<p>Telegram allows you to intercommunicate with many people, read news, and follow some interesting groups. It won't be so interesting without the people you know there, right?
Well, it's straightforward to use the app to message everyone you know if they have Telegram, too, of course.</p>
<h2 id="how-to-search-for-people-on-telegram"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#how-to-search-for-people-on-telegram"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>How to search for people on Telegram</h2>
<h3 id="using-android"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#using-android"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Using Android</h3>
<p>Take your phone, unlock it, and then launch Telegram from the launch screen by tapping on the Telegram icon.
<img src="https://drive.google.com/uc?export=download&#x26;id=1x4TNjxGASr1ldvMKF6KdcOEVKxbXFRmM" alt="find a contact on Telegram" loading="lazy"></p>
<p>Log in to your Telegram profile and fill out the required fields if necessary. You now have the main screen. To chat with people from your contacts (those you have saved in your address book and use the application), you can press the button with three horizontal lines at the top of the screen. Next, select the item Contacts in the menu that opens.</p>
<p>The new screen will open. Select the contact you are interested in from the list, and you can instantly start the conversation.
You can modify the way a person is classified if they are not listed in your list by clicking the button with three horizontal lines at the top right. In addition, you can sort contacts by name or last seen. This is the default.</p>
<p>You may also choose to do a direct search or a global search. To do this:</p>
<ul>
<li>Press the button with magnifying glasses.</li>
<li>In the upper right corner of the menu, type the person's name you are interested in in the field that appears.</li>
<li>Select the correct match from the list, and that's all.</li>
<li>You must grant Telegram access to your address book if you cannot see any of your contacts.</li>
<li>To do so, press the button with three horizontal lines at the top of the screen. Then, touch Privacy &#x26; Security to open the menu.</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="using-ios"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#using-ios"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Using iOS</h3>
<p>You can search for contacts in the popular messaging app iOS by unlocking your phone, accessing the start screen, and hitting the icon within the Telegram app.</p>
<p>You can log in to your Telegram profile and fill out the required fields if necessary. Next, press Contacts at the bottom of the Telegram screen. This will display a complete list of contacts whose phone numbers you have saved to the iOS address book. These people can then use Telegram. Finally, press the name of a connection to start chatting.</p>
<p>If you have difficulty finding the person you are looking for, you can try another method. Click on the menu at the top to change the order of your contacts. You can sort contacts by last seen, default, or by name.
Telegram also allows you to search for people by touching the right bar on your screen and typing Search. The contact's name that interests you can then be selected from the list.</p>
<p>As I have already written, you can also do a global search. This means you can search for people not on your contact list. Type your name into the search box and choose the right suggestion from the list.
Suppose you don't see your contacts saved in your address book after following my instructions. In that case, it seems that you haven't granted the application the required permissions.</p>
<p>Click on Configurations at the bottom of Telegram's screen and select Privacy and security> Data settings. Next to Synchronize Contacts in the section Contacts, turn ON the ON switch.</p>
<h2 id="how-to-search-for-people-on-telegram-using-windows-and-macos"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#how-to-search-for-people-on-telegram-using-windows-and-macos"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>How to search for people on Telegram using Windows and macOS</h2>
<p>On the contrary, if you use Telegram from a computer with Windows y Mac OS to search for contacts, first open the service application by double-clicking on the connection or invoking it via Launchpad, Highlight Crab, or folder Applications (for macOS).</p>
<p>After the Telegram window has been displayed, you can log in to your account and fill out the required fields.
Next, click on the button with three horizontal lines located in the upper right. Then select the item Contacts from the menu that opens.
