Who are Lurkers? Hidden Followers on Social Media

What is Lurkers on social media?

Lurking is an English term that literally means to lurk and hide. Lurkers on social media is mostly used for those who secretly interact with content and social media without leaving a trace of themselves in this small and vast world. There are many people on social media who only see and feed on content but do not leave comments or likes on your content. It may be strange, but 90 percent of social media users are these people. They only see content and if they interact with it, they save it or share it with their friends and acquaintances. This happens on social media through Silent Followers, which is called the phenomenon of Lurking in social media. Interaction without a trace of yourself. Why are we talking about The Ghost Follower Effect here? In response to this, we must say that just as likes, comments, and active followers are effective in your visibility on social media, Silent Followers are also They are equally effective and you should not neglect your Invisible Audiences.

Who are Lurkers on social media?

You’ve probably noticed at least once or twice who are lurking in the background of your social media profiles and pages, not overtly interacting with your great content. It’s important to note that there’s a whole group of people we often forget about: the ones who see everything you post but don’t say a word.
This group of followers on social media is called “lurkers” or people who are in “invisible mode.” They very quietly pay attention to what you share but do not like or interact, but as a loyal follower, they monitor and are interested in everything you share. These followers are as important as active followers, perhaps even more so, and you should pay just as much attention to their interaction.

The difference between ghost followers and silent followers

The difference between ghost followers and silent followers may seem very similar at first glance if we just look at their names, but you should know that they do not have significant differences from each other and cannot be considered the same in general.

Ghost followers

Refers to those who are aware of your latest updates, see them, and quietly use and enjoy your content, and often decide to share or purchase your services and see more of your content based on what they see, without leaving a trail of likes, comments, and follows. They can be generally called Hidden Followers on Social Media.

Silent followers

These silent followers are those who only exist to be followers and do nothing to grow and improve your interaction. These Hidden Followers on Social Media often follow the page just for themselves but have no effect on you. Of course, you should note that not all Hidden Followers on Social Media are real. Bots or spam accounts increase your follower count but do not create interaction or value. Fake accounts often have incomplete profiles, lack original content, or post generic, irrelevant comments. Keeping your follower list clean will give you a clearer picture of your real audience.

There’s no denying that you’ve probably seen thousands of people throughout your life who spend their free time on social media but never leave any likes or comments on it. You know many people who are Hidden Followers on Social Media.

You might even be one of them.

In fact, most social media users are lurkers. Since the birth of the internet, there has been an inequality of participation in online communities, with 90% of your followers being Hidden Followers on Social Media, another 9% participating occasionally, and the remaining 1% engaging regularly. Lurkers on social media are like the shy elementary school kids who once added a scoop of sand to your sandcastle bucket, but you didn’t notice, so they quietly left. Lurkers on social media and the reasons why a user might be inactive and a Silent Follower will be discussed.

Privacy and Anonymity

Some people like to just look and remain “anonymous” online. It seems that being active in these media is not very interesting to them. In general, they think that their comments and likes may have a negative impact on promoting and increasing a topic, and they do not want to be part of a group of people who definitely agree or disagree with some published content and observe the balance. This thinking causes them to not react in these spaces and to practically be one of the Hidden Followers on Social Media. Liking or commenting means showing their presence and activity, and some people do not like this. And they do not want anyone to know about their presence on social media.

Unwillingness to attract attention

Maybe people don’t want to participate in the discussions or be noticed. Some people prefer to be content consumers without getting involved. They avoid commenting and tend to pay more attention to comments and content they like. Their general lack of interest in attracting attention has led them to limit themselves to just viewing content on social media in order to get noticed by more people. This is because social media is more of a place to relax from the hustle and bustle of daily life than a place to interact with content and like and comment.

Lack of self-confidence or fear of judgment

Some people think that their opinion does not matter or may be wrong or inappropriate, which prevents them from commenting. This is no different from attending a party where there are a bunch of strangers. Not everyone is very sociable and interacts with a stranger. Some people worry that they will not be well received or, worse, be ridiculed for saying the wrong thing, and this has led them to Lurkers on social media on social media

Lack of motivation or need to interact

The content they see may be enough for them and they do not feel the need to react. This is not about Hidden Followers on Social Media, it is about the content they see that may not be able to arouse their emotions as much as it should, leading to likes and comments, and they just see it and have no interest in it, and are only curious about what this content is.

Cultural or social habits

The cultural habits of each community and country differ in the behavior and type of use and usage of social media. In some communities, commenting and liking may be a valuable subject for interaction and expression of connection, but in some cultures, activity in this online world is not so important. In general, it can be said: in some cultures, fewer people comment or like publicly. Some have an impact on this behavior in the cultural space and social environment.

