How to increase followers on instagram

23 Smart Ways to Get More Instagram Followers in 2022

Things that increase dopamine in the brain:

-Exercise
-Turmeric.
-Leafy greens.
-Getting more followers on Instagram.

But in all seriousness, growing your Instagram following can help you to raise brand awareness, build relationships, and get more customers to your business. So in this guide, I’m going to share with you 22 free ways (and one paid) to get more followers on Instagram—quality followers, that is.

Table of contents

The 23 ways to get more followers in this post are broken into the following sections:

How to get more followers on Instagram: the bio basics

If you want to get more traffic to your Instagram bio and more followers out of it, you need to treat it like a landing page and optimize it. Here’s how to do it.

1. Give people a reason to follow you

Instead of (or in addition to) just putting your credentials, slogan, or value proposition in your Instagram bio, give potential followers a clear picture of what they can expect if they follow you. For example:

2. Pick the right handle

First thing’s first, make sure your Instagram handle is as close to your business name and to your other social media handles as possible. This ensures your account will be easy to remember, find, and recognize.

3. Make sure it’s a business profile

An Instagram business profile gives you access to analytics that will show you who your followers are, what content they like best, and whether you’re gaining or losing them. If you haven’t made the switch, go to the hamburger in the top right of your bio, tap Settings, then tap Switch to Professional Account. Select your category, provide your business details, and you’ll be good to go.

4. Nix the boring bio link

This is prime Instagram real estate. Do you really want it to link to your homepage? Yawn. The best Instagram bios change their bio link up at least bi-weekly and send people to new or popular content, promo codes, landing pages, and more.

Better yet, you could use an app like Linktree to share multiple links to value-add destinations like website pages, blog posts, deals, and more.

An effective link tree can show your value and win over followers.

5. Focus on quality followers

There are a billion Instagram users (literally). But do you want disengaged onlookers who breathe no life into your account? Fickle followers that unfollow just as quickly? Didn’t think so. You want followers who:

If Instagram followers are candy, you’re not trying to break open a pinata and pounce. You’re looking to curate a box of fine chocolates and cultivate a community.

How to get more Instagram followers with your content

Now that your profile is optimized for fruitful and fabulous followership, it’s time to start attracting more people to it. Here’s how to use content and creativity to get more Instagram followers.

6. Make use of all the formats

One thing that distinguishes Instagram from other popular social media platforms is its different formats. These keep the user’s attention and allow you to show different aspects of your brand. So take advantage of:

The more facets of your business a person can get familiar with, the more likely they are to develop an affinity for and follow you. Not sure what to do with all those formats? You can get more ideas on what to post on Instagram here.

7. Publish great content—consistently

This is paramount to your entire social media marketing strategy—not just Instagram. The great content part goes without saying, but the consistency part often gets overlooked. One great post might win you a follow, but now you’re in the spotlight. They’re seeing your content regularly and if you can’t continue delivering what brought them in in the first place, you’ll get the unfollow. So, what makes great content on Instagram?

In Mailchimp’s account below, we see a beautiful mix of posts that cover it all: useful how-tos, thoughtful customer spotlights and a small business support campaign, an interactive post on personal development, and an entertaining video with DJ Khaled.

8. Focus on entertainment

The entertainment factor is increasingly important. Last summer, when Instagram revealed how its algorithm works, it stated it was shifting focus to “full screen, immersive, entertaining, mobile-first video” content. Entertaining content doesn’t have to be action-packed or hilarious. It just needs to be interesting. Creative. Original. Expressive. You can get tips on how to make captivating Instagram videos here.

9. Do your Instagram SEO

SEO isn’t just about getting more Google searchers to your website. Social media platforms are search engines too, and Instagram’s search feature now supports regular keyword searches—not just account or hashtag searches. This has made Instagram SEO even more important now so be sure to:

10. Cross-promote your account

One of the best ways to promote your Instagram account is to cross-promote. Put links to your social profiles in your website footer, email templates, and signatures. Print out your handle name and put it in a cute frame in your office. Tell your Facebook page visitors where they can find you on Insta. Cross-promote your branded hashtag, too—on your receipts, in print ads, and at relevant events.

Don’t just assume people will find your Instagram account or hashtag. Direct them to it.

11. Develop your own Instagram style

The beauty of design is that there are infinitely many ways to be unique. Choose a style that is distinctly yours so that your posts can be instantly recognizable in the newsfeed. Users follow accounts whose content they can experience, not just see. Oatly is a great example of this:

To develop your own style, make sure you have your overall brand developed. Your positioning, voice, brand colors, audience, and offerings will all play into your Instagram aesthetic.

12. Write good captions

The image may be the focal point of a post, but your Instagram caption can sometimes make or break its impact on your potential followers. What makes a good caption? Originality. What makes something original?

For example, National Geographic is fantastic at using storytelling alongside their Instagram photos to generate engagement and sharing. Whatever you choose, try to stick with that style so your followers stick with you.

There are endless opportunities for originality. Stay away from generic wallpaper captions and paint something that pops. Here are some lists to help you out:

13. Run Instagram giveaways

These are perhaps the quintessential Instagram follower magnet. First of all, who doesn’t like free stuff or award recognition? Knowing that you run these regularly is sure to get a follow. Second, entry into the contest itself can require following you or tagging a friend. Just make sure the prize is something that is appealing specifically to your ideal customers. Remember, you want to attract a quality following.

And would ya look at that. We’ve got just the post for you >> How to Use Instagram Giveaways to Grow Your Following

14. Get local

Your Instagram marketing strategy should seek to gain followers through content that resonates not just with your ideal customers, but also with your local geographic community. People are immediately drawn to things they’re familiar with and like to see parts of their identity represented online. Here are some ways to do it:

For even more local social media marketing ideas and tips, head to the LOCALiQ Social Media Marketing Lab. White coat optional.

