Instagram has 800 million unique monthly users, making it a powerful marketing platform. Having a solid presence on the platform provides an additional channel that can be used to interact with your brand’s target audience. Once you have established an Instagram presence, your follower numbers need to grow. Just as it’s human nature to trust a busy, popular restaurant or store over one with few customers, social media users gravitate to accounts with large followings. Fortunately, there are practical, proven steps you can take to increase your Instagram followers.
1. Begin with an Optimized Bio
When you create your Instagram account, you include biographical information that provides a lot of data about who you are and your goals. Optimize this bio to provide visitors with valuable information. You should include:
- What you do
- Touches that reveal your personality
- A clear call to action such as contact us, shop, etc.
- A link, which can be to your website or other destination
Even with well-thought-out content and a compelling bio, it can take time to attract the number of followers required to kick-start a marketing campaign. However, Instagram growth services offer a quick and easy way to build a following.
2. Choose the Right Content
The content you post to your account identifies you to followers, so selecting the material best suited to your goals is vital. Content must be well-suited to Instagram and match your audience’s wants and needs.
According to Foundr, you want the content to be somewhat unique, even on such a competition-filled platform. Instagram is such a visual medium that there is a great deal of opportunity for creativity, making it easier to develop custom content. But always ensure content is high-quality.
Suppose you are unsure of the theme or what type of content you want to provide. Experiment with various types of content, alternating them until you identify one that works best for your intended audience. Explore trending hashtags and determine which fit your brand.
3. Determine the Best Posting Times
No Instagram peak time ideal for posting exists, so each marketer must decide what works best for them. Fortunately, there are methods of determining the most effective time to reach your ideal audience.
Per Buffer, you can use Instagram Insights to help determine when your target audience is online. On the feature, choose “Your audience” and then select “See All” to get an idea of when audience members are most active.
Test various times and content and track responses to determine the level of engagement. Also, think about when content will be helpful to followers. For example, a post discussing coffee might be welcome in the afternoon, when people often need a pick-me-up.
4. Consistency Is Crucial
Studies show that a steady flow of Instagram posts provides optimal results. On average, companies post to Instagram accounts four times a week; however, daily posts are more effective. A Tailwind Study shows that brands posting daily acquire followers more quickly than profiles with fewer posts.
Because of Instagram’s algorithm, posts that are shared regularly and pick up good engagement are more likely to appear at the top of followers’ feeds. Naturally, quantity is not enough-posts must also be high quality and resonate with the target audience.
Use scheduling tools to ensure consistency and save time. There are a variety of free and paid tools available to automate posting.
5. Get Good at Captions
Instagram’s layout makes it the ideal platform to engage an audience using exciting photos. Images grab people’s attention. To maximize their impact, learn to write fascinating captions.
A well-crafted caption provides details about an image and gives viewers context. You can use up to 2,200 characters; sometimes, a long, meditative description is perfect. However, shorter captions can also be compelling. Consider a brief quip and relevant emojis.
As of 2020, the average caption was 405 characters. There’s no rule regarding ideal captions, so you might want to mix and match different images and types of captions.
6. Think About Influencers
Consider partnering with one or more influencers. Influencers are social media personalities who can sway other people’s decisions. While some celebrity influencers have hundreds of thousands of followers, micro-influencers with 1,000 to 10,000 followers also can make an impressive impact.
Collaborating with an influencer who has a target audience like yours allows you to demonstrate your personality and values via association. Audiences notice who you collaborate with since it says a great deal about your brand.
Instagram becomes a dynamic marketing tool once you have large numbers of followers. There are various ways to increase the number of followers, beginning with creating a compelling bio and determining the right content for your goals. It also helps to post consistently at the best times, write clear captions for photos, and partner with influencers.
