but only "promise" to vote ... To me that sounds less than worthless, it sounds countereffectual.
Look no further, he "shows the way": the VERY FIRST witness of steem, @gtg, came and left a comment on his blog! I don't know but if I were him I would feel honored and immediately cast a vote for @gtg knowing it's a safe vote and has anyway just a symbolic value.
It's about showing respect for the ethos of the community
But no, he answers and upvotes your comment but keeps 29 witness slots unused - right after explaining in the post that it would have costed him nothing to have upvoted you ...
So yeah, maybe others will take time and read ... and potentially conclude that they should WITHDRAW the witness votes already casted in order to replace them with a PROMISE that they'll vote at a later time, perhaps, if the time is right and if the witnesses PROVE that they were instrumental in a new listing of steem ... how does that sound?
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That would be stupid ;-) (but there's a chance that they will read our comments before doing that)
IMO, among exchanges that we are not listed yet, there are only few exceptions where we should be trying more than them ;-)
Anyway, people have their own ways of choosing their candidates to vote for. Some better than others. Not voting for at least few witnesses that do their job (providing security and reliability to the network) is a mistake.
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@nora.sch
I do respect that @gtg responded. Just because he responded, I'm not going to jump around and scream like a school girl. I'm definitely not going to vote that way either. I wasn't fortunate enough to mine STEEM in the early days and amass a fortune in STEEM like many of the whales. My value comes from a lifetime of working and saving including enlisting in the Marine Corps to earn enough money to pay myself through college. Ultimately, this is my vote and my choice. There is nothing to stop people from voting anyway. Many people that have joined up in this effort never voted in the first place UNTIL joining.
If you read my post, it is educational. It answers questions that many people are confused about. If they don't understand the most basic concept of witness voting, they are definitely not going to vote. I get comments all the time about how this has helped them understand witness voting and how they have never considered voting for witness or even how they have never heard of witness voting or what it was for. Another very common reason for not voting is because people fear that it will cost them something or their vote is burned and they can't use it anymore. In my post, I answer these questions people are afraid to ask and they start voting.
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