How to get more followers on Instagram through hashtags

Hashtags on Instagram serve multiple purposes. They provide information, add humor, categorize posts, and create a web of content that can lead users anywhere. Here’s how to lead them to the follow button on your bio.

15. Use a mix of hashtag types

Hashtags on Instagram are like keywords on Google. They can be broad or long-tail, high or low-volume, location-based or universal, and can vary in intent. Allow me to show you:

The really specific hashtags are like long-tail keywords that have more intent and help you find the right people, but the broad ones can get you in front of more people in general. You need a mix of bo to grow your following on a platform as massive as Instagram.

16. But don’t take them too seriously

So the big lists of hashtags you see at the bottom of posts do serve a purpose, but should every one of your posts have that? Not if you want your followers to get sick of seeing them and think you’re desperate. Be selective with your hashtags, vary how many you use in each post, and also have fun with them. Some hashtags are purely aesthetic or added for humor or brand voice. Some have nothing to do with your brand but are just fun.

17. Have an intriguing or actionable branded hashtag

Speaking of having fun, come up with a follower-friendly branded hashtag. In other words, instead of just using your business name or a behind-the-scenes hashtag, come up with something your followers can use in their posts.

Take UPS’s Instagram account, with their brilliant #upsdogs hashtag. Anyone can contribute! More posts with your hashtag = more exposure = more followers.

How to get Instagram followers with other users

There are three types of Instagram users that can help you to get more followers: influencers, your customers and followers, and your competitors. Let’s explore.

18. Go all in on influencer marketing

We all know that getting mentioned by an influencer can win you a score of followers, but this doesn’t happen overnight. Influencer marketing is a careful strategy. You’ll want to:

19. Encourage user-generated content

As good as a business may be, its own promotional content will never be as powerful as that of its customers. Enter user-generated content—posts from other users that tag your handle and/or location or mention your business name in the captions or hashtags.

Whether a user sees UGC on your account or someone else’s your credibility gets a lift and your chances of gaining their following are that much higher. Here’s how to encourage more of it:

20. Analyze your competitors

Got a rival that you just can’t seem to catch up to? Do a little social media competitive analysis and find out what they post, how often, when, and in which formats. Follow them closely for a week so you can catch any nuanced strategies they employ. You just might get ideas on what, how, and the best time to post on Instagram to get more followers.

Tools to help you get more Instagram followers

So by now, you know that to get more followers on Instagram, you need to know your audience, engage with them, and create compelling content. The thing is, you’re probably managing more than one social media account for your business, and the more followers you get, the harder it can be to scale your strategy. Here are some free tools that can help you.

21. Social media management tools

It might feel like automation is the opposite of genuine engagement, but social media management tools are designed to help you streamline your personalized strategy. With them you can stay on top of conversations, post consistently through scheduling, monitor your competitors, and sometimes get deeper insights than what the native platform offers.

22. Design and photo editing tools

Instagram offers its own set of filters, stickers, stamps, and special effects so your visuals can look their best, but external design and editing tools can help you achieve the unique look you want. Plus, you can templatize things to ensure consistency and make more great content efficiently. My number one recommendation here is Canva, but there are other free tools out there like Afterlight and Facetune.

23. Instagram advertising

This is the only paid strategy of this post. Organic reach on Instagram has always been considered high. But don’t get too excited, we’re talking 9%. Meaning that your posts will only reach 9% of your full following.

Advertising, on the other hand, gives you the power to get in front of thousands of relevant users. And in addition to your ad’s CTA button, viewers can also view your bio right from your ad. Now, you shouldn’t advertise just to get more followers, but if the platform is right for you, it’s an added bonus.

How to get more followers on Instagram for free [recap]

The secret to getting more quality followers on Instagram that will help your business grow? Patience. It takes time, trial and error, and effort to find your niche and cultivate a community—but it is well worth it. To recap, here are the 23 best ways to get more Instagram followers:

Meet The Author

Kristen McCormick

Kristen is the Senior Managing Editor at WordStream, where she helps businesses to make sense of their online marketing and advertising. She specializes in SEO and copywriting and finds life to be exponentially more delightful on a bicycle.

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How to Get More Followers on Instagram: 12 Tactics for Instagram Growth

Summary

Read on to find out the 12 best tactics (with tools and examples) that could help you grow a bigger, more engaged audience for your business on Instagram.

You will learn

You spend hours planning and creating content for Instagram. For a brief moment after you hit “Share,” all is right with the world. You’re confident you published something great.

Then, radio silence. Or a few likes and comments from your handful of followers. But how do you get more followers on Instagram if not by publishing great content?

There’s no step-by-step guide for Instagram growth. But there are best practices that will help you reach a wider audience and win over new followers.

Here are 12 ways to get more followers on Instagram.

1. Optimize your bio

Make the most of those 150 characters. Your Instagram bio tells potential followers who you are, what you’re about, and what action you hope people will take after visiting your profile.

Your Instagram bio should include:

Your in-bio link is your only clickable link on Instagram, so use it wisely. Some businesses include a standard link to their website, while others change it regularly to reflect recent posts. But if you want to make it easier on yourself, take advantage of link-in-bio tools such as Start Page that allow you to turn a single link into a catalog of links.

CoolStays includes all the important aspects of a great Instagram bio.

Consider including a branded hashtag as well. For example, we encourage our fans to use #BufferLove when they talk about our products. Adding the branded hashtag to our bio tells people which hashtag to include to catch our attention. Plus, when anyone taps on the hashtag, they’ll see posts from fans who have used it.

At Buffer we include our #BufferLove hashtag in our Instagram bio.

2. Find your best time to post on Instagram

Notice how we didn’t say find thebest time to post on Instagram? The truth is, there is no universal answer for when to post on Instagram to reach the highest number of people. But there are ways to figure out the ideal times for your followers.

