hi guys i really need help

I’ve been a relatable content creator since 2023, and I’ve posted every single day for over 3 years. I’m currently at around 110k followers on TikTok and 31k on Instagram. I’ve had multiple viral videos, including one with over 11 million views, and I work with brands regularly, so I know my content can perform.

The problem is that I feel completely stuck.

For the last year or so, I’ve been hovering around the same follower count. I’ll have a video do well, gain some followers, then everything slows down and I’m back where I started. It feels like I’m on a treadmill.

My content has always been relatable videos girlhood, relationships, school, random thoughts, and situations people relate to. That niche helped me grow in 2023, but now I feel like relatable content is so oversaturated that it’s hard to stand out. Every time I scroll, I see hundreds of creators making almost the exact same style of videos.

I don’t want to quit because creating content is genuinely my passion, but I also don’t want to spend another few years posting every day just to stay stuck around the same follower count.

For those of you who understand short-form content, what would you do if you were in my position?

Would you stay in the relatable niche or pivot?

How do creators break out of this plateau?

Is relatable content still a good niche in 2026, or has the algorithm and audience shifted?

If you had an account with 110k followers that felt “stuck,” what would your strategy be to get it to 500k+ or even 1M?

I’m not looking for generic advice like “just be consistent” because I’ve already been doing that for years. I feel like I’m missing something, and I’d really appreciate honest feedback.

If anyone is willing to take a look at my accounts and tell me what you think I’m doing right or wrong, I’d really appreciate it.

TikTok: @kileyymetzger
Instagram: @kileyymetzger

Comments

ValuablePace4109•7 days ago•1

ok i actually pulled your account data instead of guessing, and i have good news and a hard truth. youre not stuck for the reason you think.

first, you do NOT have a saturation problem. your top video did 11.3M views with 1.75M likes and 733K shares. your recent drops are still pulling 4M+. a 6% share rate is absurd, the algorithm loves your format. "relatable is oversaturated" is not whats capping you, your reach is elite.

heres whats actually happening, and its visible in one number: 733,000 shares vs 26,000 comments on your biggest video. people arent engaging with YOU, theyre using your video as a message. your silent-stare + one loaded line format ("i do love you") works because its a mirror, viewers see their own situationship in it and send it to their person. thats why it spreads like crazy and converts to almost no follows. theres no YOU in it. no story, no continuity, nothing to come back for. nobody follows a mirror, they just pass it around.

thats the treadmill: every video is a self-contained mirror, so every viral moment resets to zero. 3,844 videos in 3 years and the format has never asked anyone to come back tomorrow.

so dont pivot niches, your format is a weapon. fix the conversion:

serialize it. your loaded lines are begging to become an ongoing storyline. the situationship SAGA, part 1, part 2, callbacks, escalation. "i do love you" should have a sequel. followers come from "i need to know what happens next," and youve never given anyone a next.
end on direct questions instead of statements. your endings are all statements ("i do love you"). flip a few to questions delivered straight to camera ("so are we together or not?"). questions spike comments, and comments build the parasocial thing that statements dont.
let YOU leak in. right now the videos work with zero context about who you are. mix in 1-2 videos a week thats actually kiley, the person behind the stare, lore, personality, your actual situation. give the 11M viewers a person to attach to, not just a feeling.
add text overlays. huge chunk of tiktok watches sound-off and your format is one line, easiest overlay ever. youre leaving retention on the table.

and one thing you should hear about the money side: 110k followers with 3M+ avg views means your views massively outpunch your follower count. for brand deals thats actually a strong position, your CPM math is way better than most 500k accounts. youre undervaluing what you have while chasing the follower number.

tl;dr: your content converts to shares, not follows, because its built as a mirror with no continuity. keep the format, add a story spine + question endings + a visible you. the follower plateau isnt a content quality problem, its an architecture problem, and its very fixable.

(pulled this with a research tool i built, hooklayer, happy to go deeper on which of your videos convert followers vs just views if you want)

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Pale_Ad5544•7 days ago•1

I don’t think you need to leave the relatable niche completely — I think you need to make it more ownable.
Relatable content can still work, but “girlhood / relationships / random thoughts” is so broad now that people may enjoy the video without feeling a strong reason to follow. I’d look at which videos actually converted followers, not just which ones got views.
Viral reach means people relate to the moment. Follower growth means people connect with your perspective.
If I were you, I’d build more repeatable series, stronger personal angles, and content pillars that make your account feel less like “relatable creator” and more like a creator with a specific world people want to come back to.

Ilogambino•7 days ago•1

Leverage your influence, make some affiliate money, this will span you into different markets. What kind of content do you make mate?

Larry_33•7 days ago•1

What specifically do you need help with - growth, monetization, or something else?

decaf-espresso16•7 days ago•1

Follower count is becoming an irrelevant metric. If your content is performing well and you’re getting brand deals, I wouldn’t worry about follower count.

digitaldisgust•7 days ago•1

Why not collaborate with others in your niche?

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