Social media is a powerful platform for businesses to connect with their target audience, build brand awareness, and drive sales. In the same instance, it can be an overwhelming space filled with ever changing algorithms and paradoxical information.
In the midst of it all, there is one question that still drives many… “How do I gain more followers?”.
While there are many other metrics we feel that you should prioritise alongside followers (think: engagement), we recognise the importance of growing your audience in order to grow your business.
Gaining followers on social media is a combination of strategic thinking, creativity, understanding your audience and patience. While there is no singular guaranteed formula for viral growth, we’ve got some sure tips that will help you along your way.
#1 Define Your Target Audience
#2 Craft Captivating Content
#3 Stay Consistent
#4 Utilise SEO
#5 Engage with communities in your niche
#6 Implement Influencer Marketing
#7 Cross-pollinate on Multiple Platforms
#8 Contemplate Paid Advertising
#9 Monitor, Reevaluate and Refine.
Let’s get into it.
#1 Define Your Target Audience
Before deep diving into growth strategies, it is crucial to clearly define your target audience. Understand their demographics, cravings, and online behaviours. This knowledge will enable you to architect content pillars that will outline a strategy that resonates with your audience and attract the right followers.
#2 Craft Captivating Content
Content is king in the realm of social media. Create high-quality, original content that adds value to your audience's lives on-and-offline. Share stunning visuals, enlightening stories, entertaining videos, and thought-provoking infographics. Your content should be shareable, relevant, and align with your brand identity and tone.
#3 Stay Consistent
Consistency is key and persistence is paramount. Maintain a consistent and cohesive content plan so that viewers will instantly be able to recognise and have access to your brand's offerings. Consistency helps you stay visible and ensures that your audience knows when and what to expect from you. Use social media management tools to schedule posts in advance, ensuring a steady flow of engaging content.
#4 Utilise SEO
Instagram SEO is essential for improving the discoverability, reach, and engagement of your content on the platform. By utilising relevant keywords, hashtags, and optimised descriptions in your copy, you can attract a targeted audience, enhance the user experience, establish brand authority, and gain a competitive edge.
#5 Engage with communities in your niche
BE SOCIAL. Engage with your audience by responding to comments, direct messages, and mentions. Initiate conversations, ask questions, and encourage your followers to share their thoughts. By actively participating in discussions, you build a community around your brand and increase follower loyalty. Instagram also recognises how much you are engaging, affecting your chances of being featured in the Explore tab.
#6 Implement Influencer Marketing
It's the hard truth that we cannot escape: Influencer marketing is only just getting started! Roughly 61% of consumers trust the product recommendations they get from influencers versus only 38% that trust branded social media content. Leverage the influence of content creators to expand your reach and tap into their audiences. Identify influencers within your niche and start collaborating! Caution: Stay clear of scripts and produce fun, transparent and authentic content.
#7 Cross-pollinate on Multiple Platforms
Posting your content solely on Instagram is simply not enough. You need to expand your strategy if you want to increase Instagram followers. Promote your social media accounts across different platforms to capture a wider audience. Add social media links to your website, email signature, blog posts, and other digital channels. Encourage your website visitors, blog readers, and email subscribers to follow you on social media for exclusive content and updates.
#8 Contemplate Paid Advertising
Paid advertising on Instagram is a supreme power tool. You are able to reach individuals in your niche who would have not seen your profile otherwise.Target your ideal audience by the following categories: Demographics, Location, Interests and Behaviours. Allocate a portion of your marketing budget to paid advertising and optimise your campaigns to maximise visibility and engagement.
#9 Monitor, Reevaluate and Refine
Your strength lies in your ability to adapt. Regularly monitor your social media analytics to gain insights into your audience's behaviour, content performance, and follower growth. Analyse the data to identify what works and what doesn't, and adapt your strategy accordingly. Use the analytics to refine your content, posting schedule, and engagement tactics for continuous improvement.
The Key Takeaway: Your Instagram page is highly unlikely to go viral overnight. Gaining followers is an intricate process that takes time and strategy. Stay consistent with an ever-evolving content strategy and remain authentic to your brand's voice. Your appropriate audience will find you!