Instagram is one of the fastest-growing social media networks, it's not just a place to share pictures of your dinner, but also a powerful way for small business owners, such as yourself, to establish their authority and expertise online. However, just because there are over 2.3 billion active Instagram users does not mean that opportunities are raining down on your Instagram feed.You have to take action and learn how to grow Instagram followers organically.
Ever wondered how people succeed in growing their Instagram account? Is there a magic trick to it?
In this article, we uncover 11 proven ways to grow Instagram followers organically. Learn how to interact with everyone, build long-term relationships, and rank your Instagram profile on search.
Contents
Every brand today on Instagram wants more followers because it helps spread your message to a far wider audience. Even though getting followers can appear challenging, there are proven strategies you can put into action that will generate the results you want.
Instagram reels are a new feature that lets you record 30-second videos with music. Designed to show off your brand or product using the main navigation bar for video content, reels allow you to record your mobile-quality video clips and have them play in your account.
You can create a series of them around a specific topic and give them a short title, make them compelling enough, and instantly your followers are spellbound to click and interact. They also help build your brand's presence in the small, quickly-expanding ecosystem of users on Instagram.
Let’s face it, reels are fun. They make your Instagram profile pop and help drive traffic to your posts. You can use them to show off your products, keep tabs on new products being released, or just keep up with current events.
It’s also an interesting way to help lead your brand—after all, Instagram is all about visual branding! If you’re going to try and grow your business on Instagram, then you should be using some sort of reels.
Your Instagram profile is one of the most important places people will look when they decide to follow you on the app. Instagram profiles are a reflection of our personalities, you need to make sure that your Instagram design looks clean and relevant.
This means that you should think about the layout of your app from the perspective of a user searching for something and clicking on your post.
A good Instagram bio can set you apart from other accounts in your niche, but it’s important to make sure that it is conversational, concise, and engaging.
@seemabatavia makes a bold statement on her profile by telling us what she does, the kind of people she helps, and shares a direct link to her waitlist!
If you want more Instagram followers, then you have to make the most of those 150 characters. Your Instagram bio is an opportunity to tell potential followers who you are, what you do, and what action you want people will take after viewing your profile.
Your bio can sometimes seem like a lonely way to communicate your brand, but it could also tell potential followers who you are as a person. By including a few sentences or a simple paragraph in your bio, you can open up more opportunities!
It is not just about having more followers — you want them to become engaged with your posts, and you want them to feel as if they are a part of the conversation.
One of the best ways to grow your Instagram followers is to include people outside of your regular demographic. You need to use their posts as part of your brand storytelling so that they feel included and empowered to engage with you personally.
In today’s world, there’s a big movement to include more minorities and underrepresented communities into the conversation. This doesn’t mean you should try to be everything to everyone — on the contrary! — but it does mean that you should be trying to include as many people as possible in your journey.
In other words, if you're trying to grow your audience and find more followers, it makes sense to add diverse voices, and images, and photos to your own stories and feed. By being more inclusive and diverse, you can reach new audiences that might not otherwise know about your brand or business.
The easiest way to do this is by encouraging “Instagram love” by including people of diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and life experiences.
It’s not just about the number of followers or how long it takes to become an expert on a topic; by sharing content that reflects your own authentic voice and dealing with real-life problems and situations, businesses build trust with their audience and build their relationships.
Not everyone can be honest about sharing their life’s struggles or failures. In this example, @thevoguide took the bold step by sharing her story about failing as a travel brand. She was vulnerable, authentic and willing to share her lessons as well.
If you want people to follow and share your content, then you have to be open with your story. This means telling it through your Instagram captions and sharing content from real life.
If you share detailed anecdotes from work or personal life, people will feel more inclined to engage. If you share something mundane like “work out at the gym?” or “eat fresh food?” people won’t feel inclined to engage.
You may have heard that promoting content on other social media platforms is one of the top ways to grow your audience and revenue. And you’re right! These platforms have millions of active users as well. And, with each new feature introduced by these platforms, there is always room for improvement.
Here @oiza_meyi shares a direct link to their youtube vlog, advising their followers to check them out on that platform as well.
There are plenty of reasons why you should be posting your content on other social media platforms. Of course, there's the obvious social value (spreading the word about your business), but you also can gain a bigger audience and expand your reach.
For example, if you have a small business and only post on Instagram a couple of times each month, but are active on all of your other social media channels, you could be able to get a much better reaction from your followers - who rarely comment on your posts - because they're all seeing your posts as a whole.
