The Complete Guide To Instagram Growth & Gain Followers

There are no definitive “growth tricks” that will help you grow your Instagram followers and audience, but there are still many things you can do to build your Instagram growth strategy. Here are 6 steps you can take to achieve organic growth on Instagram and gain followers, in the order we recommend.

Before we get into the details, if you’re just starting to use Instagram for your business or as a YouTuber, the first step is to tighten the controls and rules for your Instagram presence. Therefore, the first tactics cover the basics and are especially relevant for new founders or companies.

Even if you’re an experienced Instagrammer, it’s worth making sure the most important boxes are checked to continue. Don’t worry: this guide also contains plenty of tips for intermediate and advanced creatives.

Let’s face them all.

1. Optimize your Instagram account

Before you think about how to get followers, you should first think about setting up your Instagram business profile.

Ask yourself: does your profile seem like “the right person”? » First think about the following:

• Your Instagram bio (including the brand tagline, slogan, and/or hashtag)
• Your profile photo
• Your biological connection (and where it leads)

These details determine the identity of your brand on Instagram. More importantly, they influence the findability of your account. Creating a follower-friendly account means:

• Use a username that is easy to search. Stick to your brand name or the name closest to your existing social contacts. If your name is too long, shorten it to something your audience will recognize (for example, Cold Stone Creamery’s account is @coldstone).
• The professionalism of your profile photo. The ideal solution would be a logo of the right size. Any text on your profile photo must be readable on your smartphone screen.

2. Get featured on Buzzfeed to grow your Instagram following

To increase your followers on Instagram, you need to find a way to reach a large audience. No one integrates Instagram posts into their content like Buzzfeed does. A Buzzfeed employee wrote an article about how she developed her brand as an Instagram influencer. She currently has almost 10,400 followers, but the article she wrote on the platform might have helped her.

So if you want to try Buzzfeed, head over to the community section where anyone can post their content on their platform. Of course, you should follow their guidelines to gain more Instagram views and build trust.

Is Buzzfeed not right for your niche? Cold. You can also use a tool called HARO, which will send you emails three times a day with requests from journalists looking for content and quotes from experts for their articles.

Most HARO journalists allow links to websites and social media. So you can kill two birds with one stone by including a link to your store and your Instagram account.

3. Add keywords to your Instagram username and name

The algorithm will prioritize search results that contain keywords that include your name and username.

• Your username is your Instagram account (@your profile name): keep your name the same as your business name and/or match your profile username on other social channels so it can be immediately identified.
• Your name is the name of your company (or other company) – add relevant keywords here to improve your visibility.

For example, Ursa Major uses the word “skincare” in its Instagram name to make the company easier to find when someone searches for skincare brands and solutions.

Adding the right keyword is also a way to immediately recognize who you are and what you sell to potential customers, as it will be the first thing someone sees after entering your profile.

4. Have a consistent content calendar

Momentum account on Instagram. In other words, you probably won’t get Instagram followers if you post randomly. By creating content and providing value, you grow your audience. If you do this consistently, you can keep it up. Make sure no cobwebs form on your Instagram account.

That’s why it’s so important to maintain a regular publishing schedule. If you want to know when and how much to post, you don’t have to stick to a set number. Most brands post every day or almost every day. This also follows from our research into publication frequency.

For comparison, below is a list of the best times to post on Instagram. The “optimal” engagement occurs mid-morning, late morning, and early afternoon during the week.

If you’re worried that your posts aren’t getting enough attention, we understand. Think about how you can use features like Stories to draw more attention to your content if it hasn’t already been viewed for the first time.

5. Ask customers to share their photos to gain Instagram followers

If you’re just starting, it will be much easier to gain Instagram followers with customer photos in your feed. For what? It helps increase social proof. If you’ve never had a client before, reach out to influencers in your niche with fewer than 5,000 followers. I know this number seems low, but influencers with few Instagram followers want to monetize their accounts and are willing to take photos with your products for a much lower price.

You can also offer them an affiliate deal where they get a commission for every sale made through the customer’s referral link. If you’ve already made some sales, reach out to your customers and offer them a gift or cash reward for taking high-quality photos of the product they purchased.

Offering incentives may not be your long-term strategy, but in the short term when you’re trying to grow your brand, it can help you grow.

As more customers see customer photos on your Instagram, they will automatically tag you in posts when they receive their products. In short, responding to your customers’ posts, reposting their content, and following them will likely get them to follow you.

6. Cross-promote your Instagram account on other channels

Directing leads from other channels to your Instagram profile is a simple strategy that can help you get discovered and grow your audience quickly.

For example, in Buffer we add a link to our Instagram in the footer of our website.

No one should manually search for you on Instagram if they already follow you elsewhere. Add a link to your Instagram account to:

• The product packaging
• Your blogs (if applicable)
• Marketing and transactional emails
• The footer and/or sidebar of your website
• Posts from team members on social media
• Your electronic signature and that of your employees
• Bio on other social media platforms such as TikTok and YouTube
• Networking events and webinars (use the Instagram QR code on your profile for personal events)

Your Instagram link doesn’t have to be big and flashy. In most places, a small Instagram icon or QR code works.