Select the name of the person contact you wish to have a conversation with from the list.</p>
<p>If you don't find the contact you are looking for, you can try a direct search. Type the contact's name in the field Search and select the appropriate result from the suggestions.</p>

<p>Telegram channels are broadcasting platforms for the users, usually big audiences. The same is for groups, where people can share their messages too, not only channel or group administrators. And if you try to join and get "this channel cannot be displayed" error messages, then it seems that this channel was restricted by the Telegram team for users in your country or in many countries.</p>
<h2 id="why-is-that"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#why-is-that"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Why is that</h2>
<p>The reasons behind the error are unclear. Telegram doesn't cover this question on <a href="https://telegram.org/faq#groups-and-channels">their FAQ page</a>.</p>
<p><img src="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1589652717521-10c0d092dea9?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&#x26;ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&#x26;auto=format&#x26;fit=crop&#x26;w=1170&#x26;q=80" alt="this channel can&#x27;t be displayed telegram" loading="lazy"></p>
<p>Probably, it's due to sensitive content on the channel, which may be not safe for work. Telegram stays strict behind its rules and it moderates channels and groups for such content.</p>
<p>If a channel seems to be not safe to read, Telegram moderators restrict it from the public. It doesn't mean the channel is banned. It's a visibility restriction. Hence, people in some countries, or, people in general won't be able to see it.</p>
<h2 id="variations-of-the-error"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#variations-of-the-error"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Variations of the error</h2>
<p>"this channel cannot be displayed" is a general error and there are some others that mean the same in different contexts. The other possible errors are:</p>
<ul>
<li>"this channel cannot be displayed because it was used to spread...". For instance, iOS is very strict about some types of content(e.g. adult), so it forces Telegram to block it by default. Even if you can find the switch option that we'll discuss later, there's a chance you'll be getting this error. Telegram can't eliminate iOS restrictions, otherwise, they can't be on App Store.</li>
<li>"this group cannot be displayed" - this kind of message is shown if you try to see and join a group that also is restricted from public access. It's almost the same situation as it can be in a usual channel. It means the group isn't safe to view for the general public because its members share such messages(adult content, spam, etc.).</li>
</ul>
<p><img src="https://user-images.githubusercontent.com/39812401/60755039-df5fa480-9ff2-11e9-9a45-c9bedf824b3c.png" alt="this channel can&#x27;t be displayed error" loading="lazy"></p>
<h2 id="how-to-fix-it"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#how-to-fix-it"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>How to fix it</h2>
<p>There are two ways of doing so. The first option is a switch in the Telegram Desktop app settings. Yes, mobile versions of it don't have one. To find the switch, follow the following steps:</p>
<ol>
<li>Open your Telegram Desktop app. If you don't have one, go <a href="https://desktop.telegram.org/">here</a> to download it. The installation process is straightforward: install the app, input your phone number, verify it's you on your smartphone(in a mobile Telegram app), you're set.</li>
<li>Press the menu icon, click on "Settings".</li>
<li>Choose "Privacy and Security".</li>
<li>Scroll a bit down, there's the Sensitive content section where you can switch Disable filtering.</li>
<li>After all these steps are done, try to go to the channel or group you've had issues with. If you have the same error, probably you're on iOS or need to try the second step. Try it anyway though.</li>
</ol>
<p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/M7el1i5.png" alt="Telegram privacy setting for sensitive content" loading="lazy"></p>
<h3 id="vpn-fix"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#vpn-fix"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>VPN fix</h3>
<p>Sometimes Telegram tries to restrict a channel/group's visibility to specific countries due to reports from some people or companies. Try to change your Internet traffic origin by changing countries in some VPN app. Then try to access the channel/group again.</p>
<h2 id="other-ways-of-accessing-channels"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#other-ways-of-accessing-channels"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Other ways of accessing channels</h2>
<p>It's not all! We can't restore visibility for a specific channel or a group, as well as for other people.</p>
<h3 id="web-mirroring-websites"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#web-mirroring-websites"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Web mirroring websites</h3>
<p>There are websites that collect Telegram channels, their statistics, and posts. Often, you can find the channels that give you the "
this channel cannot be displayed" error there. It's like catalogs of websites where you can pick a website by category. The same approach here, but you can go directly to the channel's page.</p>
