RE: I hate controversy.... but I love clever solutions!
I totally understand what you mean and I'm usually that way too! (honestly) hahahahahaha so I get you!
But - I think I COULD do it without bots. I think we all could! It would take more time, but... it's of course possible.
It's the same thing I did when I published one of my books. I did it without marketing because I wanted to see how far I would grow organically. In the end, I realized that marketing myself was not a skill that I excelled at. hahahahahaha and in the future - I will pay a marketing team to do what they do best LOL
I think part of that lesson is ringing in my head here... do I want to spend more time (than I might have) on attempting 100% organic? I initially thought yes. Now... for many reasons, I'm considering no. I don't really care about trending. I use the #teamgood tag from @battleaxe anyway :) I think that is a much more valuable tag than trending right now.
and I don't think your way is silly at all. I admire your determination! And now I'm cheering for you to do it!
Go Go @robertandrew hehehehehe