First, use Instagram Insights to figure out when your audience is online. Tap the “Insights” button from your Instagram business profile, scroll to “Your Audience,” then tap “See All.” From there, scroll to the bottom to find your audience’s most active times.

Instagram Insights will help you find your best time to post.

You should also consider when your content will be most relevant. For example, a step-by-step recipe video might perform better outside of work hours because people are more likely to be cooking. A coffee shop post, on the other hand, might do well around 2 p.m. when people go through an afternoon slump. Experiment with different posting times and track engagement.

If you’re looking for some extra guidance on when to post, Buffer’s Answers feature provides you with three posting time suggestions for maximizing your reach on Instagram.

Buffer’s Answers feature uses data from your previous posts and followers’ activity to calculate your best times to post.

3. Post consistently

A 2021 study of 14 industries shows that businesses share four Instagram posts per week, on average. But we recommend posting at least once a day. Brands that get into a regular flow with Instagram posts tend to see the best results. According to a Tailwind study, profiles that post daily gain Instagram followers faster than those that post less frequently.

With Instagram’s algorithmic timeline, consistency is a key element to getting your posts seen. If your posts are shared on a regular basis and picking up good engagement, Instagram’s algorithm will likely show your posts near the top of your followers’ feeds.

Of course, quality is always more important than quantity. Posting more often doesn’t necessarily translate to higher engagement rates. Focus on creating content that will resonate with your target audience—more on that in section 9: Engage with your audience.

Instagram scheduling tools allow you to post consistently without having to worry about posting directly from the app every day. Take a look at How to Schedule Instagram Posts to Save Time and Boost Engagement to discover our favorite Instagram scheduling tools (free and paid) along with scheduling tips.

4. Learn how the Instagram algorithm works

Many Instagram users initially panicked about the switch from a chronological feed to the ranked timeline. However, since the change, the average post is seen by 50% more followers than before. So, forget about learning how to beat the Instagram algorithm. Instead, focus on learning how to use the system to your advantage.

There are six factors that determine what shows up in each person’s timeline: interest, timeliness, relationship, frequency, following, and usage.

Here’s a quick rundown of what each of those factors refers to:

Instagram’s algorithm aims to surface the best content for each individual user. So, while six separate factors may seem like a lot to worry about, the best thing you can do is create high-quality content consistently.

We dig into each ranking factor in more detail in How the Instagram Algorithm Works in 2021: Everything You Need to Know. We also include guidance on how to create content that caters to each factor and share tips on how to use the Instagram algorithm to your advantage.

5. Experiment with different content types

Instagram is so much more than photos. Over the years, the app has introduced many ways to share content on the platform. Mixing it up with different content types is one of the best ways to gain more followers on Instagram because it gives you the chance to reach and connect with a wider range of people.

Remember: The algorithm looks at interest and strives to show people the content types that they interact with most often. So, if one person likes and comments on Instagram Reels more often than other post types, they’re likely to see more Reels in their Instagram feed. However, if another person interacts more frequently with carousel posts, they’ll see more of that content type in their timeline.

Each type of content has advantages. For instance, Instagram Reels have an edge because they’re the newest content type and Instagram always pushes new features. Since launching Instagram Reels in 2020, the app has moved the Reels button to the center position in the menu bar and made Reels appear larger than photo posts on the Explore page. Considering 200 million people check the Explore page every day, that additional visual real estate can make a big difference in how many people you reach.

Instagram TV (IGTV) videos also appear 4x larger than photos on the Explore page. And, since IGTV videos can be as long as 60 minutes, this type of content is ideal for long-form video.

Instagram Reels and IGTV take up more real estate on the Instagram Explore page.

Instagram Stories disappear after 24 hours, but they have their benefits as well. Fifty-seven percent of brands believe thatStories have been “somewhat effective” or “very effective”as a part of their social media strategy. Plus, if you have a verified account or at least 10,000 followers, you can add Instagram Swipe Up links to Stories to drive traffic to specific pages.

Meanwhile, carousel posts—a series of up to 10 images/videos in a single post—boast the highest engagement rates of all post types. Think of carousels as a mini-story or teaser to a longer-form piece of content, such as a blog. You can use text images, photos, video, or a mix of everything all in one thematic post.

DLC Anxiety uses a carousel post to explain how to reframe anxious thoughts.

Confused by all the arguments for different post types? People like what they like. So, while studies can tell you what the average engagement rate is for each content type or argue for one over the other, the best strategy is to use a variety. Mixing up your Instagram content allows you to reach people with different preferences, and that extended reach helps you boost your Instagram followers.

6. Find your brand voice and create unique content

People don’t follow your business on social media so they can see sales pitches. They follow your brand because they enjoy your personality and the content you create.

What works for one business might not suit your branding—even when you’re in similar industries. For example, Juggling Daisies Hobby Farm and Such and Such Farm both consider themselves to be unique farms. Juggling Daises is all about fun stories, cute photos, and wholesome content. Meanwhile, Such and Such Farm has a more rough-around-the-edges style that includes curse words and humor.

Ask yourself what you want your tone to be. Funny? Informative? Playful? Cynical? Your personality should also reflect what you’re passionate about. Such and Such Farm believes in sustainably grown produce, so many of their Instagram posts talk about their farming practices. What topics do you address with your Instagram content? Everything you share on your business account should show off your brand’s personality and beliefs.

Juggling Daisies shows off its unique personality in its bio and in Instagram posts.

Think of your business account as a person. Design a personality for the account and create branding guidelines so you can stay consistent. Branding guidelines should include notes on tone, style, and values along with your brand’s colors and fonts.

7. Write great captions

Nice photos catch people’s attention—great Instagram captions keep it. Captions give you a chance to provide more context or details about the photo or video you’re sharing. Plus, using keywords in captions can help you appear in search results on the app.

Instagram captions can be up to 2,200 characters. Of course, not every caption needs to read like a blog post. Play around with different lengths. Some photos pair nicely with a short, quippy caption with a couple of emojis, while others might benefit from something longer and more reflective.