<p>For example, Telegram Tips - an official Telegram channel, which is also can be found on this <a href="https://tgstat.com/channel/@TelegramTips">catalog</a>.</p>
<p><img src="https://i.imgur.com/qN8QEXD.png" alt="telegram catalog that mirror channels" loading="lazy"></p>
<p>You can find other channels that "blocked" you from seeing them on such websites. Search them in Google.</p>

<p>People use Telegram not only for communicating with each other but also for the things social media are popular. The platform gives you the possibility to be in touch with important news. And it's also about a new content channel where one may find a good source of information.</p>
<p>If you want to jump straight to the action, <a href="#creating-a-channel">click here</a>.</p>
<p><img src="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1611746869696-d09bce200020?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&#x26;ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&#x26;auto=format&#x26;fit=crop&#x26;w=1170&#x26;q=80" alt="how to create a Telegram channel" loading="lazy"></p>
<h2 id="why-and-what-are-telegram-channels"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#why-and-what-are-telegram-channels"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Why and what are Telegram channels</h2>
<p>Telegram has its way of content distribution. On websites, people see pages that they can go to and see the content. On social media, there are profiles that work the same way as website pages. However, a user can follow a page and see the notifications whenever new content comes up. Such a good way to not miss something, right?</p>
<h3 id="you-own-your-feed"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#you-own-your-feed"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>You own your feed</h3>
<p>Social media tell you what content you should see, except those where you see only your followings' content. The same way Telegram works. There are no recommendations of what "pages" you should follow or what posts to read. Instead, you assemble your "feed". Though there's no feed, a home screen(page) where all your communications, groups, and pages.</p>
<p>One can sort them by categories, importance, or some other factor and put channels on various folders. If you're tired of notifications, you can mute some groups and channels. Hence, you'll be notified only when some important channel publishes something.</p>
<h3 id="channels-content"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#channels-content"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Channels content</h3>
<p>There are various content people share there. If you're in doubt about what to share, you may start with writing your thoughts on something, it may be specific to some topic or it can be a different post every time.</p>
<p>People share GIFs, memes, videos, images, short texts like quotes, ideas, news, and long-read content. It depends on what you're up to, you'll find readers anyway.</p>
<p><img src="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1488190211105-8b0e65b80b4e?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&#x26;ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&#x26;auto=format&#x26;fit=crop&#x26;w=1170&#x26;q=80" alt="Telegram channel content" loading="lazy"></p>
<h3 id="what-to-create-a-channel-or-a-group"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#what-to-create-a-channel-or-a-group"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>What to create: a channel or a group?</h3>
<p>In channels, only administrators share the content. A channel owner can add more admins with various access rights, so some can publish, some can't remove posts, and so on.</p>
<p>In groups, its members can publish messages. Group administrators define what type of content the members are allowed to share. The admins can add bots to a group to better(and simpler) manage it. For example, to remove spam or do some analytics(this is also applicable to a channel).</p>
<p>If you don't know what to create - a channel or a group, understand if you're going to engage with an audience. There may be a channel and a group. The group is linked to the channel, hence your subscribers can comment on every post. Learn more about <a href="/blog/how-to-find-a-group-in-telegram">Telegram groups</a>.</p>
<h2 id="creating-a-channel"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#creating-a-channel"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Creating a channel</h2>
<p>So, the actionable advice! To create a Telegram channel you need the app itself. I presume you have it already. Then:</p>
<ol>
<li>Menu -> New channel</li>
<li>Pick a channel name. Let it be concise so other people can understand what the channel is about even not clicking on it.</li>
<li>Pick if it's a public or private channel. Then, how your link would look like.</li>
<li>Add your first members. Pick a friend or skip the step.</li>
<li>Press "Create" and you're set!</li>
</ol>
<p>A few details on the process though.</p>
<h3 id="concise-channel-name"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#concise-channel-name"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Concise channel name</h3>
<p>It's short yet comprehensive. Why does it matter? We all saw channels with weird names. They are brands or did a difficult job at promotion though.
