What is interesting about the "fake it till you make it" approach is you can see when accounts have purchased followers, likes, views, and subscribers. The proof is typically in the comment section. When someone buys followers, but then has videos or pictures with no comments, likes, or shares, it is easy to tell they were purchased.
I have been looking into this a lot lately! It is so tempting when you are struggling to get your content off the ground. To be completely honest, I decided to test out one recently. I thought before I invest thousands, I need to start small so I went to smm world sign up (https://www.smm-world.com/) to see what their offerings were. The jury is still out as I just started, but I will keep you posted. If it seems too good to be true, it usually is, so temper your expectations!
It's interesting how the lifespan of social media trends seems to be getting shorter and shorter. What worked last year might be completely ineffective this year, so you constantly have to be adapting and learning new strategies.