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Staff picks can happen also after voting @tensor ;)

That kind of minimizes the reward of being staff picked.

Not only did I not receive the vote boost from being staff picked, I also didn't get a notification that I was staff picked and from this data, its clear that the only reason I was staff picked is because I am the only one contributing to video tutorials.

That doesn't sit right with me frankly but whatever.

Staff picks only happen if the community managers agree on that. There is no rule or convention or any kind of need for us to pick something because the category had no competition, so your assumption here is wrong. The community manager simply liked what you did and wanted to bring it to this list when he was asked if there was anything deserving to be here. Weird to complain when your work is being appreciated honestly.

Not complaining, just merely pointing out that being retroactively staff picked is much less impactful for the article then being staff picked prior to the vote. Staff picking marks the article as a 100% on utopian rocks which in turns drives more potential votes/views. On the other hand, just mentioning it in an article after might drive a few views but not nearly as many.

In my case, its also pretty odd that the article was voted and reviewed the same day that it was retroactively staff picked. Again, just doesn't seem like a good way to apply the reward because a less invested contributor might interpret it as some kind of loop hole in the system. Article gets staff picked but doesn't get the reward etc.

I understand that. Staffpicking after vote is not that often anyway. I will chat with the CM about this

I am aware that the practice isn't often done so it's not a big deal so don't worry about it too much.

It is of course an honor to be staff picked. sorry if it sounded like I wasn't grateful. Just a little surprised and wasn't in the best mood yesterday.