How to Grow on Bluesky

Jumping into a new social platform like Bluesky offers a fresh start to build a genuine community, but figuring out the unwritten rules can feel daunting. If you want to grow a following that actually cares about what you have to say, you've come to the right place. This article breaks down exactly how to establish your presence, create content that connects, and find your people on Bluesky without wasting time on tactics that don't work.

First, Nail the Basics: Your Profile is Your First Impression

Before you post anything, your profile needs to do the heavy lifting of telling people who you are and why they should follow you. An incomplete or confusing profile is the fastest way to get overlooked.

Choose a Memorable Handle and Display Name

Your handle (@yourname.bsky.social) is your unique identifier, while your display name is what shows up in feeds. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Consistency is a great strategy. If you can, use the same handle and display name that you use on other platforms. This makes it a lot easier for your existing audience to find you.
• Your Display Name can include emojis. Use them to add a bit of personality that reflects your content or brand. A writer might add a 🖋️, while a gardener might use a 🌱.
• Level-Up with a Custom Domain Handle. For a pro move, Bluesky lets you use a custom domain you own as your handle (e.g., @yourcompany.com). This is a fantastic branding opportunity and instantly verifies your connection to your website or business. It requires a few DNS settings, but the platform provides a simple walkthrough.

Write a Bio That Actually Connects

Your bio isn't just a resume, it's an invitation. You have limited space, so make it count. Don't just list what you do - tell people what you talk about. This helps them decide if your content is what they're looking for.

Instead of: "Marketing Director at XYZ Corp &,, Public Speaker."

Try: "Talking about sustainable brand building, ethical marketing, and a little too much about my sourdough starter. 🥖 He/him."

The second option gives people a sense of your personality and the topics that will fill their feed if they follow you. It's approachable and sets expectations.

Pick a Great Profile Picture &, Header Image

These visual elements complete your profile. Don't skip them.

• Profile Picture: Use a clear, high-quality photo of your face if you're a personal brand. People connect with people. If you're a business, your logo works perfectly. Just make sure it’s legible even when it's a tiny circle.
• Header Image: This is your digital billboard. Use it to show your personality, display your work, highlight a product, or even just use a visually pleasing photo that fits your vibe. An author might show a picture of their books, while an artist might feature a piece of their art.

Understanding the Vibe: The Bluesky Ecosystem

Bluesky operates differently from the platforms you might be used to. The algorithm isn't aggressively pushing viral content, instead, it is built to foster conversation and let users curate their own experience. Understanding this is fundamental to your growth.

It's All About Community and Conversation

Think of Bluesky as a massive collection of welcoming group chats rather than a stage. While highly-followed accounts exist, the real action happens in the replies. The culture rewards thoughtful discussion, genuine questions, and even silly jokes. Broadcasting your content without interacting is a strategy destined to fail. A good rule of thumb is the 80/20 principle: spend 80% of your time engaging in conversations and 20% posting your own root-level content.

The Secret Weapon for Discovery: Custom Feeds

Custom Feeds are the single most powerful feature for finding your audience on Bluesky. They are curated topic- or keyword-based timelines created by other users. Think of them like old-school forums or super-specific subreddits. There are feeds for everything: #ArtFeed, #Tech, #Gardening, #WritingCommunity, #CatPics - you name it.

Finding and joining these feeds immediately connects you to posts and people interested in the exact topics you care about. To get started, tap the "Feeds" search icon and type in hobbies or industries relevant to you. Pin your favorites to your home screen for easy access. Participating in these feeds is non-negotiable for growth.

Mastering the "Skeet" (and Threads)

Posts on Bluesky are called "skeets," and they are limited to 300 characters. This encourages you to be direct and to-the-point. While a single good skeet can get attention, a lot of the deeper discussions or storytelling happen in threads.

Breaking a bigger idea or story into a 3-5 post thread is a format that works wonderfully on Bluesky. It keeps people engaged and allows for more nuance than a single post ever could.

Actionable Strategies for Meaningful Growth

Knowing the lay of the land is one thing, having a practical game plan is another. Here are three strategies to follow every day to build a presence that lasts.

