Erin
Are you new to Instagram? Or maybe you’re just trying to learn how to get more followers on Instagram? Whether you’re an Insta amateur or a pro looking for more followers, growing your follower count on Instagram can seem like a difficult feat. In reality, getting more Instagram followers does not have to be a burden – it’s all about posting the right content and strategizing your Instagram account to appeal to potential new followers. Follow these steps to get your first 1000 Instagram followers and continue to grow your online presence.
Consider Your Target Audience
Before you start posting content, consider who you want your audience to be. If you’re starting a food account, you’ll be sharing content for fellow foodies and anyone interested in finding cool restaurants in your area. If you’re running an account for your real estate business, your posts should be about real estate, and target either those looking for homes, real estate advice, etc. Your content should reflect the audience you are hoping to engage with.
Who is your ideal follower? What is the purpose of this Instagram account? These are questions that should guide your choices as you create and curate your Instagram. Cater your posts towards the interests of those ideal followers to attract your targeted audience.
Create Engaging Content
The most important factor affecting your following on Instagram is your content. You should aim to post engaging, quality content. Think about it: no one wants to follow an account that posts bad pictures. Ideally, your content should also be original. The better your content, the more likely it is that someone will want to follow you.
Creating engaging, original content takes thought and effort. If you are posting your own photos, consider learning more about photography to step your game up and learn how to take better pictures. Every aspect of your content should be thoughtfully considered: the photo or video itself, caption, hashtags, location, and any other details you may include in your post. Looking back to your target audience, always consider what they want out of a post.
Maintain a Consistent Aesthetic
Instagram is all about appearance and branding, so try to find and maintain an aesthetic that works for you. Do your pictures look good together? The visual appeal of your Instagram page affects whether or not people will follow you.
Try to use the same filters on all of your photos so that there is a clear pattern and flow from one post to the next on your grid. Many popular accounts try to stick to the same color palette to keep a tight aesthetic, or at least stick to a similar theme, be it bold, bright accents, monochrome, or pastels. Following a color or filter theme will keep your Instagram looking clean and aesthetically pleasing to the eye.
Aesthetic doesn’t only pertain to color themes, however. The content and tone of your posts should maintain a clear brand image. If you generally post funny, sarcastic, or pithy captions, stick to that tone. Consistency will help you establish your brand voice and hopefully attract followers and likes.
Take Notes From Popular Instagram Accounts
Is there another account on Instagram successfully doing what you aspire to do with your account? Check out competitors, especially successful ones, to see what has worked for them. You can get ideas from similar accounts that will help you find more followers. Some things you can look for include:
- How often do they post?
- When do they post?
- What kind of content do they share?
- Do they use hashtags? Location tags? Which ones?
- Who do they follow? Who follows them?
- Do they post Instagram stories?
There are plenty of other elements you can explore to get an idea of what has brought them success. One important factor from the list above is seeing who follows them – these could be your followers, since they seem to be interested in content similar to your own. Follow those accounts; it’s likely that they may follow you back.
Optimize Your Profile To Gain Instagram Followers
Aside from your actual posts, you should also optimize your profile to attract more followers. There are a few elements of your profile to consider that may be affecting your ability to get more followers.
Go public: If your Instagram is set to private, your posts will not appear on public hashtag or location pages and you will not be easily discoverable. To grow your Instagram followers, set your profile to public. This is also the only way to become verified on Instagram, which may or may not be your goal, but would certainly help in terms of followers.
Choose the best name: If you’re running a personal account, your name should be your actual name, so that you can be found easily and so that no one is confused. If you run a branded Instagram, make sure your brand name is clear. Try to keep your name consistent across different platforms; your name on Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media should match your Instagram name so that followers can find you across channels.
Pick a clear profile picture: Your profile picture should further clarify who you are and what your account represents. Again, if it’s a personal account, use a picture of your face so that followers know who you are. If your brand has a logo, use that. It’s important to have some kind of profile picture that makes your account easily identifiable.
Create a concise bio: Your bio is probably the first thing someone will read when they reach your profile, so make it clear who you are and what your page is all about. If you have a website, you can put the link here. You can also include hashtags in your bio, so if you have a branded hashtag or want to include a hashtag that best represents your profile, this can help let users know more about you or your brand.
Share a few posts: Before you start following people or trying to attract followers, your page will need some content. No one wants to follow someone with zero posts – your account will look fake and spammy. Try to have a few posts up for some authenticity before you try to get more followers.
Follow People
Especially if you’re starting from scratch, the best way to get Instagram followers is to follow others and hope that they follow you back. You can start with your friends first for guaranteed follows back (hopefully), and then follow anyone who seems to fit your target audience. Not everyone will follow you back, but you can choose to unfollow them later if necessary. Following others will help you slowly grow a following of your own.
Use Hashtags To Get Followers on Instagram
Adding hashtags to your posts help them reach a larger audience online. Hashtags group posts based on the tags, essentially creating topic pages on Instagram. By adding smart, relevant hashtags to your posts, you can increase visibility on your posts, leading to likes, comments, and followers. You can create a unique, branded hashtag to group all of your posts and further establish your brand, like the #ThisIsBliss hashtag used below, or you can use popular hashtags.
Anyone can create a hashtag, so there are abundant options. To help find the best hashtags for your account and learn the best practices for hashtagging, check out our guide to Instagram hashtags.
Promote Across Social Media Platforms
Share your Instagram posts across other social media platforms to direct more traffic towards your account. If you have a website or a blog, embed your Instagram posts or link to your profile. Make sure your name is consistent across platforms so that your friends on Facebook, Twitter, etc. can find you on Instagram and follow you there as well. The more ways users can find your Instagram account, the more likely you’ll get more followers.
Engage With Your Instagram Followers
Once you have a small following, engage with your followers and use their feedback to improve your Instagram and get more followers. Include a call to action on posts (e.g. “comment what you want my next post to be about!”) or use other features on Instagram, like Instagram stories to create polls or ask questions to your followers. You can also try to encourage others to share your posts or use your brand hashtag to further expand your following. Engaging with your followers will keep them interested in your content and maintain the followers you already have.
Use Location Tags
If you run a local business or operate in a specific geographic area, use location hashtags and tag your location on your posts to cater to your local audience. Using location can help you find more relevant followers, especially if you are a business or brand looking for customers in your area. If you want to create a specific location for your business, learn how to make a location on Instagram.
Sign Up With Social Buddy and Automate
To organically grow Instagram followers, try using an Instagram growth service like Social Buddy. Social Buddy drives real, targeted users to your page, helping you increase your followers and find followers who will actually engage with your content. Learn how to get real followers, likes, and comments through Social Buddy.
