For more than 8 years of accompanying hundreds of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the question the DPS.MEDIA team hears most often from business owners is not “how can we make our products better?”, but: “How can we get more views on our channel?”, “Why hasn't this month's video gone viral?”.

That mindset is completely understandable. Watching the view count surge into the hundreds of thousands, with notification bells constantly going off in the app, brings an irresistible sense of satisfaction. But what usually follows is a bitter disappointment: the views explode spectacularly, yet the consultation inbox is completely silent, the hotline does not ring once all week, and at the end of the month the business is still sweating over rent and staff salaries. You are falling into an invisible trap: million-view trap.

The algorithms of social media platforms are designed to keep users on their screens for as long as possible, not to sustain your business model. If you fail to clearly distinguish between “entertainment views” and “conversion rates”, your business can easily become an unpaid worker for the algorithm.

1. The Million-View Illusion: Are You Running a Business or Working for the Algorithm?

Is it difficult to get a lot of views on social media these days? Not at all. Follow a trending dance, stage sensational drama, edit shocking statements, or use cheap clickbait headlines... the views will naturally surge. Crowds are always curious about easily consumable entertainment.

But take another look at that audience. Who are they?

Most are people mindlessly scrolling their screens in their spare time. They tap the heart button, watch all 15 seconds, then swipe to the next clip. Three seconds later, they no longer remember who you are, what your brand represents, or what solution you are selling.

Applying that mindset to commerce is a costly mistake. A workshop producing premium natural wood tables and chairs cannot survive on the joking comments of students who happened to come across a situational comedy clip. The number of viewers does not determine sales capability; only the relevance of the viewers creates revenue.

Vanity views create a glamorous appearance. They lull marketing teams into complacency with beautiful but hollow reports, while the company's actual cash flow gradually dries up.

2. Passersby and 1,000 True Customers: What Does a Business Really Need?

In a classic essay published in 2008, Wired magazine founder Kevin Kelly introduced the concept of 1,000 True Fans (1,000 genuine fans). The argument states that to thrive through creative work or independent business, you do not need millions of followers; you only need 1,000 people who genuinely trust you, are willing to support you, and are willing to pay for any worthwhile product you create.

For SME businesses, this philosophy is more accurate than ever. You do not need millions of people applauding on the street. You only need a few hundred to one thousand customers who clearly understand your business's value, are willing to buy repeatedly, and proactively recommend your services to their friends.

Consider the real-world case of Truong Thinh Natural Wood Furniture Workshop (Binh Duong) — a former DPS.MEDIA partner. Previously, the workshop outsourced trending woodshop transformation videos, reaching 1.8 million views on TikTok but failing to generate a single completed order. After restructuring its content, the workshop switched to producing simple 3–5-minute video series that carefully explained how to distinguish genuine imported oak cores from veneer-laminated particleboard. The videos received just over 16,000 views — a modest figure on social media. But the result was that 14 homeowners preparing to complete their townhouses proactively contacted the workshop to schedule on-site measurements, bringing in construction contracts worth more than VND 680 million in total.

16,000 people with the right needs are worth ten thousand times more than 2 million viewers who laugh, joke around, and then forget everything.

3. From “Public Traffic” to “Owned Home Turf”: The Way Out of Platform Dependency

The biggest difference between an amateur content creator and a brand strategist lies in the concepts: Public Traffic and Private Domain (Owned Digital Asset).

• Public Traffic: This is the volume of views you earn on TikTok, Facebook Reels, and YouTube Shorts. It is like a stream of pedestrians on a crowded street. You stand on the sidewalk and pitch your products, and some people look in, but the land belongs to the platform. When the algorithm tightens engagement, an account is mistakenly flagged, or distribution costs skyrocket, you can be left with nothing.
• Private Domain (Owned Home-Turf Asset): These are direct-access channels that you fully own and control — your own website, your Zalo OA contact list, and loyal customer data stored in your internal system.

The right purpose of creating content on social media is not to grind out views to make the channel look good, but to use valuable content as a natural filter. Filter out people who are on the same wavelength, share aligned perspectives on life, and genuinely have a need, then bring them back to your “home turf”:

• SEO-optimized Website: A place to store in-depth knowledge and provide detailed answers to technical problems that a 30-second short video can never fully convey. This is an asset that steadily accumulates value over the years.
• Zalo Official Account (Zalo OA): A secure, professional 1:1 connection channel that allows you to care for existing customers and send direct notifications at almost zero cost.
• Automated Lead Nurturing System (CRM & n8n): Automatically send instructional materials, record feedback, and classify needs without bothering customers with intrusive sales calls.

The cost of acquiring a new buyer in the market is 5 to 7 times higher than retaining an existing customer who already has trust. Building a strong home turf is the best defense against every algorithmic fluctuation.

4. Selling to Existing Customers Is Not “Squeezing Them for Money”, but Creating Value Through Symbiosis

When many people build a certain follower base, they immediately become eager to exploit it to the fullest: raising prices unreasonably, creating fake scarcity, or distributing low-quality products to maximize short-term profits. This short-sighted approach may bring in a small immediate gain, but it will destroy all the brand credibility painstakingly built over time.

Audiences and customers today are extremely perceptive. Clumsily staged sales performances and scams designed to manipulate buyers will eventually be exposed. Authenticity and an ethical professional mindset are the only defensive barriers that no technology can replace.

At DPS.MEDIA, we remain steadfast in our guiding principle: “Effective Marketing, with All Our Heart”. Business operations are only sustainable when businesses and customers exist in a relationship of value-based symbiosis. Customers spend money not because they are manipulated by clickbait tricks, but because they perceive the meticulousness, honesty, and responsibility embedded in every product and service you provide.

Once trust is sufficiently established, sales costs naturally approach zero.

5. It Is Time for Your Business to Redefine Its Content Strategy

If you are feeling exhausted from chasing trending dances every week, if your marketing team is struggling with vanity engagement numbers without seeing actual revenue, stop for a moment and ask yourself:

Are we creating content to please mechanical algorithms, or are we creating content to engage in dialogue with the people who genuinely need our solutions?

Do not be afraid of long-form articles. Do not shy away from calm, understated videos without sensational effects. Mature customers with strong purchasing power always seek depth and authenticity before deciding to sign a contract or open their wallets.

If you are looking for a sustainable direction, building long-term digital assets, and turning traffic into tangible sales, explore the comprehensive Digital Marketing solutions at DPS.MEDIA. Our team of experts is always ready to listen and accompany your business from the most genuine and ethical mindset.