Instagram is an incredible platform to share your work and connect with people. It’s also the fastest-growing social media network in history, with over a billion users. But growing your Instagram followers can be difficult if you’re not sure where to start or what strategies to use. How do you know which ones are right for you?
Grow Your Instagram Following
Use Hashtags To Get Discovered
Hashtags are a great way to get discovered on Instagram. When you add hashtags to your post, it gives your post the chance to be seen by more people who are interested in that topic.
The best way to use hashtags on Instagram is by using relevant hashtags related to your post, popular and relevant hashtags within your niche or industry, and top-performing trending hashtags that may be relevant but not necessarily directly related to what you want to promote.
Engage Your Followers
Respond to comments. Engaging your followers is a great way to show them you care about the feedback they have for you and that you value their input.
Ask questions. Asking questions will help get people talking about themselves, which opens up avenues for a conversation between the two of you!
Ask for feedback on what works and what doesn’t, and in general, just get people involved by tagging others in posts so they feel like part of the action too!
Let Your Feedback Loop Grow
It’s easy to think that you’re the only person who cares about your platform, but it may surprise you that thousands of people want to hear from you. Your followers are there for a reason, and each one of them can offer valuable insight into what you’re doing right and where you could improve.
So go ahead; ask questions! Ask how much they like your content so far or what they’d like to see more of in the future.
Be Creative With Your Content
When you’re trying to grow your Instagram following, it’s important to be creative with your content. Here are some ways that you can do that:
Use filters and stickers. The built-in tools on Instagram are great for making your photos look unique, so use them as often as possible!
Use different angles and perspectives. Don’t just stick with one kind of shot—try different things and see what works best for you!
Use your creativity to make your content stand out from the crowd. While countless other accounts post similar images in the same style (and even sometimes using similar filters), it’s all about being yourself and doing what comes naturally to you!
Try Using Multiple Images In A Post
- Use a variety of images to tell a story.
- Use images that are relevant to the post.
- Use different sizes and formats of the same image to give them more impact.
- Use images with a variety of colors that match your brand’s aesthetic.
- Use photos with different backgrounds, like using a patterned backdrop or setting up the shot in front of natural elements like trees, waterfalls, etc., so it looks clean and professional!
Don’t Overschedule Your Posts
“Overscheduling” is posting more than once every two hours or more than three times a day. You might think that the more you post, the better — but if people see your account as spammy, it hurts your overall engagement and could even make them unfollow you!
It’s also important to not overschedule when it comes to scheduling posts for the long-term (for example, don’t schedule 10 posts a month in advance). While this may seem like a lot of planning ahead, keep in mind that Instagram stories only last 24 hours before they disappear forever. If you don’t post anything within those 24 hours after posting on Instagram Story, then there won’t be anything on your followers’ feeds when they open up their apps again!
Create Relationships With Micro-Influencers In Your Niche
Micro-influencers are people who have a small, but highly engaged following. They aren’t as famous as celebrities, but they are much more likely to respond to you and help generate leads or sales for your business.
These people can also help you grow your brand by providing valuable content on their own social media channels that will attract new followers, driving organic growth for your Instagram profile.
Track The Competition And Learn From Them
To successfully grow your Instagram following, you need to know who your competition is. What are they doing that’s working? What are they doing that isn’t working? How can you improve upon these strategies and make them work for you?
Find out who your competitors are by searching their names in the Instagram search bar and looking at their accounts. Once you’ve found someone similar to yourself, take note of all of the elements in their profile:
- Their bio (what it says, how long it is)
- The photos they post (how many do they post per day, week or month)
- Their hashtags (which ones do they use most often)
Once you have this information, ask yourself if there’s anything that could be improved upon or changed about their profile to appeal more to potential followers.
Use Paid Advertising To Jumpstart Growth, But Don’t Rely On It Forever
Paid ads are not a long-term strategy for growing your Instagram following, but they can help you get started.
If you’re just starting out with Instagram advertising and aren’t sure how much to spend on your first campaign, we recommend setting aside between $5 and $10 per day. This will give you 15-20 days of daily reach for about 50 new followers per day, which is great if you’re trying to build up a community of engaged followers who will follow along with your brand’s story as it develops over time.
Paid ads also serve as an excellent way of determining what content resonates best with your target audience—critical information when it comes time to create more organic posts!
Use Geotagging To Get More Visibility In Places Other Than Your Home City
If you are using Instagram for business and have a store or blog, geotagging is a great way to get more visibility in other places than just your home city.
For example, if you have an online store and want people to visit it from outside of the location where it’s based, geotagging helps because users can see where your posts were made.
This will make them curious about what kind of products/services you offer, and if they are interested enough, they might visit your page.
Use effective strategies to grow Instagram followers without being desperate or spammy.
Conclusion
And there you have it: 10 effective strategies for growing your Instagram following. We hope this post has helped you gain some insight into what works and what doesn’t when it comes to social media marketing—and that you can put these tips into practice in your own life. Remember, if all else fails, it’s about the quality of your content and the relationships you build with people who are interested in what you’re sharing with them!
Learn more about how the Kurv Agency can help your business harness the power of social media here.
