Want to know how to get free followers on Instagram? And how to do it the right method, without shelling out huge bucks or engaging in shady tactics? You have come to the right place.
Your purpose is to develop a following of real people that really care about and engage with your brand. That’s the only method your Instagram strategy will deliver real business outcomes.
Click on any tip under to learn more, or keep scrolling for the complete list of ways to get more followers on Instagram.
How to get free followers on Instagram: 27 simple tips
1. Have a thoughtful Instagram strategy
Utilizing any social platform without a clear plan results in wasted resources and a low return on investment.
Since you are reading this article, you are clearly aiming to get more free Instagram followers. It is a good purpose, to begin with. However, it should be part of a larger strategy that connects to your overall business strategy and marketing targets.
Think about why you want to get more free Instagram followers. Perhaps you want to:
- enhance brand awareness
- increase product sales
- drive traffic to your site.
Staying concentrated on these business-oriented objectives will help keep your Instagram account consistent. It’ll help you tell a compelling brand story that appeals to new profile visitors and assists to build (and keep) a loyal following.
2. Define your target audience
Ask yourself some questions on who you are trying to attain:
- How old are they?
- Where do they live?
- What do they do for work?
- When and how do they use Instagram?
- What are their pain factors and challenges?
Answering those questions will assist you to craft the right kind of Instagram content to bring in reach the right Instagram followers.
3. Create a consistent brand story and aesthetic
Perhaps you wish to satisfy curiosity by showing off how your product is created. Or share an employee’s perspective to humanize your brand. In case you want to position your brand in an aspirational method, you can attempt showcasing the lifestyle or achievements of your customers.
It doesn’t matter what you want to obtain, be sure that to maintain a consistent brand personality, visual look, and story. Your posts need to be easily recognizable and relatable at a glance.
For instance, when you like succulents (and you do, right?), you may love the all-succulent grid created by Tierra Sol Studio:
4. Craft a great bio and profile
Your profile is the backbone of your presence on Instagram, and a well-crafted one is essential to get free Instagram followers.
Two-thirds of Instagram business profile visits are from non-fans. Your profile should convince these new views to click on the follow button. They will not do so in case your profile is unclear, unappealing or incomplete.
Here’s what you could embrace in your profile:
- Name: Up to 30 characters, and included in Instagram search, so you might want to embrace a keyword.
- Username: Make it the same as your other social platforms. It will make it simple for your followers on other platforms to find you on Instagram.
- Website: The only place on Instagram where you could embrace a clickable link (aside from calls to action in adverts or swiping up on Stories).
- Bio: 150 characters to convey your brand identity and show new visitors why they need to follow you.
5. Share engaging content
Good content gets people to like, comment on, and share your posts. That engagement provides you with an Instagram algorithm boost and helps you get free Instagram followers.
Everything you publish must be fascinating to your target audience. Your aim is to inform, engage, and entertain them with content. Your visuals have to be compelling and your captions engaging.
6. Promote your Instagram presence on other social networks
If you wish to get free Instagram followers, you should make it simple for people to find you.
In other words, you should make your Instagram profile simply discoverable.
When you have already built a following on another social platform, let these followers know about your Instagram account. Share a link to your Instagram profile and provides your existing social followers a reason to check it out. (Such as an Instagram-exclusive coupon code.)
The automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler Group has over 107,000 followers on LinkedIn. Once they released their Instagram account, it was an obvious choice to promote it to that existing group of potential fans.
When you are just beginning your Instagram account, be sure that to publish some content before you promote the account elsewhere. Aim for a minimum of 12 posts.
You can additionally highlight a few of the best Instagram posts on your other channels. Think about boosting these posts with paid advertising to make sure that more of your followers follow you on Instagram.
7. Share your Instagram account in other communications
All communication tools—both offline and online—give you a chance to direct people to your Instagram account.
Be sure you have links to your Instagram account on your site, in your email signature, and in your online newsletters. It will be sure that people who are already in contact with your brand online could discover you on social media.
