Instagram is a wonderful platform to share about your favorite topics, help build your business, or to draw attention to your blog. The larger a following you have, the more likely your post will be seen by a large amount of people. Best of all, if you become very popular, you can turn your social media accounts into a business and become a social influencer.
None of these things can happen unless you have at least 1,000 followers, however, and many more is better. You also want to make sure these people are authentic, and not bots or fake followers who won’t engage with your posts.
In order to build a following of real fans who can’t wait to see your next post, here are a few suggestions to get you started.
Post Frequently
The more often you post, the more opportunities you have for engagement. This means likes, shares and yes, follows. One social media company, Tailwind, even did a study on this. They found that the more often you posted (a minimum of once a day), the more followers you got. Instagrammers who only posted once a week grew by about 14%, while those who posted every day or more grew by 56%.
Use Hashtags
Hashtags are how many people find posts related to their interests. It’s also how you can gain the attention of new people who don’t yet follow you. It’s well worth researching what hashtags are popular and also relate to your posts, so more people can find you.
Use appropriate hashtags every time you post, so more people will have the ability to see and fall in love with your work.
Engage Your Fans
People like it when you engage with them. You can do this by replying to their comments, visiting their feed, and leaving likes and replies to their posts. This may encourage more people to follow you, since they can see that you are engaged with your followers, or perhaps learned more about you from the comment itself.
Cross Post
Chances are, you have other social media, or a blog. Many of your followers on your other accounts are also on Instagram, and you can quickly get new followers by letting them know your Instagram account exists. This also works in reverse. A study performed by Buzzsumo found that pictures posted to Facebook from Instagram are more popular than those posted to Facebook alone.
If you have a great picture or post from your other social media, let your Instagram followers know about it too. You can share the photo or a short video, and provide links in your bio.
If your goal is to grow a huge following on Instagram, you can do so by staying engaged with your readers, posting consistently, and making it easier for new people to find your Instagram account. You can quickly build a large and engaged following that is interested in what you have to say, and are also willing to share it.