In a world where everyone is externally focused, it is very hard to understand what your real priorities are. In fact, we all keep chasing the carrot so much that we don't take the time out to appease our feelings before they burn out.

Social Media noise worsens the situation. We have reached a stage where we want LIKES, not ❤ LOVE. And that's fine, because 💰 Money is, indeed, important. I'm sure you know how LIKES (i.e. reach) can translate into Money. Not saying that it is straightforward. There are innumerable parameters.

There is no such thing as 'Influencer'. You be an Influential Person or you can end up in influencing people through your words or actions. You cannot have the Goal to 'Become an Influencer'. So, I prefer using the word 'Creator'.

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We, often, seethe on seeing the content of some Social Medial 'Creators' who seem to be popular for no reason. Even though affinity for something (a person or a thing) is relative from person to person, we all inherently know what 'good quality content' is and what 'bad quality content' is. Quality also applies to people, isn't it?

Now, there are some people in Power 💪 who can use their Influence, Power, or Resources to BOOST certain people who don't necessarily have talent, skill, or any kind of creative or uplifting contribution to the society. It's an open secret (and there are examples out there) that that does happen - especially in places like 'Bollywood'. At the same time, let's not forget that your worth in the real world is what automatically reflects on the Social Media - quite effortlessly. But then, how is it that some people with Lakhs and Crores of Followers, often, go totally unrecognized in Public?

Think about it! If ChatGPT can generate 10 Comment Ideas based on the Description I provide, if InShot (and even YouTube / Instagram, for that matter) can transcribe your videos (irrespective of the language in which you speak), is it not possible that Social Media products like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok INTERNALLY generate Comments over Creators' videos using AI? Is it not possible that dummy users (with built-in interests / properties / criteria) are provided based on what they feel a Creators' worth, appeal, or background is?

Is it not possible that a Young Viewer's Single View is extrapolated as 1K Views, an Older Viewer's Single View as 200 Views, or a Celebrity's Single View at 10K Views? Can't this all be demographic-focused?

Is it not possible that YouTube first fills Views to show a video's appeal, and then gradually replaces them with those from real Users, which is why they say that it takes time for Views to update, because they check their authenticity? Is it not possible that most LIKES & COMMENTS that you see on an Instagram REEL are just about the REEL's appeal, but not real LIKES & COMMENTS from real people? Same thing about Followers. People are, often, not very particular about Liking, Commenting, or Following someone. So, it is, in fact, a much desired feature by these products to provide those numbers based on how RELEVANT the person is to the INVESTORS or the ECONOMY or the GOVERNMENT, for example.

Btw., yes, there are a number of websites where you can buy Followers, Likes, and Comments at very low prices, and print them on your posts.

When Rachel (a Product Manager at YouTube) says, "Every video also has an appeal, right?", and when Mosseri (Instagram's CEO) says, "We're going to focus on young creators", or "... if you create what your followers want to see ...", what it means is pretty obvious now. When YouTube says that it's not videos that are disseminated to people, but just shown based on what a user is looking for at that point of time - based on a variety of factors. It, obviously, means that users have dynamic properties, and videos are - in a way - "auto-searched" for users based on those properties. What "appeal" could also mean is that there are dummy users that YouTube uses in instances when they cannot make someone actually popular, but only give their videos high appeal (and to keep Creators happy with those green tick marks).

Do you really think that the Creators of YouTube are so stupid that they'd allow a video talking about the ill-effects of short videos to go truly viral? Technology is so advanced that you can make a video LOOK, FEEL, AND APPEAR viral by giving all its parameters high appeal - without it actually being truly viral at all.

Why do you think that YouTube came up with the option to hide your subscriptions? Why is it the 'industry standard' to add re-watch / thumbnail previews into Views? These tactics to throw people off the scent are pretty apparent, albeit hard to prove. All these ideas - which are amazingly powerful & intelligent ideas, and not accusations - may be categorized as conjectures by someone who doesn't dive deep into these understandings.

Now, is it spiteful of these Social Media products to be providing dummy (and active) AI audiences who can automatically Like, Comment, Share on your videos to augment their appeal? Not at all.

In fact, that's the only way to control the environment and strategize the hierarchy in this hierarchy-based world. That's the only way to keep Users happy without actually making them popular, especially if they are non-celebrities. As far as Celebrities are concerned, like I said in the beginning, each one has his own worth, background, and that has to continue to reflect on the Social Media, especially if that person has connections with the people in control. Now, whether or not most of those celebrities deserve that amount of popularity or credibility is an endless debate. The discussion can go awry Read that word again. Rhymes with something.

There are exceptions. There are people who are truly popular! But, overall, this write-up explores the endless and incredible capabilities of Software & Technology.

Your job - as a non-celebrity, for instance - is to make use of that WORTH / APPEAL and take it out there into the world positively, work in your real life with full zest, and increase that WORTH / APPEAL. YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok do not owe you anything.

This blog post is based on my experiences, research, and study, and is reviewed, revised, and updated from time to time as the Internet and Social Media evolves.

Thu, 03-Oct-2024
🌞 awakenwithsagar