Beat the Social Media Algorithm Part 2: You Don't Have To Do It All

Not too long ago I shared how to beat the social media algorithm in 30 minutes or a less and it quickly became one of my more popular posts. Since then, I've had several people reach out and ask me for more tips on beating the algorithm when the rules and posting methods change almost daily. If you follow me online, you know I don't post anything fancy. I don't host lives, I don't post videos with sound, I don't use Reels or Tiktok (having to deal with sounds on my personal devices is like nails on chalkboard, so I tend to avoid sharing anything that adds literal noise to the world "just because I'm suppose to").

So how do I constantly build my audience without falling into the endless cycle of latest and greatest media trends? With my tried-and-true formula, of course!

Beat the Social Media Algorithm Part 2: You Don't Have To Do It All

(Check out my original Beat the Social Media Algorithm post if you haven't already. Pair those tips with these and prepare yourself for authentic audience growth.)

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Be Authentic

One of the funniest ideas out in the social media management world is that you have to utilize every platform and post method available to be successful. You "must" turn every blog into a video, podcast, reel, story, short, and at least 5 different posts. This is absolutely not true. If you can't stand doing video, then don't!

"But Instagram punishes you for not using their newest feature!"

News flash - they don't punish you as much as you think (especially if you don't skip the rest of the steps mentioned below)! Yes, they want everyone to use the latest features, but if you genuinely hate it, your audience will be able to tell and you risk losing them over inauthenticity for the sake of possible exposure. People would rather see a static post with a heartfelt caption over watching a fake, forced smile as you try to hype your latest post. (Now if you enjoy doing all the things, then please do! But if you don't, it's perfectly ok to be like Elsa and let it go.)

Be authentic with how you share your content and your audience will continue to grow naturally.

Be Present

This is basically "Be Authentic Part 2" because again, if you don't like something, don't put your focus there. If you truly want to grow a presence on any social platform, you must be present. You can't expect to grow your audience on a platform by simply creating a profile and never interacting with your audience. If you simply must be on a platform and cannot stand using it, either outsource to a social media manager to handle it for you, or understand that your audience will not have constant growth.

Case in point I hate Facebook, both personally, professionally and with a fiery passion. I hate that to have a business Instagram account, I have to have a business Facebook page. So while I have a Facebook page and I share posts to it almost daily, I don't actively work to grow my page. I don't push for follows, I don't share my page, it's just there and as a result, I have very few followers on it. But that's perfectly ok with me and my audience knows the best places to interact with yours truly are Instagram or Twitter!

So wherever you wish to grow your audience, be present and you will notice continuous growth.

Be Consistent

Whether it's multiple daily posts or once a week, being consistent in how often you share goes a long way to growing your audience. I've followed plenty of people long-term who only post once a week and in some cases only 1-2 times a month. They are very clear about their posting schedules, so their followers know when to expect a new post. As a result, they don't lose followers during their down time. (And yes, this is on Instagram!)

Pro tip - If you know you only have the time and energy to be "on" while online for 1 hour, 1 day a week, then plan your posting schedule accordingly. If you can, set up a scheduler (my go-to scheduler is Publer) and plan your posts to drop during this time then instead of wasting energy trying to figure out what to post, you can be engaging instead.

Content without consistency won't necessarily prevent audience growth, but it sure as hell won't encourage it either.

Beating the social media algorithm has never been impossible nor does it require you "to do it all," despite what you may have heard. It just requires you to be authentic, present and consistent in the platforms you choose to use and content you share.

Until next time, my lovelies!
-M

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