Almost every popular social media platform limits a post’s reach based on how often the user checks their notifications. On TikTok, posts reach to more ppl if a user turns their notifications off and close the app for few hours after posting - which is a known method amidst influencers. Notifications r there to call users to open the app and spend more time on it and if they don’t they try to generate more likes/notifications. So yes those features were created to make platforms more addictive.
Discussion
Wow I didn’t know they were doing this. That’s crazy but it makes sense.
I don’t think these features weren’t added to make the platforms more addictive originally though. They were added because they encoded valuable social signals that weren’t being surfaced before. They only became a lever in the addiction slot machine after algorithmic timelines.
It’s a fine line but it’s an important one I think. Because in social networks the line between adding value for users and being addictive is verrrry thin. In a way all humans are addicted to relationships.
It’s a fine line indeed. And yes it’s a common tip Tiktokers share on how to take videos viral. I watched a guy who said he created 10 videos, saved them as drafts then posted all at once n didn’t open the app for over a week. He got his first 1M views. Of course he already had an active account with followers.