MIA #09: How to Build an Audience Beyond Social Media Algorithms
Cut out the middleman. Meta, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, & YouTube algorithms constantly change, and you can't control platforms you don't own. Build an audience you control.
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I’ve been MIA. I know. I can explain.
It’s not you, and it’s not me either. It’s Google. They have been a pain in places where the sun don’t shine.
Over the past month, I’ve been hit by a series of platform-related issues that have really thrown a wrench into my work—and, indirectly, into yours. If you’ve tried to access some of the resources in the MIA Resource Library lately and ran into trouble, here’s why.
In short, Google decided to flag a bunch of my content across several of their platforms (Google Drive, YouTube, and even Search Console). It’s been a frustrating ordeal, to say the least. Let me break down exactly what’s happened.
Red flags. Red flags everywhere!
Google Drive: One of the core libraries of the Marketing In Action resource collection—stuff that I know many of you use—was flagged for violating their phishing policy. This flag meant that users attempting to view these files were greeted with a warning banner. The worst part? The files were community resources—templates, frameworks, and tools. Hardly phishing material.
YouTube: One of my educational videos got flagged for having an “unsafe” external link (a link to my own website!), and YouTube removed the video because it supposedly violated their community guidelines.
Search Console: Around the same time, I received a warning from Google Search Console, alerting me that my Notion page—which hosts tons of templates and resources—was flagged for potentially containing “social engineering” content. Essentially, Google flagged it for including third-party resources that might trick users into providing sensitive information.
What does this mean for our relationship?
Many of you have reached out because you couldn’t access tools like the Growth Project Management Templates.
With resources flagged, I had to put everything on hold to appeal these decisions, meaning new frameworks and templates have been delayed. But trust me, I’ve been working hard to resolve these issues.
👉🏽 Join the Marketing In Action LinkedIn Group.
I successfully appealed the YouTube flag, and after review, they reinstated the video, acknowledging it was flagged in error.
I followed Google Search Console's recommendations, cleaned up the flagged Notion page, and successfully had the flag removed.
I’ve been in touch with Notion's support to help resolve the issue on their end.
However, I’m still battling with Google Drive. Their response has been slow, and I haven’t yet been able to restore full access to the flagged resources.
If anyone here happens to work with Google’s Trust & Safety team, I would love your help in expediting this!
Why You Need to Focus on Building an Owned Audience
These experiences have reinforced something I’ve always believed—you need to build an audience you control.
When you rely on third-party platforms like Meta (Instagram, Facebook), X/Twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, etc., you’re vulnerable to algorithm changes, policy shifts, and the whims of tech giants. Your audience can disappear in an instant.
Platform dependence is risky: As I’ve experienced firsthand, your content can be flagged, demoted, or outright removed without warning. This can halt your ability to communicate with your audience.
Non-transferrable audiences: When you grow an audience on platforms like YouTube or Twitter, that audience is locked in. You can’t take those subscribers with you if you decide to leave or unfortunately get banned. Contrast this with platforms like Substack, where I can export all of my subscriber emails—so if I ever need to leave, I won’t lose you.
You’re at the mercy of algorithms: Social algorithms are designed to serve their platforms, not you. The more you build your audience on these platforms, the more control you hand over. As creators, we’re always playing by rules that can shift at any moment, and that’s not sustainable for long-term growth.
“The more audience you accrue on YouTube, the easier it is to go viral. Because of this momentum trap, it's difficult to convince a top YouTuber to leave for another social network.” — Julian Shapiro
What did the wise man on Substack once say?
If you haven’t already, start building an owned audience today. Invest in email lists, create content hubs on platforms you control, and ensure that you have direct access to your audience without needing to rely on middlemen like Meta, YouTube or X.
Thank you for sticking around. And if you happen to know anyone on Google’s Trust & Safety team, please reach out—I could use the help!
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TL: DR
Build an owned audience to avoid platform dependence and algorithm risks.
Your audience on platforms like Meta, YouTube, and X is non-transferrable and vulnerable to sudden changes.
Start building email lists, create content hubs you control, and move away from reliance on third-party platforms.
Was this helpful? Hit that ❤️ and let me know your thoughts in the comments! Want to see more of this content? Restack this post (if you're on Substack) and share it with your friends!
You might find these interesting:
Customer Acquisition Channels — A step-by-step guide to selecting and prioritizing marketing channels.
Julian Shapiro on Retention — How are you retaining your customers?
Hiring within our network:
Regional Marketing Lead, Demand Generation at Shopify
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International Product Growth Manager, Nigeria at Meta
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Product & Partner Recommendations:
James Praise — I partner with founders and marketing teams of Product-Led startups to drive long-term growth using Performance Marketing, SEO, Product Marketing, and Lifecycle Marketing, from acquisition to retention to revenue.
Clay — Clay combines 50+ data providers, real-time scraping, AI, and outbound workflows, so you can send automated, 1-1 personalized campaigns (and book more meetings than your sales team).
Testimonial — Testimonial makes it easy to collect text and video testimonials from your customers in minutes, with no need for a developer or website hosting.
Riverside — Riverside makes it easy to record remote podcasts and video interviews that look and sound like they were recorded in a million-dollar studio.
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