That being said, certain social media platforms have an upper hand when it comes to boosting your account’s visibility - like Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. If you're looking for ways to improve your Instagram game, it's worth a shot.
A good Instagram caption is the cornerstone of your marketing strategy. The people who follow you are also looking for information from you and they’re usually looking forward to meeting you or hearing from you.
Having a long-lasting caption can help persuade followers that you have something worth listening to. Long captions bring a lot of attention to your posts, and that means people are more likely to look forward to them. Plus, they're a great opportunity to expand upon your messaging and create a bond with your audience.
In this example @thesocialbungalow shared deep insights on how to better understand and optimize your customer purchase journey. By giving detailed bullet points and content, she is helping anyone in her audience who might face this particular problem, giving herself the opportunity to be seen as an authority and credible expert in her field.
A live Instagram can allow an entrepreneur to interact directly with potential customers, adding extra value to the follower experience. This means engaging with everyone in real-time wherever they are, almost like being on stage at a live event.
The ability to connect directly with those who are interested in your brand or product can help propel growth and engagement. A live channel also available frequently can help you post exciting updates and new product launches to your feed without having to wait for a cold broadcast.
This makes Instagram Live easy to use for most small businesses whose followers are on the go or want to stay up-to-date with the latest news.
If you’re looking to get more followers on your Instagram profile, one option is to launch a “viral Instagram challenge.” The challenge could be a challenge, contest, or collection of images. The challenge could be timed and repeat, or it could be new each season.
Viral challenges are a game-changer for businesses. Your followers can easily share content with the hashtags, friends, and others can see what kind of engagement they're getting. These types of campaigns have allowed businesses to jump up in ranks on Instagram while offering a unique experience for followers.
One example is the #pushupchallenge. It is very popular in the fitness niche with healthy lifestyle influencers, wellness brands, and fitness enthusiasts hopping on this game. Now the hashtag counts over 455K posts, diverse content, and sport-related activities.
Branded hashtags are a social media strategy that allows businesses to build their brand through their specific hashtags. This strategy has helped brands like Nike, Taco Bell, and many others grow their Instagram presence significantly.
Think of it like Twitter's "mentions". The more people that see your post from a specific source, the more likely those people will click through to your page.
For example, Waistlab.co uses branded hashtags for their brand. Users could search for #waistlabback2basics on Instagram and see a feed of only their Instagram stories. This way, they can see content that relates to basic information about waist trainers for beginners. This led to additional followers, more engagement on tweets and photo captions, and increased brand awareness.
We see dozens of shareable content pieces per day – some of them getting thousands of shares. The challenge is taking all that inspiration and condensing it into something that people will share with their friends. That’s where memes come in handy.
Memes can help you quickly reproduce and repurpose key insights, quotes, or concepts for your brand. And since they’re constantly evolving, they’re great for keeping your audience engaged.
People are looking for content that makes them laugh or inspires them, whether it's about trending pop culture topics or humorous dog memes. Memes are one of the most powerful tools we have for communicating with our audience. They not only bring something fun and playful to the table, but they also keep your followers engaged and compelled.
When you find good content, share it with your followers to help build credibility and interest in your brand.
Related read: Best Instagram Apps for Growing Your Audience
Joining forces with companies that share your values and goals allows you to create a bridge between your audience and the products/services you offer.
The picture above is an example of a paid partnership between an Instagram influencer and a beauty brand. It also allows brands to seek out talent that aligns with their values and gives them a window into what's happening around the world of ‘your business’ because people trust the voices of people they care about most, particularly their peers.
By working together with an Instagram account that reflects your brand’s personality, you’re giving people a way to find out about what you do right away — without having to hunt you down through social media.
Instagram has turned into a platform that has the potential to connect brands with their target audience in a fun, easy, and engaging way. You can use Instagram to tell your story, talk about your products/services, increase your sales and grow your network.
Need help growing your Instagram followers or want to improve your social media marketing in Singapore? Hiring a social media agency can help! Heroes of Digital is a top, local social media marketing agency. With more than 600 clients under our belt and half a decade of experience, we are the go-to Singapore social media marketing agency.
Get your free social media marketing consultation with us today!
Google Ads trends for 2025 that you cannot ignore
7 SEO trends for 2025 you cannot ignore
How to Create a PPC Report That Goes Beyond Vanity Metrics
5 Unique Ways to Find Trending SEO Keywords (No Keyword Tool Needed!)
How to get more appointments for your B2B business with digital marketing
Get A Free Proposal