Strategy 1: Be an Active Participant, Not a Passive Poster

Your real growth won't come from people finding your posts out of the blue. It will come from people discovering you in the replies of other posts.

How to do it effectively:

1. Go to your niche-specific Custom Feeds. Find 2-3 of your favorites that have steady conversation.
2. Find an interesting post and read the replies. See what people are talking about.
3. Leave a thoughtful reply. Don't just say "Agreed!" or "Great point." Add your own experience, ask a follow-up question, or make a lighthearted Spongebob reference if the moment feels right. The goal is to add to the conversation, not just acknowledge it.

Example: An author sees a post in the #WritingCommunity feed asking, "What's the hardest part about writing a second draft?"

• A low-value reply would be: "Totally the hard part for me too."
• A high-value reply could be: "For me, it's resisting the urge to line-edit instead of focusing on the big picture story problems. I have to physically unplug my wifi so I don't go down a 'perfect synonym' rabbit hole."

The second reply is relatable, specific, and invites more conversation. It signals to everyone reading that you have experience and are here to genuinely connect. Do this 5-10 times a day, and you will see your follower count rise naturally.

Strategy 2: Create Content That Starts Conversations

Once you’re actively engaging, it's time to think about your own content. Some formats simply work better than others in a conversation-friendly environment.

High-performing content types for Bluesky:

• Open-Ended Questions: The easiest way to get people talking. Keep it simple and relevant to your niche.
  Examples: "What's one small thing that made you happy today?" or for a tech-focused account, "What's a piece of software you pay for that's 100% worth it?"
• Behind-the-Scenes Looks: People love seeing the process. Share your workspace, a project you're working on, or even a mistake you learned from. It humanizes your brand or profile.
• The Value-Packed Thread: Take a topic you know well and break it down into a short, informative thread. Think "5 common mistakes in X" or "My process for doing Y."
• Share Your Work (with context): When you share something you've made, created, or written, add a sentence or two of context. Why did you create it? What was the hardest part? What do you hope people take away from it? This gives people an entry point for engagement beyond just a "like."

Strategy 3: Get Your Content Seen with Custom Feeds

Remember those Custom Feeds? They aren't just for finding conversations - they are also a phenomenal distribution channel. Many feeds are programmed to automatically pick up posts that use a specific word or #-tagged term.

For example, a Custom Feed like the popular "Visual Arts" feed might pull in any post that uses terms like #Art, #MastoArt, or #DigitalArt. By including one of those terms in your post about your art, your work is instantly seen by thousands of people who have opted into that feed. Research the top feeds in your niche and see what keywords or tags they use. Including them in relevant posts amplifies your reach tremendously without feeling spammy.

What to Absolutely Avoid on Bluesky

The culture on Bluesky is still developing, but it already has strong community norms. Violating them is a quick way to get muted or simply ignored.

• Don't engage in "Follow-for-Follow" schemes. Not only is it disingenuous, but it also results in a vanity follower count with zero engagement. People want to follow interesting accounts, not just swap follows.
• Forget aggressive sales tactics. Never make your first interaction with someone a link to your product. The principle is simple: provide value and connect first. If people are interested, they will check out the link in your bio.
• Don't be a reply-guy for link drops. Dropping unsolicited links to your blog or product in someone else's conversation is bad form. If your link is genuinely relevant and helpful, frame it that way, but do it sparingly.
• Don't ignore replies to your own posts. If you ask a question and people take the time to answer, you owe it to them to acknowledge it. A like or a quick thank you goes a long way.

Final Thoughts

Building a presence on Bluesky isn't about chasing viral moments or growth hacks. It's an opportunity to return to the roots of social media: connecting with people who share your interests through genuine conversation. By optimizing your profile, consistently adding value in replies, leveraging custom feeds, and creating content that invites discussion, you’ll attract an audience that is there for the right reasons.

It can feel like a lot to manage a new platform like Bluesky alongside your other channels. To keep everything straight without getting overwhelmed, we use our own tool, Postbase, to maintain a visual calendar of all our content ideas and drafts. When we have a thread concept that performs well on Bluesky and want to repurpose it for another platform, all the content is already organized and ready to be scheduled and customized in one place, saving us from constantly juggling apps and notes.

```