I’m pretty sure most people just vote for whoever is already in the top 20. Or don’t vote at all.
I even got lost for awhile in my beginning on Steem with all of the options. It would be great if there was a proper database that would show what all each witness has provided, how active they are, etc.
Sadly for most users, they will never spend the time getting to know the witnesses.
I know the main reason I vote for you as a witness is because I’ve actually met you in person. I haven’t been had the chance to do the same with any of the other top witnesses. Meeting and getting a feel for you as a person solidified my vote, you didn’t seem to be out for yourself. That’s huge here, WE ARE A COMMUNITY. We need each other.
This recent addition from Steempeak may help which allows witnesses to add a bit of text to describe what they do: https://steempeak.com/me/tools/witnesses
You bring up a good point though... if we meet people in person, we naturally feel more connected to them and can therefore trust them more. A witness is a position of trust. It seems the voting does shift towards those who are more available to connect as real people which might explain why my ranking got so high as number 2.
Wow, that link is literally exactly what I was talking about. Thank you.
We may be in a digital age, but physical connections still trump the highest speeds of digital transfers.