Hi @djsteef and @geronimo! Thanks for reading!
Well, maybe I'll help by clarifying. Some Steemit users have created a lot of bots that can increase your visibility quickly. They do this by upvoting you and you pay for that service. Then you're much more visible and, IF people like your content, then you get more people enjoying and following. And that also shows me more people with interesting posts which I then look at.