How to Grow Your Instagram Following Organically

With over a billion users, Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms in the world. As such, it is an invaluable tool for businesses and marketers looking to reach their target audiences. However, growing your followers organically on Instagram can be a difficult task thanks to the notorious Instagram algorithm. Fortunately, there are some effective strategies you can use to grow your following without having to resort to buying followers or using other shady tactics that we wouldn’t recommend.

Post consistently & at the right time

One of the simplest ways to increase your organic followers on Instagram is to post content consistently. Posting regularly not only keeps your current followers engaged but also increases your visibility so that potential followers will see your content. Aim for at least one grid post every other day, if not one per day if possible, and make sure that all of your posts stay true to your brand identity and message. Of course, quality over quantity is important so don’t just post for the sake of it but by posting frequently you are more likely to overcome Instagram’s algorithm and get your content seen. Make sure you are also posting consistently to your story and saving relevant stories to your highlights. Having a content schedule is essential so you know what you are posting and when, and what you have posted historically. 

There’s no point just posting your content at any random time however. You will need to figure out when the best time is to strategically post for your brand. This differs for each brand, depending on when their audience is most active! To discover this essential information you will need to check out your page’s analytics. You can find this information under ‘Insights’ on your business profile and ‘Your Audience’. 

Use appropriate hashtags

Hashtags are an essential part of marketing on Instagram, as they can significantly increase engagement and followers. First, it’s important to know what the most effective and relevant hashtags are to the content you’re posting. Research popular and trending hashtags that relate to your topic or industry, and make sure you don’t use too many to avoid looking spammy. Additionally, avoid generic or overly-used hashtags like #love, #happy, #instagood, etc., as these will not be targeted enough for new people to find your posts. By using relevant and specific hashtags on Instagram you will reach a wider audience and ultimately gain more followers.

Optimise your bio

Often the first thing people, including potential customers, see is your bio. It’s so important to take full advantage of the 150 character limit to ensure you tell people who you are, what your company does and what action you want people to do after visiting your profile.

Your Instagram bio should include the following:

• A clear description of what you/your business do
• A glimpse of your personality (remember your brand’s tone of voice!) – a few emoji’s always go down well and can reflect a fun and personable persona
• A call to action (shop, read more, contact us, etc.)
• A link to your website

Use your in-bio link wisely since it is your only clickable link on Instagram. Businesses may include a link to their website as a standard feature, or they may update it frequently to showcase recent blog posts. If you’re feeling really fancy you can even create your own branded hashtags, for example #TheresAlwaysASolution, this encourages your followers to use this hashtag and in turn this allows you to easily see posts from your followers that have used it. 

Engage with your followers

Interacting with people who already follow you is a great way to build relationships and show them that you value their engagement with your brand. Reply to comments on posts and answer questions as quickly as possible so that people know their feedback is appreciated and taken seriously. You can also engage with other users by liking their pictures or commenting on them in order to introduce yourself and start building relationships with them too. This can help you expand your reach even further beyond just your existing followers because those users may end up following you as well if they like what they see from you.

Create quality content

Make sure that all of the content you create for Instagram is high quality, relevant and interesting for viewers. This means using professional-looking photos and videos and crafting captions that draw people in instead of simply pushing products or services onto them. When creating content, think about what kind of things would be most appealing or useful to potential new customers so that they feel compelled to check out more of what you have to offer them. 

Recently reels have become increasingly popular on Instagram and favoured by the algorithm. Users and content creators were noticing that their photograph posts were lacking in engagement but the reels they shared were getting seen by a large audience and generating lots of engagement and followers as a result. Some may say Instagram is trying to catch up with TikTok in terms of no longer just being a photo-sharing app. This means for 2023 you need to make sure you have a strong content strategy with a particular focus on reels. 

As if grid posts and reels weren’t enough to think about, you also need to ensure your stories aren’t getting forgotten about. Stories have the potential to generate a lot of engagement, they are fun and interactive for your audience and can really help your brand get in front of the right people at the right time. Also, unlike grid posts, stories offer a lot more features, such as including links, meaning you can generate traffic directly to your website. 

Find your brand’s voice & be consistent 

It’s so important to have a clear tone of voice that’s carried out through all of your Instagram content, if you don’t already have guidelines for your brand’s tone of voice then this should be a priority. It’s true what they say that consistency is key and this is very important when creating a presence online. If you have multiple people working on your social media accounts that having a tone of voice is essential so the content is uniform, think ‘many writers, one brand’. 

Link to your Instagram from other places 

It’s 2023 and nobody has time to manually search for your Instagram profile! Thanks to TikTok everyone’s attention spans are increasingly getting shorter so you need to be in front of people easily to get their attention. A great way to help people who are already interested in your business to find your Instagram page is to link to it from elsewhere, an obvious place to do this is your website. 

Use influencers in your strategy

We’ve seen great success with our clients when they have collaborated with influencers through campaigns. This allows your brand to be put right in front of a warm audience who are likely to be interested in what you offer by somebody, or a business, they already trust. Recently we saw a client gain over 100 followers on Instagram overnight after an influencer shared her own UGC on her Instagram stories. This was purely organic and the influencer was not paid or gifted to share this content. We have another blog post all about the benefits of influencer marketing.

Organically growing a following on Instagram takes time, effort and dedication, but it’s worth it! By consistently posting quality content, engaging with current followers, and reaching out to potential new ones, you can boost your visibility significantly over time without having to resort to any shady tactics like buying fake followers. Give these strategies a try today and watch your organic Instagram following grow!

If you’re struggling with any aspect of your social media management why not let the experts at Bronco help? Contact us today to see how we can help!