Content creators are a fickle bunch. They want the world but often are not willing to put in the work to earn it. They want to only post their content and maybe, maybe, reply to a few select fans leaving comments then expect the platform to reward them unimaginably well. That is not how any of this works. I am sure there are a few outliers that have found tremendous success without doing anything I write in this article.
I am willing to bet that if you are reading this article, you are not one of those success stories.
It Is Called Social Media For a Reason
The platforms are literally telling users, in the genre of the platforms, how to find success.
Social media.
If you are not interacting with other creators then the platform has no clue outside what they are programmed to figure out. YouTube is amazing at this while TikTok, Meta, Arro Social, Snapchat, etc are quite horrible at relying on just your content to figure it out.
This means you need to help the algorithm out a bit. No, 500+ hashtags is not the answer. No one is looking for #fyppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp or weird initials that only you and a few friends use or replacing letters with numbers. It is ridiculous and you look foolish using those. The algorithm will only be confused, if it even tries to categorize using those hashtags.
Instead, write a sentence or two about what the video is about. This is for people using search or are prolific on the platform as this is used to push your content to them.
Get Over Shadow Bans They Do Not Exist
If you are using social media as a walled off garden, then you are doing it wrong. Well, technically not if that is your goal but doing it that way kind of removes your ability to be taken seriously when complaining “no one is seeing my content” or claiming you are “shadow banned”.
Let’s knock that one out right here.
Shadow bans are fake. They don’t happen.
What content creators call “shadow ban” is your content doesn’t fit any category the algorithm is pushing at that time. Your fans/followers/subs have not shown interest in that type of content either, so the algorithm doesn’t waste time pushing it.
That is not shadow banning. That is a lack of having realistic expectations for your content on your part.
Helping the Platform Figure Your Content Out
Here is the part most content creators will ignore for many reasons – often the tried and tired “I don’t have time to comment on other creators content, I am too busy making my own”.
Making your own that is not getting interacted with, not being seen, not being pushed, content that is going nowhere.
It is a tough pill to swallow.
People look at the “success” stories of bigger content creators on TikTok and see they hardly interact, they hardly reply, etc and think “that is the trick”.
No, it is not. 99.999% of those creators are HUGE elsewhere. The Paul brothers did not come to YouTube and just start posting million view videos. They were HUGE on Vine, moving over to YT when that platform went down.
There are tons of creators that people think are “overnight” success stories. They are not. They have potentially decades of experience behind them to get where they are now.
You, just starting out, are not going to reach those levels copying what they are doing now. Go back and look at what they did at the same stage of their creation career as you are now. I am sure you will see a totally different person in that content and how they interacted with fans.
No one can reply to, or interact with, EVERYONE on a video when they are getting tens of thousands of comments. It is impossible.
It sure as hell is possible when you are only getting 2 to 5 comments a week on your content. Ignoring those people that took time to comment now is only going to hurt you in the long run. You are stupidly ignoring your core fanbase.
How Your Content is Pushed
On platforms such as TikTok, Meta owned (Instagram, Facebook), Clapper, Chelee, etc you are pretty much out that piece of content for that period. This is because those platforms throw your content out immediately to whomever is online at that moment. This is usually a mix of your followers/mutuals and strangers that may not necessarily be interested. One benefit of these platforms is, you can easily post that video again later and odds are, most people seeing it either time did not see the other post.
On YouTube, due to how the platform finds viewers, this strategy doesn’t often work.
YouTube indexes your video based on many factors from any text/audio it can discern in the video, thumbnail, and title/description. Once it has an idea of what your content is about, YouTube will do its best to match your content with viewers that have shown interest in part, or all of it.
This is why on YouTube, your content can take off after days, weeks, months, even years to unbelievable heights.
On the other side of that coin, on TikTok, Meta, Triller, Rueblur, etc your content often dies in less than 24 hours to receive maybe a couple views a day.
Why Supporting Others is Important
If you are not supporting others not only are you missing out on potential gains you are obviously ignorant of the other bonuses.
First, content creators in your niche are not your enemy, they are not the opponent. TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube all have over 2 billion active monthly users.
Your imagined battle with a handful of creators that post similar content to you is flat out stupid. Unless someone in your niche reaches 51% of the total active monthly users, they are not the enemy or should be more than a fellow content creator. Any energy you are wasting on viewing them as an enemy is energy you could use to interact and participate in the community.
Every comment you leave on someone else’s content, every like, share, etc is a signal to the algorithm about what you are interested in. Odds are, you are not going to post content around one thing then only comment and interact with completely different content on the platform.
The algorithm uses this information to help discern where to push your content. If you are commenting on other creators’ content and others are interacting with your comments, then the algorithm will put 2 and 2 together and push your content to those users too.
Users that are more likely to favorably interact with your content.
It is literally free marketing. Free marketing you are leaving on the table while you run off and buy a course for an exorbitant amount of money that won’t tell you anything new.
Fostering Positivity Means a Lot
At the end of the day, being positive and supportive will always be the best way to go. If you don’t like something, rather than leaving a mean comment attacking the creator, use the platform supplied methods to not see that content again. This could be blocking, choosing “not interested” or “do not promote this channel to me” depending on the platform.
Leaving a mean comment does nothing but drag down the comments section in general, probably will get you attacked, or worse, bring in a sizable audience that will go through the steps to purposefully not see your content on that platform.
All because of one mean comment.
In closing, genuinely support others and be a decent person. It is not hard.