People are using the platform as a rewards system rather than a content system. The majority of posts I see - even highly upvoted ones - have an incredibly low ratio of upvotes to actual views.
Look at the "Hot" page:
214 Votes / 15 views
https://steemit.com/life/@little-peppers/duck-duck-goose-no-duck-duck-duck
208 / 15 views
https://steemit.com/food/@therawfoodie/raw-vegan-chewy-twix-bars
This seems fairly typical. Unless something is wrong with the view counting system, or I am just an idiot who doesn't know how to correctly look up view numbers (highly possible), I don't see how this is a viable solution to promote content makers. If people aren't looking at the content we make, why make it?
It seems the payout system is rewarding and encouraging people to mass upvote things in the hopes that other people will too - and drive the price up until they get a good cut.
I'm new here, so not too sure if this is the case, but it's what it seems like to me. Maybe someone more experienced can provide a contrasting opinion or help fill me in on why I'm wrong.
I like Steemit and I'll continue to use it. It provides a place for me to randomly write and I will continue to take advantage of it. This won't affect my use of the site and I will be supporting it in the hopes it grows, this is just something I've noticed in my brief time here.