The average length of Instagram captions is on the rise, but most brands still don’t go anywhere near that 2,200 character limit. In 2020, the average was projected to be 405 characters, up from 142 in 2016.

OnlineDrea uses both short- and long-form captions on Instagram.

So, when do you go long, and when do you keep it simple? There’s no hard-and-fast rule. Just like with content types, it’s best to mix it up. Take a look at these two posts from Andréa Jones of OnlineDrea. One post has a short caption, while the other specifically directs you to the caption for a longer explanation.

8. Research and use hashtags

We’ve explored hashtags a lot on the blog, but it seems that nowhere on social media are they quite as important as on Instagram. The right hashtags can expose your image to a large and targeted audience, and Instagram users don’t seem to get hashtag fatigue in the same way they might on other networks.

Start by finding hashtags that would appeal to your target audience. Free Instagram tools like Display Purposes and AutoHash help you find relevant hashtags for your Instagram posts. For instance, with Display Purposes, you simply type in a few words about your image, and it will recommend the top hashtags to use.

If you want to gain more Instagram followers, hashtags are essential. Using hashtags makes your content discoverable via search or filtering when people tap on the same hashtag from another post. People can even follow their favorite hashtags so that top content with that hashtag will show up in their Instagram timeline.

Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags per post, but don’t tack on extras just to hit 30. TrackMaven recommends nine hashtags for maximum engagement. Just make sure you don’t use the same nine hashtags over and over again. Instead, group your go-to hashtags by category so you can quickly add a few relevant hashtags to each post.

With Buffer Hashtag Manager, you can create and save groups of hashtags. Then, you can select from your pre-saved groups and add hashtags to your scheduled Instagram posts.

Hashtag Manager helps you build a library of hashtag groups so you can get more reach for every Instagram post.

9. Engage with your audience

Engagement is crucial for growth on Instagram. Many brands make the mistake of focusing on likes and comments without considering the people behind those metrics. If you really want to get more Instagram followers, you need to engage your fans in a conversation.

Keep in mind that just because someone sees your content, that doesn’t mean they currently follow you. If you have a chance to interact with a potential follower, you should take it. Every comment is an opportunity to gain a new follower (or keep a current one), so make sure you respond to each comment you receive. If your hands are already cramping at the thought of tapping away on your phone, don’t worry. With the Buffer Engage tool, you can reply to comments from your desktop.

But don’t just wait for your followers to start the conversation. Create engagement opportunities. Use Instagram stickers such as open-ended questions and polls in Instagram Stories. Ask questions in your photo captions. Encourage people to tag friends in the comments with prompts such as “Tag your BFF who you’d invite on this cruise!” or “Tag your wine-loving friend who you’d do this wine tasting with.”

Need more ideas? Take a look at our Instagram engagement tips to learn how to get more followers on Instagram by increasing engagement.

10. Collaborate with others

Another great way to gain Instagram followers is to collaborate with others through partnerships or influencer campaigns.

Our brand spotlight with Blume is a great example. Blume gets access to Buffer’s followers through the original Instagram Story and the accompanying Highlights. Meanwhile, Blume will share the spotlight with their fans, which brings their audience to Buffer. It’s a win-win.

Instagram Highlights spotlight featuring Janice Ayan of Blume

Influencer marketing is another way to grow your Instagram following. If you have the budget, you can pay content creators to promote your brand. But if you’re hoping to keep it simple (and low-budget), micro-influencers (1,000–10,000 followers) can be very impactful. In fact, content from micro-influencers has higher engagement rates than content from larger accounts. You can seek out micro-influencers to set up collaborations or simply re-share user-generated content (UGC).

Remember those branded hashtags we talked about in Section 1: Optimize your bio? One tap on your branded hashtag, and you’ll have an entire catalog of content to choose from.

When we first launched Buffer’s Instagram, we encouraged fans to use #BufferStories and #BufferCommunity. We used those hashtags to find and re-share user-generated content. Within one year, we increased our Instagram followers from 4,250 to 21,000.

We discovered Jon Woon through our branded hashtag and re-shared the content on our own account (with permission of the original creator).

Why is UGC so popular? «It relays authentic experiences about a brand’s products or services from previous customers, which boosts brand credibility,» says Ramon Berrios of Trend.

Collaborations are also a chance to show off your values and personality through association. The businesses and people you align with and support say a lot about your own brand. Partnerships can be especially powerful for local businesses, too. Consider partnering with your neighbors so you can reach a hyper-targeted audience.

11. Link to your Instagram from elsewhere

Make it easy for people to find your Instagram. No one should have to hunt through pages of your website to find your Instagram profile.

We use our website footer to link to Buffer’s social accounts.

Add your Instagram account link to:

12. Analyze your results

One way to figure out how to get more followers on Instagram is to look into what your current fans respond to. You can monitor several Instagram metrics directly in the app with Instagram Insights or through third-party analytics tools such as Buffer.

Don’t obsess over vanity metrics such as likes and comments. Instead, think about what the metrics tell you. For example, if you’re testing out a new hashtag, metrics such as new followers and reach will tell you more about the value of that hashtag than likes from your current followers will. However, if you’re experimenting with different posting times, impressions can give you an idea of when your content is most likely to be seen. Your end goal will determine which metrics matter the most.

Analyzing your data can help you to spot trends and understand what content resonates with your audience.

Watch for trends. Does a specific type of image get more impressions or engagement? Post more of those images and see how your followers respond. Do certain hashtags result in more likes from people who don’t follow you? Use those hashtags more often and keep an eye on new followers.

Read our Instagram Analytics guide to learn more about Instagram metrics and how to use them to fuel your marketing strategy.

How do you manage your Instagram marketing?

If you want steady Instagram growth, you have to give your target audience quality content on a regular basis. While piecemeal social media is fine for personal accounts, businesses need to be more strategic. All of the tactics we covered will help you gain more Instagram followers, but they’re not boxes you can check off once. Staying on top of your social media content strategy is crucial.