Feeling that interaction is not effective

Some people think that their likes or comments do not have an impact on the content creator or the growth of the page. So in this regard, they prefer to do nothing and quietly engage in their activities in this busy world of the Internet and leave no trace or trace of themselves.

Difficulty in using the platform

Some people may not know exactly how to like or comment or may not care about it at all. For example, in many parts of the world, there is no media literacy and they do not know enough to participate in discussions and conversations, which leads to Lurkers on social media.

Why Hidden Followers on Social Media Matter More Than You Think

You may be thinking that the presence of these people in the community who are not active are not useful for the activity and interaction of our content, or that their presence or absence does not matter to us. But I must remind you that as much as active followers on social media are important, Hidden Followers on Social Media are also important, perhaps even more so. Followers help you become more visible by seeing and sharing your content among friends and acquaintances without participating in the interaction, and this causes you to receive positive signals from these silent users and followers, who are known as lurkers on social media.

Their Role in Algorithms (Impressions, Reach)

Maybe the social media trackers or Hidden Followers on Social Media don’t have an obvious footprint, but by seeing your content, they cause the social media algorithm to give you a higher score by seeing the traffic and the time that users and silent followers or hidden followers have with your content and automatically increase your interaction on the social media in question. This makes you better visible and gets more organic users, followers and interactions.

High probability of becoming a customer in the future

Hidden Followers on Social Media make decisions based on everything they see and then secretly purchase or share it. These people can become loyal customers who silently follow your content and build trust for your brand and connect with your content over time. Therefore, if you do not see direct interaction from them, you should still not ignore the importance of their presence on your pages. Their silence is an indication of their future purchase. And it makes Turning Silent Followers into Active Followers

Creating social proof through Silent Followers

Seeing and increasing the number of views of your content gives followers and new users the feeling that you must have provided useful content that can attract this amount of visitors. This performance makes your brand more known to others and creates good social credibility for you.

How to Turn Silent Followers into Active Followers

Hidden Followers on Social Media are often more active than they seem. Just because someone isn’t publicly active doesn’t mean they’re not paying attention or are inactive on social media. Silent followers can be a great opportunity to increase your engagement, which is why they’re so important to your visibility. With a great strategy, you can turn them into social media followers who will work in your favor. This could be to encourage them to like a post, comment, or share your content with others. You should be able to easily reduce the factors that prevent them from engaging. Create content that creates value and aligns with your followers’ interests, preferences, and problems, and turn silent followers into active followers.

Ask for Low-Friction Interactions

Ask for polls and questions for engagement that are purposeful and require less typing or activity to answer. For example, create question-and-answer boxes in your content, use emojis to write answers or yes/no. For example, “Which one would you choose?” or “Yes or no, would you try this?” Encouraging simple answers builds confidence in those who may be hesitant to comment. These questions keep your audience or Silent Followers engaged and eager to participate, which increases traffic to your social media page. Social media algorithms are often designed to give more points to content that gets more traffic on social media. This increases your social credibility on social networks.

Direct-based calls to action

Use tools like story question boxes or even anonymous forms to invite honest feedback. Some silent followers just need a private channel to talk before they’re ready to engage publicly.

Silent Followers may find it difficult or uninteresting to comment and like in more public areas, but in more private areas like Instagram and Facebook Stories, it is better and more comfortable and a less risky way for them. You can use an emoji to see their reaction and know what content they are interested in and make them vote in a poll.

Create a sense of safety in interaction (without judgment)

When you post polls and your active followers respond to them, it is very good to be able to share their comments and respond to them. Showing other followers that their comments are important to you and taking the time to respond to them makes them feel noticed and that their interaction is important to you. By doing this, you can easily turn Silent Followers into Active Followers.

Use “viewer-only” content

Some lurkers feel safe in silence and it is easier to get them to talk and receive interaction from them. When they feel that a content is created exclusively for them, they gradually move towards interaction or even purchase. Without feeling pressured or forced on them. For example, create a post with the title: For those who are always here but never talk, this post is for you. This is a kind of inviting message to build their trust in participating in the interaction. Hidden Followers on Social Media can be removed from stalker mode over time with these actions.

Track and increase focus on silent interests (saves, shares)

You use the information you get from the number of likes and views of a post to understand what your silent followers are interested in. Your Silent Followers may not like the content they saved, shared, or viewed, but they are interested in the content they saved, shared, or viewed, and it has made them engage with it. This information allows you to know which topics and content are driving Silent Followers to engage in hidden activity that is helpful to you.
In conclusion,

Turning Silent Followers into Active Followers , is a vital step in growing a successful and dynamic online community for your growing goals without exorbitant costs. With the right approach, silent followers will no longer be just numbers, but will become supporters, advocates, and active members of your community, driving your brand’s growth and success.

In conclusion,