Or do they?
You’ll have to read till the end to understand what I’m trying to say.
There are so many underground creators still struggling with 500 followers and 225 views across all platforms. Have you ever stumbled on one, gone through their work, and realized how good they are, yet you just can’t understand why they’re not viral? It happens every day.
The skilled YouTube editor.
The young lady who posts acting monologues on TikTok and gets 20 views.
The SFX makeup artist.
The playlist curator.
The architecture student.
The coder with ten followers (including her parents).
The stylist with incredible taste.
You look at their work and think, how are they not viral yet?
Now, let’s be honest, not every creator wants fame. But many do hope to be recognized.
Let’s have an open discussion.
Does going viral play a huge role in your visibility as a creator?
Yes, it does. Going viral helps you get recognized.
But that doesn’t mean your content isn’t good if it doesn’t blow up. Many things contribute to virality including posting time, trends, luck, type of content, SEO, platform, and analytics.
We’re in a time where a creator’s worth feels tied to likes, shares, and comments. It’s easy to lose faith when the numbers don’t match your effort. You start comparing yourself to others, wondering if your social media is broken or why your visibility is so poor.
Then, when one post finally goes viral, you start using that as a benchmark for everything else or try to incessantly recreate it, which it shouldn’t be.
Trust me, the content you least expect often performs the best. My last article “Jack of All Trades” proved that to me.
But as creators, the algorithm shouldn’t define our worth, especially when our work is genuinely good. This feeling isn’t limited to small creators. Even big names struggle with it. Scrolling through your feed, trying to figure out why your posts aren’t performing, doubting your strategies. I’ve been there too.
It’s sad to see, but it’s the truth. I don’t have all the solutions, but here’s what I think we can do:
• Build a real creator community
• Share each other’s work
• Leave thoughtful comments, not vague emojis
• Collaborate more
• Help one another grow
• Focus on improving our craft
• Stop obsessing over algorithms and comparisons
Social media gives us the chance to connect with creators all over the world, so let’s use it that way.
Keep putting out great work. Consistency matters, yes, but so does quality. Look at your page and ask yourself: without the likes and views, are you proud of what you see?
The answer lies within you. You’ll know if you need to do better or if you’re already doing enough.
With time, the right audience will find you.
As a creator, I have learned not to let likes and retweets keep me down and define the quality of my work because each time I send my portfolios to clients, they always have something they love about the work I do. And also, I have learned to appreciate the little growths. I keep my expectations very, very low. As low as 100 views at least, so anything that happens above that gets me stoked!!! So I think the key to happiness as a budding creator is to have low expectations. Started seeing my profile as a repository of my work, so when clients visit, they should love all the content they find even though they aren’t viral.
It can get depressing when you keep creating and it feels like everything is disappearing into the void.
One thing I’ve learned is to create because you genuinely love to create. You’re allowed to care about impact. You’re allowed to want to be seen. That’s human. The key is in not tying your identity to the numbers.
Let your work express you. Keep improving your craft. Learn how to reach people. Stay in motion.
A moving person will eventually meet their luck.
(This comment is mostly to myself😭)