It takes time to plan and schedule posts. And managing engagement can be a challenge as well. With Buffer, you can manage every aspect of your Instagram marketing strategy, from scheduling through analytics, right in one platform. Get started for free.

7 Steps to Organically Increase Your Instagram Followers

Is it even possible to organically increase your Instagram followers anymore? While this platform is one of the best places to communicate your brand visually and connect with your audience, it’s no longer just a social network. Since the launch of Instagram Ads, Instagram TV, and Instagram Business Accounts, it has transformed into a playing field for influencers, marketers, and businesses to promote themselves.

Today, people use Instagram not only to connect with their friends but also to connect with their favorite brands and shop online. Studies have found that the majority of consumers use Instagram to search for a brand and 80 percent of them follow at least one brand on Instagram.

If you’re active on the platform, there are two ways to increase your Instagram followers: through paid and organic ways. If you’re just starting out your Instagram marketing journey and still not sure whether to spend your money here or not, you’re in the right place. In this article, we’ll go through the step-by-step process of gaining followers organically.

You don’t have to spend a penny if you follow this guide, but you do need patience and consistency because it does take time. However, with Instagram, slow and steady wins the race, allowing you to build an authentic and engaged audience that’s more likely to connect with your brand and convert. If you’re ready to organically increase your Instagram following, let’s dive in.

1. Create Engaging Content

Instagram users are engaged and love to share and comment on photos and videos that they think are good. A study found that on average, Instagram images get 23 percent more engagement than Facebook images.

In order to catch your audience’s attention on Instagram, the first rule is to create engaging content. The more engaging your content is, the more likely people will share it. Here are some tips on creating engaging content and boosting your engagement rate on Instagram:

2. Schedule Your Posts

After you’ve gathered fresh and engaging content, the next step is to schedule your posts for one week to one month—depending on how far out you like to plan. The key is posting at the right time. Hootsuite did a study on this using data from Unmetric and after analyzing the top 20 Instagram accounts from 11 different industries they found that the best times to post vary from one industry to the next.

For example, the best time for travel and tourism is on Friday between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. while the best time for media and entertainment are Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12 to 3 p.m. Read the full Hootsuite Report to find the best times for your industry.

3. Collect a List of Related Accounts Within Your Niche

Compile a list of all competitors and major accounts on Instagram within your niche. For example, if you’re in the food and beverage industry, you might compile a list of all major food bloggers and restaurants that speak to the same audience as you.

Start by getting to know these accounts to better understand what you should publish. As you compare the brands, ask yourself:

Now, use your competitors accounts to build your following too.

If you want to make money on Instagram as an influencer, this is one of the most important aspects of what you’ll do to to grow your audience. With a clear niche, you’re more likely to drive the engagement that companies want to see to choose you as their influencer.

Don’t forget about your blog. Do a content competitor analysis with this free competitor analysis guide and template.

4. Follow Your Competitors’ Followers

After you have your list of the accounts, the next step is to follow their followers one by one. Those people are your target market because they already follow your competitors, which means that they’re interested in your industry and likely what you’re sharing as well.

In the current Instagram algorithm, you can only follow 50 to 100 people every day. If you follow more than 100 people per day, there’s a chance your account can get suspended by Instagram. Again, take it slow and steady.

5. Like and Leave Comments on Competitors’ Followers Posts

Dedicate yourself to connecting with a high volume of followers and engage authentically as you do, leaving comments when posts stand out to you. This shows that you’re paying attention to what they’re posting and also ensures that they notice you. Ideally, many of these followers will like you what you’re sharing and follow you back—making it a simple way to organically increase your Instagram followers.

6. Join an Engagement Group

An Instagram Engagement Group is a community of Instagram users who help each other in gaining more engagement and followers. Most of these groups are found on Telegram; HopperHQ explains how they work:

“Instagram Engagement groups are basically group conversations within Instagram and also on other platforms (e.g. there are several on Telegram app). They are called engagement groups because everybody participating in these groups are willing to like and/or comment on other members’ posts in exchange for their own posts getting liked and/or commented.”

If one member of the group uploads a new post on Instagram, the whole group will help by liking, sharing, and leaving comments on the post. Most groups also have rules that you have to follow to participate to make sure everyone gets the most out of each post.

The bigger the group is, the faster you’ll grow your followers. What’s even better is a group that can like and comment immediately after the new post is uploaded. This makes it easier to get featured on the Instagram Explore Page, giving making it easier to organically increase your Instagram followers.

You can find free engagement groups at:

You can also get engagement, but more importantly, organic followers, by following accounts that host Instagram Follow threads, like LarsenMedia. The idea is simple: you introduce yourself in the comments and then everyone follows one another for a follow back. All the accounts are real and authentic, making this an easy way to increase followers, even up to 60 to 100 new followers in one day.

How to Increase Followers on Instagram: Share Custom links

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Instagram has crossed 1 billion users, coming in second only to its parent company Facebook. With such a huge user base, it is an ideal platform for online marketing. Every company is desperately trying to increase followers on Instagram and they are absolutely right in doing so.

All of us want to drive more convertible traffic to our websites. With the highest rate of growth of any social channel, Instagram is a goldmine for marketers across the globe. It has a secret weapon which when unleashed could directly impact online sales. That weapon is the ability to create swipeable Instagram stories links.

It is the perfect way to drive traffic to your money website/ blog. You can also track and measure the performance of the link by using link shortener such as Replug.io. This will help you create branded short trackable links. Once you have successfully created the link, the chain icon will be highlighted to indicate that the link has been created successfully.

Catch Twenty-Two: Increase Followers on Instagram

The kicker is that not everybody has access to create links on their Instagram stories. In May 2017, however, Instagram began quietly expanding this feature to more marketers on the platform. Clickable stories links are now also available to business profiles (not personal profiles) that have over 10,000 followers on Instagram.