When you are promoting a new Instagram account, a fast email blast highlighting some beautiful posts is a good way to get free Instagram followers fast.
8. Use the Instagram nametag
Your Instagram nametag is a scannable code that permits Instagram users to follow you immediately. We mentioned earlier that even offline communications materials offer an opportunity to advertise your Instagram account. The Instagram nametag is a simple and efficient method to promote your account on offline materials like packing slips, signage, and product packaging.
Your nametag is also a good way to get new followers in real time on networking events and conferences. People you connect within-person could scan your code to follow you without having to type out your handle.
Access your Instagram nametag by tapping on the three lines icon on the top right of your Instagram profile.
9. Use relevant hashtags
Hashtags make your posts and Stories discoverable to people looking for content associated with your brand, industry, or products.
Before utilizing hashtags to get free Instagram followers, be sure to know the DOs & DON’Ts of using hashtags on Instagram.
DO: Find and use what’s popular.
Use the search function within Instagram to seek out popular hashtags associated with your product, service, or industry. Then, set up a stream in Hootsuite to monitor the content posted with that hashtag on Instagram so you could get a sense of what sort of content people reply to.
DO: Create your own hashtag.
Come up with your own hashtag which will motivate your fans to share pictures associated with your brand.
DON’T: Go overboard.
Utilizing too many hashtags could be distracting for your fans and dilute your message. It could additionally come off as desperate or, worse, spammy.
DON’T: Use hashtag gimmicks.
Utilizing hashtags like #likeforlike, #tagsforlikes, or #followme might provide you with a temporary boost in followers. However, they’ll likely be spammers or people only excited about being followed back. And that will not help you build a meaningful, engaged community on Instagram. Instead, concentrate on utilizing hashtags particular to your picture, product, or business.
DON’T: Forget to use hashtags in Stories.
Make use of the hashtag sticker in Stories to maximise your opportunities of reaching new followers.
10. Aim to get featured
Feature accounts are simply Instagram accounts that curate and reshare other users’ content based on a hashtag or tagging. A few of these accounts have an enormous following and having them share one of your posts (along with your handle) could send a new stream of fans your method.
There’s a feature account for just about every niche and interest on Instagram. You will begin to discover them as you do your hashtag research, as recommended in the previous tip. A few of them could get pretty particular.
For instance, @elite_owls features only pictures of owls. The account has over 43,000 followers.
However, the mother of all feature accounts is Instagram itself. Every week, Instagram posts a brand new Weekend Hashtag Project challenge. Users who make pictures and use the related hashtag have an opportunity to be featured on the main Instagram account.
Keep an eye on @instagram for information on the Weekend Hashtag Project.
11. Tag your location
Any time there is a clear location element in your post or Story, it’s worth including a location tag. It’s one more simple method for people to find your content on Instagram.
If your business has a physical location, be sure that to tag it and encourage customers to do the same. Users could then click on that location and see all pictures and Stories posted from your store, restaurant, or office. This might help expose your brand (and Instagram account) to more people.
For instance, here’s what you get once you seek for the location of Van Wonderen Stroopwafels in Amsterdam:
When you are posting from a conference or event, including your location might help you connect with different attendees, exposing your account to an extremely targeted group of new potential Instagram followers.
12. The goal for the Explore tab
The Explore tab is what you see once you click on the magnifying glass icon on the bottom of the Instagram app. According to Instagram itself, that is where “you could find pictures and videos that you may like from accounts you do not yet follow.”
The Explore tab features Instagram posts, Stories, and IGTV. Users first see a grid of content chosen by the algorithm. They then have the option to choose to dive deeper into particular content subjects utilizing the topic channels at the top of the screen.
Over 200 million people go to the Explore tab daily. That is an enormous chance for brands looking to develop their audience.
So, how could you get your content to appear on the Explore tab? It isn’t simple. Fortunately, we have got an entire article dedicated to helping you figure it out.