Instagram is such a great way of getting the attention of your potential customers. In this post I reveal 5 tips to grow your followers on Instagram. As every post must have an image, it’s a very visual social media platform, so choosing a showstopper image will help stop people scrolling on by.
Saying that, engaging content is essential – this is where the value lies! If you want to grow on Instagram, your content must hit the spot. So let’s get going, here are my 5 tips which will attract followers on Instagram who are itching to see more of your valuable posts.
Why Instagram?
Routinely posting on Instagram will help you to promote your brand, tell people about your products or services, and highlight your values.
Did you know that the platform has over a billion active users every month! In amongst that lot, there’s bound to be people looking for someone just like you.
If your ideal customers are aged 35 and under, this is the social media platform they are most likely hanging out on.
Like I’ve said many times before the more you know about your ideal customers the better. Research really pays off.
Instagram growth Tip 1.
Use influencers to increase your Instagram followers.
Influencers are the people and the businesses that have a big following. When you know your customers, you’ll know who they’re likely to follow, therefore choose influencers to follow where their followers are full of your ideal customers.
Follow them to keep an eye on what they are posting and gain inspiration from them. But to really get on the radar of your potential customers, join in with the conversations within the influencers’ account by leaving comments, and liking other people’s comments. When you do this your name will pop up on their phone and the likelihood is that their curiosity will get the better of them and they’ll check to see who you are. If they like you – and they will if you’ve got a knockout bio – they’ll want to follow you too.
To make sure you don’t miss an opportunity to engage with your potential customers, identify your top 3 or 4 influencers and turn on the post-notification feature to see all future posts. Any more than 4 and you’ll soon be overwhelmed keeping on top of all the engagement.
And don’t forget to check that they are worth following. Some influencers have huge followers just because of their reputation but they’re not active. You’ll achieve the most success from influencers who are active and have active followers.
Instagram growth tip 2.
Use the Instagram tools to grow Instagram followers.
Don’t just post. Instagram will reward your profile with great reach when you use their vast array of tools available to you. There’s so much you can do; you can post a video, stage a live video, create a story, make a 30 second reel, share up to a 60 min video on IGTV and more.
For example the beauty of doing reels is that a reel is always showcased for each hashtag. When you search hashtags there is always a reel in the left hand corner. If you choose a niche hashtag which your ideal customer may use, your reel may feature on the left-hand side of their phone’s screen until someone else uses that hashtag in a reel. If it’s a really niche hashtag it may stay there for many months!
Instagram is going to introduce more tools – so watch this space. Coming soon is ‘guides’ for locations. As soon as a new tool launches, make sure to be the first to try them out!
Instagram growth tip 3.
Participate in popular conversation to increase Instagram followers.
Think about who you want to sell to and what types of conversation they like to have on Instagram. For example, if they will be on the lookout for marketing tips, you should use the hashtag #marketingtips in your posts. This will be the place you can showcase your knowledge and expertise and encourage others to follow you by simply adding value to their day.
Follow the hashtags that your customers are likely to follow and get stuck in with commenting and liking. The more active you are, the more times you’ll pop up on people’s radar and the more people will want to follow you.
Instagram growth tip 4.
Think about your own content.
Out of all the tips, this is one of the key Instagram tips for business. You MUST know your ‘why’ and ‘how’ for every post. And you MUST know why your customers are using Instagram – what is it they are looking for?
What is the purpose of every post? Is it to increase your brand awareness, is it to build connections, it is to nurture relationships, is it to highlight your product or service, is it to solve a problem, is it to entertain, is it to provide a useful tip? The possibilities are limitless.
Practicing this approach will stop you from randomly posting any old content that has no purpose.
Now, think about how you are going to tap into your customers’ interest. How are they going to feel when they see your post? And finally, how will the customer get in touch with you?
Never forget, that content on social media is a great way to build trust and your potential followers will want to learn about you – the person behind the brand. Tell your followers what you get up to behind the scenes and tell them about your team members.
If you’re struggling to gain traction with your current content strategy, revise it. Mix it up a lot and check your analytics to see what is working and what is not. Focus on the positives and strive to continually improve on your content and provide your potential customers with what they want.
Want to learn how to grow Instagram followers easily? Simply check out your competitors and see what’s working for them. Take inspiration from these posts and put your own unique spin on it! Let them do some of the research for you.
Instagram Growth Tip 5.
Use hashtags.
You can use up to 30 hashtags on every post – I suggest you take advantage of this and identify 30 that work for you.
Step away from hashtags that are used by the masses. These are ones like #WednesdayWisdom, #ThursdayThoughts and #FollowFriday. It’s true that they are popular – but millions of people use them, meaning that any posts you create will drown in the noise and not get seen. Plus, they won’t be specific enough for your customer. Put your customers’ hat on and think about the type of hashtags they will be searching for.
Do your research! If you use a hashtag that has been banned (temporarily or permanent) you run the risk of your account being banned too. Spammers look for hashtags that get searched for a lot to trick users into seeing their posts. For example, people abused #DogsOfInstagram resulting in many users reporting offensive posts. The hashtag was subsequently banned.
Let’s look at how you can check your hashtags. I’m using the example of #BeautyBlogger which has been banned for over a year now.
When you first search this hashtag, all appears well ……
What you need to do is scroll down …
Can you see, underneath the images, right at the bottom, it says that the hashtag has been suspended? It’s not obvious, but now you know!
Further reading
If you’d like to know more about the world of hashtags, here’s a blog I wrote a while ago ‘Hashtags on Instagram to boost your business’
What’s coming up: Instagram workshop (for even more Instagram tips 2021!)
My Instagram online workshop starts on 3 May 2022. Over four days (just an hour every day plus a spot of homework!) you’ll learn everything you need to know to grow your Instagram following, how to create a keyword and hashtag strategy, what content to use, how to optimise your settings, how to search for influencers, all Instagram tips for beginners, which tools you should be using and so much more! Everything you need to know to set your Instagram account up for business success.
For more details, click on the link button below
Bye for now,
Becs
