Upon spending a few days on Steemit most newbies realise that there posts are automatically upvoted by themselves when they are posted, and furthermore you have the ability to upvote your own content. Surely you should be doing this right?! More upvotes = more money… Let's look at this in a bit more detail.

Upvoting posts

First lets talk about whether you should be upvoting your own post. Upon reading through some of the threads here on Steemit the general consensus is yes you should be. Lets first think of the minnow upvoting their own content - their vote is worth so little it actually doesn't make much difference at all. I think you would be better using your upvotes to upvote content that you really enjoyed and could relate to. The reason for this is twofold - first you might earn some curation rewards, and secondly you gain more ability to create new relationships on Steem as people become aware you are invested and interested in what they are posting.

You can actually go to Steemdollar and find out how much your upvote is worth… mine is worth $0.00014! As you can see that won't make any difference to whether my posts get noticed at all. I guess it is nice to see your post have any upvote as soon as it is published though :)

However as your vote actually becomes worth something I thin then it is better to upvote your own posts. Why? Because people on Steemit are drawn to what makes money. If your upvote is worth say $1 even people are more likely to look at your content.

Upvoting comments

Now let's talk about upvoting your own comments. In this case, I make a strong argument for not upvoting your comments no matter how much your upvote is worth. Similarly to the argument above, minnows upvotes are so insignificant you won't make any money upvoting your own content so your better to upvote content you think is valuable and can relate to (again you might even earn some curation rewards).

However as your votes start to be worth something wouldn't you just upvote your own comments - it's like printing money right?! Well yes on the surface it is but if you look at the bigger picture I don't think its the best idea for building and engaging your audience. Firstly the comments are for discussion about the post and if you upvote your own comment it will automatically move up towards the top (trending) depending on how much your upvote is worth - which as a consequence pushes down others comments who might add to the conversation. I think those upvotes could be shared among those commenting who you feel offer the best opinions or new thoughts about your topic as this will bring them to others attention. Upvoting (showing the love) comments on your posts from others is like showing your reader that you appreciate them reading and showing that you value their opinion. I believe by doing this they will be more likely to be engaged in your content in the future and become a loyal follower.

It also shares around some of the reward pool abit more and encourages minnows to strive to create engaging content and comments as they will be rewarded for it. Otherwise what will happen is the rich will get richer and the minnows will continue to struggle - take it from me it ain't easy getting started on this platform!

So in the short run I think upvoting your own comments will definitely generate your $ account more money but in the long run being more strategic with these votes can help to build your trust and reputation and lead to a more loyal following.

One last thing - what if you want to draw your attention to a particular point, for instance if you're running a competition and its about to finish? Isn't upvoting your comment the best way to do this? YES. I propose and hope that Steemit offer some type of pinned comment service in the future (Like Facebook where you can pin a post to the top of your page) so that if you need to get others attention you can get it that way rather than having to upvote your own post.

This post is just my personal opinion and I welcome any discussion on the topic!

All pictures downloaded from royalty free sources.

Remember to upvote, follow and RESTEEM if you found this article valuable.