There are no geographic restrictions to clickable stories links. We can hope Instagram will continue to roll this feature out to even more users. We can hope or we can take action to increase our followers to 10k and take advantage of this amazing marketing opportunity. And the great thing about this activity is that it does not cost a dime. Also as a by-product, you will have a hefty and loyal following who will be actually willing on the links you share.

This article unravels the mystery of how to increase followers on Instagram.

There are quite a few ways through which you can be one of the top Instagram accounts in your niche. Only then you will be able to dominate sales and conversions and interact with your audience to grow your business even further. Here are some tried and tested methods.

Choose The Right Instagram Content

The first and foremost thing you need to decide is what type of content you want to share with your audience. This is a crucial step and may take some thought and effort. The content has to be aligned with the nature of your business at the same time interesting or humorous enough that your audience yearns for more.

Your followers will associate and recognize your brand through the stories you share on Instagram. There are some images that go along with most industries e.g. funny memes, inspirational quotes, exotic food, scenic images are a good starting point. Choosing an image is a key factor in Instagram posts as it heavily relies on visual content.

According to research, 90 per cent of all the information that comes to the brain is visual. It literally takes a couple of seconds for a person to evaluate if your visual content is interesting to them or not. Hence your posts should be intriguing enough for them to click on them and maybe explore your channel further. Hence you need to stand out.

Once you have established your Instagram content theme, it is important that you stick to it. The key here is that visitors must be able to establish a correlation between your post. If your posts are poles apart, people with not be able to make a connection with your theme. People expect consistency and it is the primary reason why they will revisit your page for a specific kind of news or information.

As explained earlier, what you need to do is find the right direction for your account and religiously follow it. A good start is researching some trending Hashtags and shortlist the one which suits you the best.

Find competitors who use the same hashtags as you do, or even find users who follow these hashtags and see what other kinds of content they like.

Creating Share-Worthy Content

The reason for a post to go viral is that it is so interesting it urges the reader to share it with others. You need to understand the interest of your followers and construct content accordingly. There are some factors that raise the potential of content to go viral. Let’s explore them.

Relevancy

Content Relevancy to popularity is like bait to fish. People automatically follow and share content that is relevant to their interests. If you can establish a connection with your followers through your content, it is bound to be shared. Try and make your content as relatable to your audience as possible. However, there will be people who dislike it. Try and keep that number to a minimum.

Informational Content

While creating content keep in mind the goal of your post. It has to add informational value to your reader’s mind. If the mind detects enough value in the piece, the user will share it with others, because in their mind others don’t have this knowledge yet.

This is a great way to not only educate your audience but also establish authority as a source of viable information. You need to be really careful in your research as to not share unverifiable or wrong information.

There is no metric to judge the effectiveness and the utility of the content you’re sharing except for the audience’s response towards it. If it doesn’t help the audience, it might not get much attention.

Trending News

The world is at a point where reporting news first is more important than reporting true news. Unfortunately, this attitude has seeped into the content sharing norms of the general public as well. Unlike the corporate news agencies, who have massive budgets to cover up mistakes, SME businesses and individuals do not have that liberty.

Nowadays there are tools available that provide you with trending news from around the globe. Tools such as ContentStudio allow you to apply smart filters on trending content from all regions. Shortlist the trending articles which resonate with your audience and share the story before it gets viral. he audience often likes to consume content that’s related to a trending topic to find out the opinions or what others have to say about it. This helps you climb the ranks in authentic trending news breaking.

Sharing life stories as well as using images with real people in them are known to have better engagement statistics. The human brain relates better to pictures with faces in them. Also, images that don’t include faces, but using a point-of-view shot where the camera acts as the eyes of the audience can help them make them feel like they’re a part of the image

User-Generated Content

Posting user-generated content is a great way to establish social proof, authenticity, and brand trust. Not only that it is a great way to build an interactive vibrant community. At the end of the day, your community is your social advocate which will fight your case online. The stronger the online community, the better are the chances of your posts going viral.

Encourage your followers to share their content on your page. Make sure to give them an incentive for doing this, though, like running an Instagram competition or giveaway. Ladbible with over 7.5 million, pay anybody who sends share-worthy videos 10 quid. Part of the reason why they share such awesome content.

Uplifting your Community

In a race to increase followers on Instagram and become popular, we tend to view our audience as just a number. And this number needs to be ever-increasing. This thought or obsession is with nearly all kinds of social accounts and businesses.

It is of prime importance that you respect and connect with your audience. You may have 10k followers and only be getting 200-400 odd likes, even fewer comments. One thing that you should keep in mind is the Pareto principle. According to this 80% of your results comes from 20% of your audience. While more of a rule of thumb than a hard scientific fact, the Pareto principle should make you realize that it’s not about having a large follower count as much as it is about having a large core of engaged followers.

One should rather have an active small group than a huger unresponsive audience. The aim of your posts should be to increase reach, exposure, and engagement. These should be your primary goals if you want to be an influencer in a true sense.

This is why it is essential that you treat your online community like gold. Inspire your follower in order to get beyond the generic reply “nice pic” or “great post”. Show them that there is a real person behind the screen who wants to communicate.

Brands, as they grow in size forget the social aspect of social media marketing. The communication has to be bilateral. Posts that have catchy calls to action asking people to comment tend to receive better engagement. This way you can show your audience that you’re not some faceless corporation, but a person or people who actually care about others’ opinions.

Post Religiously

When managing an Instagram account, it is very important that you post to a schedule. This is a sign of a healthy account. Once people start seeing your brand on a regular basis in their feed, they start recognizing. However, never posts a bunch of posts together as people will think it is spam.

You should be consistent with your posts. If your audience keeps on waiting and never sees a post you’re not going to find many people willing to follow you on. In order to optimally post on Instagram use ContentStudio to preschedule your content for the whole monthforInstagra
Also, it provides you with analytics such as the best time to post to maximize exposure.

