THE 6 MOST EFFECTIVE WAYS TO INCREASE YOUR FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM!
Gaining new followers on Instagram doesn’t occur overnight, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. There’s no ‘secret’ to insta success, but by setting achievable and effective goals with the following steps, you can steadily increase your stream of new followers much quicker than you may think!
- Post consistently (and at the right times)
This might not sound like great advice, but the positive effects of consistent posting is underrated and not talked about enough. When you post regularly, your content is picked up by the Instagram algorithm and with the right strategy it is boosted to a favorable audience. So start out by making a content calendar ensuring you have something to post daily.
Whether you decide to publish daily or weekly, stick to it for at least a month. After that analyze your insights and see if this content strategy is giving you the results you need. If it’s not, change it. Maybe you’re not posting at the right time or maybe you need to increase or decrease the posting frequency. Whatever it is, identifying the gaps in your posting strategy is vital for growth. Strong and consistent content creates better brand visibility for your potential followers.
- Show the same engagement you would like on your content
So much of obtaining more Instagram followers relies on your activity on the platform. Some also call it ‘cross-pollination’. In other words, you can’t just passively post and look for traction from the algorithm. You need to engage with more followers and follow accounts with mutual interests. This strategy helps form a community of supporters who engage on each other’s posts and the increased engagement helps boost to more potential followers.
Strategic tagging and sharing in stories is something we see frequently with influencers. You don’t always have to create content, you can repost other people’s content and tag them giving them the original credits for the post. This incites engagement. Ask other influencers in the same niche if they would be willing to collaborate with you and tag you in their posts too.
- Craft more compelling captions
Even though Instagram is more of a visual platform, captions can’t be ignored. Most captions are quite generic and with time have the tenancy to become monotonous and boring. People might like the post but won’t comment on it because you didn’t lead them on in the caption.
Start introducing some creativity into your Instagram captions. For instance consider the following caption style which results in replies:
- Question-based posts
- Recommendation requests
- Personal stories
- Tag-a-friend posts
- Photo-sharing posts
From questions to funny stories, using captions creatively is what will make your posts successfu in terms of post activity. Another pro-tip, use tools to change the font in your captions. You can easily find font changers on Google and make your captions stand out.
- Optimize your Instagram bio for new followers
Your Instagram bio is basically your first introduction to your followers. If your bio doesn’t reflect your brand accurately, you’re going to lose potential followers. Be precise in your description.
Your Instagram bio should include:
- A clear description of what you do
- Touches of your personality
- A call to action (shop, read more, contact us, etc.)
- A link to an external platform (website)
- Insight Analysis
Instagram analytics in the ‘Instagram Insights’ section can tell you a lot of information about your posts. For instance, it shows post reach, content interactions, total followers and engagement. You can use this information and decide where your strategy might be lacking. For instance, you might find that you’re not posting at the right time. In this case, check the time of peak engagement and schedule your posts just before that time so that it is visible to your followers for engagement.
There are various tools we can use to help with data analysis such as Hootsuite, Bit.ly, Hubspot and Keyhole. Choose a a platform that works for you.
- Ask for help!
People who are inexperienced with social media can have a tough time creating an effective strategy for content they are passionate about. It’s okay to ask for help. All you need to do is reach out to an expert.
If you’re struggling with gaining followers, post engagement or content creation, shoot us an email and we’ll help you create a posting strategy that works for you!
