How businesses can tackle feed fatigue

Re-engaging audiences in an endless doom scroll

It’s a situation many of us are familiar with. Jumping straight on the sofa after a long day of work, hiding under a blanket and having a good old fashioned doom scroll. 

For businesses, it’s been one of the biggest developments in history. Your audience is accessible 24/7, your ads, your videos, your brand right in their pocket. In front of them as soon as they clock off work, or on the commute home, or even in a doctor's waiting room. 

But as your audience consumes more and more content, it can become tiring and repetitive for them, and can lead to people putting their phone away. Or even getting annoyed with seeing your content and mentally blacklisting your brand. So, what can you do to re-engage that audience? 

Let’s break it down, and take a look at some of our top tips for businesses to beat audience feed fatigue.

First off, what is feed fatigue? And why should you care about it? 

Feed fatigue is what happens when people get tired of scrolling through endless, repetitive, or overly promotional content. When this happens, they tune out. They scroll past faster. They engage less. And eventually… they might stop paying attention altogether, or even worse start trying to actively avoid your content.

For businesses, this can look like:

• Dropping likes and comments

• Fewer clicks or profile visits

• Flat or declining follower growth

• An audience that sees your content but doesn’t connect with it

It’s not that your business is doing something wrong, there’s just too much competing for attention.

What is the cause of feed fatigue? 

Feed fatigue happens when users are overwhelmed by, as we’ve said, repetitive, low-value content in their social media feeds. As platforms become crowded with similar posts, ads, and promotional messaging, people scroll on autopilot and disengage. Lack of variety, low personalisation, and content that feels generic or “samey” all contribute to feed fatigue, making audiences less likely to pay attention, interact, or remember what they’ve seen.

How you can tackle feed fatigue and re-engerise your audience

1. Quality over quantity

Posting for the sake of posting is one of the fastest routes to being ignored. And while some brands have made huge success using a highly saturated feed, for example Hair Syrup that posts 25 TikToks per day (sometimes more), if you’re making a lot of content especially with limited resources it’s likely quality will drop. 

Instead of churning out five rushed pieces of content a week, focus on creating two or three that actually offer value, that:

• Teach something

• Entertain or make your audience laugh

• Share a perspective

• Or solve a real problem

High-quality content stands out in a crowded feed, and your audience will start to recognise you as the brand that posts things worth stopping for.

2. Try fresh content formats

If you’ve been doing the same thing for months, your audience has probably noticed. Switch it up. There are loads of different content formats these days to choose from.

Try polls, carousels, behind-the-scenes clips, short-form video, interactive stickers, or even long-form storytelling. As audiences get tired of short-form content, long-form could be the way to your audience's hearts if they’re becoming disinterested. In other words, new formats grab attention because they break visual patterns,  and breaking the pattern is half the battle when you’re fighting the scroll.

Also if that isn’t working, maybe it’s time to engage your audience using some different tactics, like humour. A funny TikTok can go a long way. 

3. Build communities

Audiences watch. Communities engage.

Instead of talking at people, start talking with them. Ask questions. Respond to comments. Feature user-generated content when possible. Create spaces where your audience feels seen and heard, whether that’s in comments, DMs, or dedicated groups. When people feel part of something, they don’t get bored. 

4. Make it personal

Generic content blends in. Personalised content stands out. Use real stories, real people, and real human experiences. From humour to honesty, people react to content that feels like it was made by an actual person, not a faceless brand, this is why influencer content does so well. People want to hear from people, show them the “behind the scenes” of your business and they’ll engage! 

5. Think about the whole story

A single post won’t fix feed fatigue, but a cohesive narrative can. Instead of isolated bits of content, build storylines that unfold over time. Tease, update, reveal, follow up. Bring people along for the journey. When your content forms a bigger picture, audiences stop scrolling and start following.

Brand shoutouts: who does it well? 

1. Duolingo

Arguably the poster child for beating feed fatigue.

Why it works:

• Constant experimentation with formats

• Character-driven storytelling (Duo is basically a creator now)

• Humour that taps into ongoing trends fast

• High entertainment value with almost zero “hard sell”

People follow Duolingo even if they’re not actively learning a language, that’s how you know a brand has cracked the code.

2. Ryanair

Love them or hate them, their social presence is unforgettable.

Why it works:

• Self-aware humour

• Trendjacking with a distinctive brand voice

• Short, snappy edits that feel native to TikTok

Ryanair keeps people watching because the content feels like it could only come from them. Zero generic filler.

3. Glossier

Glossier built a community long before “community-building” became a buzzword.

Why it works:

• User-generated content at the core

• Product photos that look like your friend took them

• Replies, comments, and DMs treated as an extension of marketing

The brand makes followers feel part of something, which keeps fatigue low.

What these brands all have in common 

✓ Create content people actually enjoy, not just tolerate 

✓ Break their own patterns to stay visually fresh 

✓ Use narrative and personality, not just promotion 

✓ Sound human 

✓ Treat their audience like a community, not a metric

How to tackle feed fatigue as a business

Feed fatigue isn’t a sign that your brand is failing, it’s a sign that the landscape has shifted. People want content that feels intentional, helpful, and human. By diversifying formats, prioritising value, and building genuine community, businesses can cut through the noise and reconnect with audiences who are tired of the same old scroll.

Feed fatigue might be real, but with the right approach, so is feed energy. And that’s what brings people back for more.

At BlackCat Content, we understand the magic formula to keeping your audience engaged. Book in a quick chat with us to discuss ways you could level up your socials.