Using Hashtags to get more followers

Hashtags are a great way for your content to be visible to people who do not necessarily follow your page. They are convenient to people in a way that they help people navigate easily to topics they’re interested in. You can add hashtags in the caption or comments of your post. If you add hashtags to a post that’s set to public, the post will be visible on the corresponding hashtag page.

An easy way to increase followers on Instagram is to post content that is trending at the moment. Applying this to Instagram, you need to find the most trending hashtags in your niche. This will help you get more eyes. The first step in this journey is to do proper keywords research for your business.

Finding Popular Hashtags

You can use ContentStudio’s trending section to determine the most popular topics relevant to your business.

The other top tip is to copy the hashtags that the top influencers in your niche are using. Use this as a way to not only generate more exposure and gain more Instagram followers but as a way to get on the radars of other influencers.

Gather around 30 relevant which include both high and low performing hashtags. Use around 10 hashtags that have over a million posts, another 10 hashtags that only have 10k to 50k posts, with another 10 anywhere in between. This way you make sure your posts get as much exposure as possible.

Find out the hashtag of the day and try to compose a post around it. This will help you get in touch with even a larger audience.

Also, try multiple sets of hashtags and test them out. Regularly rotate them so that your posts reach a variety of people relevant to your niche.

Using the Hashtag

Once you have compiled the appropriate hashtags, its now time to put them to good use. it is not advised to use the hashtag in the description of the photo itself, rather use them in the comment section. This will hide your list of keywords after others have added comments.

Also, it will help your posts free of clutter.

Using Custom Hashtags

Try creating a branded hashtag. This way it is much easier for people to find you. Original hashtags help generates conversations, improve brand reputation, and build credibility. You can also use a hashtag in your bio so that your account gets more exposure. This is a very easy way to make sure that your account shows up in hashtag searches as well.

Check out his custom hashtag from Digiorno pizza, which they created for the super bowl.

Networking

It is a great business hack for success not only in real life but in social media as well. It is essential to reach out to people, businessmen, and influencers in your particular industry and ask for a shoutout.

The thing to remember is to keep karma in mind. If you do good for someone, it will come back tenfold. So don’t approach joining and teaming up with other accounts with an attitude of, “What’s in it for me?” Rather, think of it as just helping your fellow person out, and you never know, good things may happen to you down the road.

It’s now time to get familiar with the concept of S4S, which stands for the shoutout for a shoutout. You need to get comfortable with the idea of sharing other people’s content, in order to increase the number of your followers. And the concept is simple, You ask another influencer in your niche if they would like to share your content, and in return, you will share theirs.

This is a great way of exposing your audience to their content and vice versa. The upside to this process is that if you carefully choose who you do S4S with, you can land on a goldmine audience that loved your content.

This type of recognition is unique to Instagram and invaluable for businesses that are starting out. But remember that you should always look to be providing a mutual exchange of value.

A great hack in increasing your Instagram followers via shoutouts is joining a shoutout group. Such groups are an informal group of Instagrammers who have gathered in order to support each other by doing S4S. There are quite a few types of S4S groups. Some free, some paid some dedicated, and some ad-hoc. Choose the one which best fits in your requirements and ask them to share a screenshot of your page.

Types of Shoutouts

While starting out, it might be intimidating asking for shoutouts from pages that have a much larger following than yours. But the benefits outweigh the risk by a mile. Also, you have nothing to lose. The worst you can receive is a rejection, who cares.

However, if you connect with people who share your interest and are willing to put out a good word for you, you must know what type of message you want them to propagate on your behalf.

Collaborating with Influencers

This is by far the best technique to increase your followers on Instagram. Influencers are the people who are proficient enough to engage with a diverse audience, empower them, and influence the perception of others. It has the highest potential of creating the maximum ROI out of any other technique we have discussed.

First of all, create a list of 20-30 major influencers that you want to engage and collaborate with. Do proper research in shortlisting these people who will help to take your Instagram account to the next level. For this, you need to find the top hashtags in your niche are and see if you can identify any particular account that consistently appears in the “top” or “trending” posts. Reach out to them and request them to give your brand a shoutout.

Paying Influencers

If all else fails, there is always the option to pay an influencer to give you a shoutout. But before you do, make sure that you can get a guarantee on ROI. A key pointer is to look for an influencer with an engaged audience, not necessarily a large number of Instagram followers. Remember that 1-2% of engagement is a minimum for working with someone. The higher, the better.

Honorable Mentions

Apart from the strategies discussed above, here are a few bonus tips to help you increase followers on Instagram.

Conclusion

You should select the general theme and the type of content you want to share with your followers. try to frequently post engaging content but don’t fall in the spam region. Do the necessary research to find out appropriate hashtags in order to join the viral stream.

It is absolutely necessary to outreach and network with your peers. This helps spread your workaround.

If you have some pointer in mind as to how to increase followers on Instagram, Do share with us in the comment section.

Wasiq Naeem

Wasiq Naeem is a content and digital marketing veteran who is passionate about his writing. Extensive research and producing high-quality content is just another day at the office for him.

How to Increase Instagram Followers Organically 2022 [Guide]

Affiliate disclosure: In full transparency – some of the links on our website are affiliate links, if you use them to make a purchase we will earn a commission at no additional cost for you (none whatsoever!).

Getting more Instagram followers is a topic that’s on the mind of many brands, and for good reason — having more Instagram followers is highly beneficial for your business. The more followers you have, the more chances you’ll get to promote your products and make sales.

Table of Contents

Tips to Increase Instagram Followers Organically In 2022

Use Organic Instagram Growth Tools

At best, these methods won’t help you get sales because the majority of your followers will be bots. At worst, these strategies can mark your account as spammy, and can lead to your profile getting shadow-banned from Instagram so nobody sees your posts — which is something you obviously need to avoid!