You want your channel to be found on the Telegram search, at least. Then, people see a list of search results and skim over the bunch of channels. Help them click on you. Of course, they can visit it and read the content, but it's not always the case.</p>
<p>The second thing why naming matters is that it's easier to find the channels that have relevant keywords in the name(or, in a channel description). If a channel is about programming, but its name is "K8 Fox Fish", there's no way people can find it. As for now, Telegram doesn't search inside channels posts. Maybe it'll change in the future.</p>
<h3 id="public-or-private-channel"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#public-or-private-channel"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Public or private channel</h3>
<p>As names suggest, public channels are opened to all Telegram users and to the search engines. For private channels, you should invite members manually.</p>
<p>Public channels have 2 main benefits. Anyone can find it and join. These people can share the content with their friends and they can join too. The 2nd important thing is that such channels appear in <code>t.me</code> domain, as well as the channel's posts. It means that some people can even find a public channel on Google. Oftentimes, if a public channel is on various Telegram catalogs, it's even simpler to google it because your channel will be on many domains, not only <code>t.me</code>.</p>
<h3 id="how-to-create-a-telegram-channel-on-android"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#how-to-create-a-telegram-channel-on-android"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>How to create a telegram channel on Android</h3>
<p>To create a channel on Android: open Telegram app, click on the blue icon in the bottom right, choose "New channel", select its name, link and a description.</p>
<h2 id="whats-next"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#whats-next"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>What's next</h2>
<h3 id="channel-promotion"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#channel-promotion"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Channel promotion</h3>
<p>You'll want to <a href="/blog/how-to-promote-telegram-channel-for-free">promote your channel</a>. For this, add it to all possible Telegram catalogs. Find relevant channels, contact them and place your post there and the other channel's post in your channel(cross-promotion).</p>
<p>There are other ways like placing ads and writing about your channel on the Interner but they're not necessarily be working for you.
Ads are great to test the audience's interest, but it's not a good way to gain followers. Why? The traffic is spiked, Today you got money and spend it on ads to get 30 new subscribers. Tomorrow they're gone. If you don't have a marketing budget(and even if you do), there are better ways to make your channel more recognizable to subscribe.</p>
<h3 id="writing-valuable-content"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#writing-valuable-content"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Writing valuable content</h3>
<p>Many forget about this because they spend time putting as many ads as possible to attract followers or some other not productive things.</p>
<p><img src="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1457369804613-52c61a468e7d?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&#x26;ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&#x26;auto=format&#x26;fit=crop&#x26;w=1170&#x26;q=80" alt="Telegram channel content" loading="lazy"></p>
<p>People won't subscribe if there's no benefit for them, right? If one makes a giveaway and asks to subscribe and like, it's worth it because the subscriber gets a benefit(if she does though). Another approach is to write good content, so people subscribe because they like to read it. Or, they like it and they love discussing it in the comments. Make a great community, give them value and see how do you grow.</p>
<h3 id="monitor-channel-statistics"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#monitor-channel-statistics"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Monitor channel statistics</h3>
<p>Telegram channels are like usual websites: they need to have analytics and be monitored to understand what(when) people like and what they don't. The default Telegram analytics is available on a channel that has 1000 subscribers. Otherwise, you may take a look at other solutions, they do a good job too.</p>
<p>Monitor your engagement rate, so you can understand how many people from the general amount of subscribers read the content. If it's low, say, 20%, it means only the 5th part of your channel is reading your publications. Well, sometimes it's not so bad, if a channel is big, you still get a lot of impressions. But the general idea is this: somehow many people become not interested in your content, or, their initial intent was wrong(they subscribed but they don't read it anymore, they're using Facebook).</p>

<p>There are multiple ways to tackle a Telegram channel promotion. Usually, people think that it's about finding relevant and not groups to spam links to their channels or groups. Some reasons why spamming doesn't work:
You steal people's attention and intrude on your offering. Who would like that?
Usually, you violate a group's rules.
It's highly ineffective. You publish a link, get banned shortly. Some people who saw the link don't care because your channel isn't relevant to them. Or, they came there to spam too.</p>
<p><img src="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1542586484-1ba19fe1ad53?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&#x26;ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&#x26;auto=format&#x26;fit=crop&#x26;w=1170&#x26;q=80" alt="how to promote telegram channel for free" loading="lazy"></p>
<h1 id="how-to-promote-a-telegram-channel-then"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#how-to-promote-a-telegram-channel-then"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>How to promote a Telegram channel then?</h1>
<p>If you don't have a channel yet, <a href="/blog/how-to-create-telegram-channel">create it on Telegram</a>. Promotion isn't about spamming, but growing your presence online and on other Telegram channels. Your channel's content should be great, of course, but we have issues with discoverability. Many people may find your channel good enough to subscribe but it's hard to even find it. There are multiple ways to search for channels.</p>
<h2 id="telegram-search"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#telegram-search"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Telegram search</h2>
<p>People go there and type what interests them. Make sure you have the right channel name, so it can be discovered through the native search. Does it have the necessary keywords that people would use? Use them in the description too.
