These days, Instagram is so much more than just an app on which you share photos and videos with friends and family. It’s a valuable marketing tool, a place to shop, and a place where influencers make gobs of money. If you want to gain more real followers for your Instagram account, we’ve got 15 ways to get more Instagram followers this year! Whether you want to get more followers for your brand or become Instagram famous (we don’t judge), these tips can help.
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Why You Need More Instagram Followers
Perhaps in the past, Instagram wasn’t the focus of your marketing strategy. However, now, there are nearly one billion active monthly users on Instagram. It’s more popular than Twitter or Pinterest. Plus, people engage with brands more on Instagram than on other social media platforms. No matter how many Instagram followers you have, these tips are useful for expanding your reach on the platform.
15 Ways to Get More Instagram Followers
You can use a combination of these tips to get more Instagram followers!
Create a Branded Hashtag
Every brand should have its own hashtag. A specialty hashtag allows you to create a collection of all of your content in one place. When potential follower sees your hashtag, they can click it to see all of your posts. You can also create separate hashtags for individual Instagram marketing campaigns. These types of hashtags might sound less promotional when they don’t include your company’s name. Your followers can also utilize your brand hashtag in order to get your attention!
Cross-Promote Your Hashtag
So, you’ve created a hashtag for your company. But how will your audience know to use it when they share content about your business? Put that hashtag on everything. Not just in your Instagram profile but take it offline, too. Print it on your receipts, include it in your print ads, put it all over your website, and even put it on the signage in your physical location. You can even direct people to use your hashtag in radio and TV ads. (Otherwise known as traditional media.)
Use Relevant Hashtags
In addition to a branded hashtag, find other relevant industry-specific hashtags to use with your posts. Consider which hashtags your target audience might be browsing. The more specific you are with your hashtags, the more you can target your ideal followers. It will also decrease the number of competitors you will face for the same follows. Relevant hashtags make your Instagram account easier to find and follow.
Never Be Boring
One of the worst mistakes you can make on Instagram is to be boring and generic, especially in your captions. Go beyond the simple, one-word hashtags and find more complicated, fun, and specific ones. Use Instagram to show off your brand’s personality! Be funny, ironic, or even outrageous. Companies that try more exciting things on Instagram typically reap the rewards.
Use Event-Related Hashtags
If there are any local events, annual conventions, seminars, or workshops that are taking place in your industry or area, take advantage of those hashtags! Or, get even more interesting with it. Take a pic of your company watching the Super Bowl together and capitalize on those trending hashtags. Utilizing these event-related hashtags, at minimum, helps build brand awareness for your business.
Avoid Certain Hashtags
This may sound counter-intuitive, but when you are trying to gain followers, there are some hashtags to avoid. If you are a brand, you want to gain an engaged audience that might eventually become customers. Avoid the hashtags that can get you a lot of followers but not the kind you want. For example, don’t use #follow, #followme, #followback, #pleasefollow, and #follow4follow. Not only do these hashtags attract the wrong kind of followers, but they can make your account look desperate.
Try Influencer Marketing
Who are your favorite influencers on Instagram? Do any of them embody the same qualities as your brand? Or do any of your top customers have many Insta followers? Instagram influencer marketing campaigns aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. So, you might as well take advantage.
Participate in Popular Conversations
Speaking of trending hashtags, while you should utilize your regular tried-and-true industry-related hashtags on your posts, you can also jump in on trending and timely hashtags, too. If there is a big debate going on in your industry, jump in! There are also plenty of regularly trending hashtags you can try, like #tbt, #instagood, #nofilter, and more. Check out Instagram’s trending hashtags and give them a try!
Change Up Your Link in Bio
You get one clickable link on your Instagram page, and that’s in your bio. Linking to your website’s homepage in your Instagram bio is an outdated tactic. Rather, change it up on a regular basis! Try adding a link to your latest and greatest content instead. Or, create a specific landing page that your Instagram followers will love. Keeping your biography dynamic gives users a reason to check out your profile on a regular basis and shows that you update your page all the time.
Write Descriptive Captions
Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words. But you can’t just forego the words entirely when it comes to your Instagram captions. Take a look at National Geographic’s Instagram page, for instance. The magazine writes exemplary captions to accompany its photos. And guess what? NatGeo is thriving on social media and has more than 166 million followers. This strategy might not work for every brand, but the idea is to do what will work for yours. What will set your brand apart? Even if it is different, try it!
Remove Unwanted Tagged Photos From Your Profile
When it comes to your Instagram profile, you have control. Social media marketing is all about taking control of your brand online. If you only want potential followers to see the best content about you or your brand on Instagram, go ahead and untag any undesirable content. You can’t remove it entirely from the platform, but you can untag yourself. Here’s how. First, choose “Edit Tags.” Then, select the photos you wish to remove. Then, choose “Hide from Profile.” You might need to hit confirm. All done!
And if you want greater control over your Instagram profile, you can set up approval for tags before photos show on your profile. Instagram has a setting that ensures tagged photos won’t appear on your profile unless you approve them first. Simply go to “Options,” select “Photos of You,” and then “Add Manually.” Done! We recommend that all companies and brands take this step now if they haven’t already.
Utilize Location Settings
Instagram has a “Places” tab that lets you see what’s happening in your area. When you post on Instagram, make sure to tag your posts with your location. And don’t forget to interact with other people and businesses in your area! Leave comments and engage with your community.
Develop Your Own Style
If you are trying to get more Instagram followers, the worst thing you can do is blend in with the crowd. You need to stand out! Choose a style and stick with it in order to create a recognizable and cohesive Instagram account.
Don’t Forget Your Call to Action
A well-written call to action can make a difference when it comes to getting more Instagram followers. If you want more people to follow your account, say so in your caption! Maybe you want to encourage your current followers to turn on post notifications for your account. Whatever your desired action is, make sure you state it in a convincing way.
Consult the Experts at SEO Design Chicago
Our final tip for a way to get more Instagram followers in 2021? Consult the social media experts at SEO Design Chicago. We specialize in creating content for social media and increasing our clients’ engagement rates. Our team can build your business its own customized social media marketing strategy, including posting to Instagram and Instagram stories as many times a day as you want. Contact us today!
FAQs:
- How do I get more Instagram followers?
- How do I delete tagged photos from my Instagram profile?
- Which Instagram hashtags should I avoid?
- Do I need more Instagram followers?
- How many people use Instagram?
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