When it comes to how to increase Instagram followers, using growth tools can be a big help, but only if you use the right kind of tools. Not all growth tools are alike; if a platform promises you a specific number of followers in a specific time, you should run the other way. Instead, look for a growth service that emphasizes sustained growth over a long period. That’s the kind of growth that brings you real followers who will stick around.

Kicksta is a great example of a powerful and effective Instagram growth tool to help you get real Instagram followers. When you register with Kicksta, you provide your target audience (complementary brands, your competitors, or any profiles similar to yours whose followers you want to target). Then Kicksta uses your account to like photos of those target accounts, so those people will check out your account (thus gaining more exposure), and if they’re interested in your content will follow you. Kicksta works for agencies, businesses, and influencers in any industry, and can help you see organic growth in your Instagram account.

Work with Micro-Influencers

Another great method when it comes to how to increase Instagram followers is working with micro-influencers. Influencer marketing is a fast-growing industry where brands partner with an influencer — a person who has a large social media following, and ideally, is in a specific niche — to promote their products. Marketers have discovered that the ROI from influencer marketing is either comparable to or even better than the ROI from other channels. No matter what type of business you run, influencer marketing can be a great way to increase your Instagram followers.

Often, companies see success from working with micro-influencers instead of macro-influencers. Macro-influencers commonly have up to a million followers, while micro-influencers have less than 10k Instagram followers. A good example of a macro-influencer is Kim Kardashian West, who currently has 157 million followers. Ledina Esserman of @ledsgetfit is a fitness blogger with around 3,500 followers and could be considered a micro-influencer.

Micro-influencers have a lot of benefits for your business. Often they receive far more engagement than big accounts (as much as seven times more ). They’re more affordable if you’re planning to compensate your micro-influencer with money. And in most cases, a micro-influencer’s followers are made up of people who are truly interested in whatever that influencer does — so you can feel sure that you’re marketing your product to a group of people who will be truly interested in it too.

There are several different types of influencer campaigns you can run. Let’s break down a few of the most common ones.

Instagram Takeover

An Instagram Story takeover is a fun way to increase your Instagram followers. Here’s how it works: You find an influencer and arrange for them to do a takeover on your account. They’ll mention the takeover to their followers, inviting everyone to come to follow along on your profile. Then, the influencer will post on your Instagram Stories for a day — answering questions, or showing what a day in their life is like. Ideally, the influencer’s followers will come to your profile for the takeover and stay for your content.

For example, the Netflix show Spinning Out recently coordinated a takeover with Willow Shields, one of the main actresses featured in the show. Willow did a Q&A using @spinningoutnetflix’s account, posting on her own Instagram Story to get her followers to check it out.

Multi-Influencer Campaigns

Working with multiple influencers simultaneously can help increase your brand awareness and grow your followers. Maybe you have a new product launching soon — if so, this might be the time to identify several micro-influencers, reach out to them, and have each one post content on the day of your product launch. The influx of posts could drive a lot of traffic back to your Instagram account and your website.

Giveaways

Giveaways are a popular type of influencer marketing campaign, and for good reason — they’re guaranteed to bring you more followers! When an influencer gives away one of your products, they can structure the giveaway to ensure that anyone who enters must first follow the influencer and your brand. Lifestyle blogger Carlyle Thornton recently gave away a planner from Lala Letter, asking her followers to follow the brand before entering.

Make Data-Driven Decisions Using Analytics

Tracking analytics is essential for any brand trying to grow their Instagram account — if you don’t keep up with your analytics and let them inform future decisions, you’re simply wasting your time.

Your Instagram analytics are distinct from your Instagram metrics. Metrics are individual statistics, but the term “analytics” refers to the bigger picture — the patterns you see within those statistics. You can use your analytics data to get better results on Instagram.

Types of Data Available

What metrics and analytics are you looking for and where can you find them? Instagram offers an Insights tab where you can view metrics from your Instagram business profile — basic information like how many users your account reached in a certain time, or what time of day your audience is active. For a truly helpful look at your analytics, however, it’s best to use a third-party tool. Most analytics tools will track at least the following metrics, if not more:

Sprout Social is a good example of an Instagram analytics tool. Sprout Social lets you analyze data from both your profile and your posts; it also tracks how your hashtags are performing, and collects information on audience engagement. Best of all, you can use the platform with multiple Instagram accounts, making it ideal for an agency.

Social media management platform Hootsuite also tracks your Instagram analytics. This tool gives you information on your posts and followers via real-time reports that your team can peruse.

How to Use Your Analytics

Now it’s time to take the information gleaned from your analytics and use it to improve your IG account. Here’s how to be smart with the analytics we discussed above:

Quick Links:

Final Words: Increase Your Instagram Followers In 2022

Instagram growth services, micro-influencers, and analytics are all powerful tools you can use to grow your Instagram account. Utilize these strategies to see your number of Instagram followers begin to steadily increase — and follow them up by posting high-quality content to see your sales increase, too.

We hope this post suits your purpose well. If you liked it, share it on various social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Andy Thompson

Andy Thompson has been a freelance writer for a long while. She is a senior SEO and content marketing analyst at Digiexe, a digital marketing marketing agency specializing in content and data-driven SEO. She has more than seven years of experience in digital marketing & affiliate marketing too. She likes sharing her knowledge in a wide range of domains ranging from ecommerce, startups, social media marketing, make money online, affiliate marketing to human capital management, and much more. She has been writing for several authoritative SEO, Make Money Online & digital marketing blogs like : ImageStation, Newsmartwave, & Experthoot

1 thought on “How to Increase Instagram Followers Organically 2022 [Guide]”

Unique information over here.
You are completely right, Hashtags are an incredible method to expand the visibility of your posts. Numerous individuals just put a lot of hashtags. Be that as it may, you need to research and discover which hashtags turn out best for your speciality and will expand commitment on your posts.