A honest guide for using social media

December 28, 2024 - Reading time: 4 minutes

I decided to create a guide explaining how to use social media platforms, based on my 10 years of experience with YouTube, X/Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok. I hope it will be useful for those who choose to use these platforms in the future.

First, create an account on YouTube, Twitter/X, or Instagram. Post an engaging video with a story. You might get a few views from your friends and the social media employees checking the content for spam and appropriateness. But this will likely be all the engagement you get. Hashtags generally do not work as effectively as you'd hope.

Then:

1. Pay for Visibility
   Spend as much money as you can afford to promote your content on the platform. Remember, all these media companies exist to make a profit.

2. Observe the Results
   You’ll start to receive views and subscriptions. On YouTube, for example, you might get 2-3 subscribers for every 10 views.

3. Recognize the Illusion
   Don't relax just yet. Most of these views and subscribers come from click farms or "partner companies" in countries like India or Indonesia. They are not real humans. The average view time will be only 1-2 minutes, even if your video is much longer. You can see this data in the YouTube Studio app, for example.  This is how algorithms work. Obviously, nobody is truly watching your videos. Bots don’t need to watch the full content.

4. Stop Paying When You’re Out of Budget
   If you stop paying, your channel will have some remaining views and subscribers. Your account will now appear more credible — it won't look like you’re someone with no views or followers.

   This benefits the platform too. They can use your inflated numbers to attract advertisers, claiming their platform generates significant engagement. Everyone benefits from this deception: you get a façade of popularity, and the platform secures ad revenue.

   Remember, these platforms exist for entertainment, propaganda, and deception. They don’t produce tangible goods like cars or houses to improve our lives. Their primary goal is to take your money.

5. Prepare for the Disappearance
   Paid followers can vanish overnight. This can happen due to software updates or the expiration of contracts with click farms.

6. Focus on Real Connections
   While you still have some fake followers, focus on building genuine relationships. Reach out to people who interest you. Send emails, invite them to conversations, and engage with them. Reconnect with old friends and family. Share your channel with them.

   When the bot-followers eventually disappear, the real connections you’ve built will remain. Yes, paying for internet bots is a form of deception, but it’s no worse than wearing an expensive watch to make an impression.

7. Understand the Influencer Illusion
   Influencers with tens of thousands of followers often pay for this illusion of engagement. A portion of their ad revenue is reinvested in buying more views and bot subscribers, creating a cycle of artificial popularity. It’s a business strategy, nothing more. Despite their follower count, influencers often have no more real friends than you do — sometimes, even fewer.

Finally, take control of your feed. Block influencers that annoy you or dominate your screen. Block advertisers promoting their businesses. For example, I blocked “Musk” on Twitter/X, and it was a huge relief.

Use social media to stay updated on your friends’ lives and communicate with them. Treat it like a modern walkie-talkie— nothing more.

D.Kish (nbrush[AT]jwork.org)