When you're searching for something, you use the global search of Telegram and it's quite empty. Not helpful. For example, if I were to search for a channel about automobiles, Telegram would show me two channels that have my search phrase in the channel handle(e.g. @cars), one or a few bots. Will it help me to find the right channel? Probably not.
Even though, adjust your channel handle and description to be discoverable.</p>
<p><strong>Sumary</strong>: this method won't help you much if you have a lot of competitors.</p>
<h2 id="add-a-channel-to-telegram-catalogs"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#add-a-channel-to-telegram-catalogs"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Add a channel to Telegram catalogs</h2>
<p>Those are the websites where people add various Telegram channels. The sites filter them by category, so it simplifies browsing. I recommend you to add your channel there too. Google for "telegram catalogs" and add it to the top 5.
My usual statistics for new subscribers is the next: ~50% of people come from the search, ~50% come from the catalogs. You can see the analytics in your channel native stats provided by the messenger. It's placed at the "New followers by source" section. The top 2 sources for me are "URL" and "Search", where "URL" is an indicator of catalogs.
Sometimes I may get 90% of people to come from the catalogs. It depends on the channel exposure there. For example, you may get featured, or, people search for some keyword more often. It's hard to predict because the algorithm relies on external websites and their ranking on search engines.</p>
<p>Many catalogs get forgotten quickly and only the top ones will serve you for a long time.
You may buy ads in the catalogs to feature a channel. However, you'll get spike traffic. Also, people there search for different channels and only a small part of them would be interested in a channel you promote.</p>
<p><strong>Sumary</strong>: Telegram catalogs are a steady source of followers. For my channel, I get 15-200 new subscribers a day. The average is about 22 per day. It'll differ for your channel because of the topic.</p>
<p><img src="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1512428559087-560fa5ceab42?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&#x26;ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&#x26;auto=format&#x26;fit=crop&#x26;w=1170&#x26;q=80" alt="promote telegram channel" loading="lazy"></p>
<h2 id="telegram-channel-promotion-through-cross-promotion"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#telegram-channel-promotion-through-cross-promotion"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Telegram channel promotion through cross-promotion</h2>
<p>There are channels like yours, so you might get exposure there through <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-promotion">cross-promotion</a>. How it works:</p>
<ol>
<li>You find a similar to your channel. The relevancy matters because you and the other channel's owner need common audience interests. People subscribed to images of cartoon unicorns won't necessarily subscribe to your channel about investments.</li>
<li>You write to the channel's admin and ask if it's possible to place ads. In return, you'll post her ads on your channel.</li>
<li>Agree on terms. Make ad posts. Win!</li>
</ol>
<p>In such a way, you and the other channel will get new subscribers.</p>
<h2 id="ads-in-other-channels"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#ads-in-other-channels"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Ads in other channels</h2>
<p>You decided to promote your Telegram channel for free, I see. However, you might hear about putting <a href="https://promote.telegram.org/">ads</a> on other channels. It's almost the same as cross-promotion, but it's only you who order ads, the other channel's owner is only interested in money in return.
The con of such an approach is that it gives you spike traffic, but for money. You can't predict how many people will subscribe to your channel, even having all the statistics.</p>
<h2 id="summary"><a aria-hidden="true" tabindex="-1" href="#summary"><span class="icon icon-link"></span></a>Summary</h2>
<p>The most important thing in promoting your Telegram channel(for free or not) is to get more exposure. Hence, people can find your channel. It's difficult to do find something in the native Telegram search. It's also difficult to rely on the catalogs' attractiveness for people. However, the more constant traffic you get, the better.
Spike traffic is not so good because of its variability. Today you got 20 subscribers, and tomorrow you may get 0. Rely on the constant traffic sources such as Telegram catalogs. Or, do periodic cross-promotions with other channels' owners.</p>
<p>I want to cover Telegram channel exposure in more detail in the future. Currently, it's laughable to rely only on catalogs and ads. It reminds the pre-modern marketing situation: companies meant advertising by marketing and promoting anything. You got ads, you get people. It won't work in the long-term perspective.</p>