How to Get More Followers on Instagram: 15 Actionable Tips

Instagram is the preferred platform of social media marketers. And why not? The platform has an estimated 1.4 billion monthly active users as of 2024. What's more, if your products and services cater to millennials and Gen Z, know that more than half of Instagram's users are 34 years of age or younger. So digital enterprises are constantly looking at how they can grow on Instagram to enhance brand visibility and connect with their clients better. 
 
Instagram has consistently demonstrated its ability to drive traffic, nurture prospects and convert customers. However, its platform algorithms are difficult to navigate, and let's not forget the social media competition, which can pose significant hurdles for businesses. It's not just enough to hop on the bandwagon and create Reels with trending audio tracks. To effectively promote your business, you must be strategic about how to grow on Instagram.  

As such, today, we’ll be providing you with 15 actionable tips to grow your Instagram followers. Be sure to implement them smartly to drive meaningful social media engagement for your business. 

15 actionable tips to increase your Instagram followers

Getting to those first 1,000-10,000 followers is hard, but after that, the growth holds quite steady. Keeping that in mind, here are the top tips to get you to those milestones and beyond. 

Tip #1: Optimize your Instagram bio

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Here's what makes up an Instagram handle page and the ways in which you can optimize each element: 

• Instagram handle and name: Your Instagram handle and name should be optimized for searchability. Look at Tide, for instance. The company has included the word "laundry" in its profile name to improve discoverability through association with the product it sells. 
    
• Instagram bio: Your bio should be descriptive, hashtag-rich, keyword-dense and short so users get a quick idea of what you’re all about and it’s easier for people to find your brand. Also, be sure to regularly update your bio to reflect current social media promotions, events or new offerings. 
   
• Link in bio: Your Instagram followers should be able to convert into customers. The optimal approach? Route social traffic to your website, blogs or other social accounts via the links that you can add in your bio. Currently, you can add up to 5 links within the app. You can also use a single Linktree URL to guide people to a single, customizable page that has all your additional links.  
   
• Branded story highlights: Make your Instagram Stories searchable by creating a story highlight with a branded cover. For instance, Tide has a Story Highlight named "#TurnToCold" that examines the sustainability implications of reducing our dependence on hot water wash loads. 

Tip #2: Experiment with content types   

Instagram constantly updates its content types. Do you remember Instagram Guides and IGTV videos? They were sunset because they weren’t as engaging as other content types and did not add value to the platform.  

So, what social media content types can you create? Think Reels, single-photo posts, carousels (with videos and photos), video posts and Live sessions. Experimenting with different types of content on Instagram can be a powerful strategy to grow followers. It allows you to diversify your content to cater to different audiences.  

Keep your content fresh to consistently engage with existing followers, prompting them to share it with their audience and enhance your reach. Furthermore, content formats like Reels hold greater potential for virality and discoverability, helping you acquire newer Instagram followers. 

Read More: How to build a social media content strategy 

Tip #3: Schedule posts in advance

Scheduling social media posts in advance can be crucial to your Instagram growth strategy. First, it standardizes your posting frequency, keeping your audience engaged with a regular flow of content. Secondly, it saves time by allowing you to plan and create content in batches rather than daily. And thirdly, scheduling promotes better content planning, encouraging a well-thought-out and cohesive social media content creation strategy that leads to more followers.  

💡 Pro Tip: Undecided about the best time to post for maximum engagement? Sprinklr’s social media scheduling and publishing tool can help here with its smart scheduling feature. It determines the best time of day to schedule posts with the power of advanced AI so they receive maximum engagement. The capability also calculates a score for every hour of the day based on five engagement metrics: shares, comments, likes, impressions and fan count (with an hourly online fan count that’s available for Facebook and Instagram). This way, you can effortlessly find the right time to find your audience. 

START SCHEDULING FOR MAXIMUM ENGAGEMENT NOW

Tip #4: Don’t buy followers

There are no shortcuts to success. Purchasing a few thousand followers may appear to be a quick solution for Instagram growth, but it's counterproductive in the long run. 

Here’s why:  

• It's against Instagram’s Terms of Use: Instagram actively discourages and purges accounts that engage in follower fraud. It has even shut down companies that help fake engagement.  
• Fake followers aren’t real people: They can’t engage with your content, buy your products or become brand advocates. A follower count is just one metric used to measure the success of your Instagram marketing strategy; there are other metrics like click-through rates (CTR) and time spent on posts that an inflated follower count can tank.  
• Instagram users are smart: Instagram users can detect scams from a mile away. If you have 10,000 followers and only 10-12 likes, shares or comments per post, your viewers will know that you’ve bought your followers.  

Related Read: How to protect your brand on social media 

Tip #5: Cross-promote on social platforms  

You could have a TikTok account that is blowing up or an X account where your witty posts are turning viral. So promote your Instagram handles there to gain followers. 

By leveraging your existing audience on platforms like Facebook, X, LinkedIn and TikTok, you can direct their attention to your Instagram profile and encourage them to follow you. Remember to promote your other social media accounts on Instagram to create a cohesive and interconnected social media presence.  

Look at how simply Bumble does it by starting a short and sweet thread!  

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Watch an Expert Webinar: Constructing a Cross-Channel Marketing Strategy 

Tip #6: Maintain an aesthetic and cohesive feed

When your feed is visually consistent and aligned with your brand identity and brand voice, it creates a strong first impression on potential followers. Aesthetic consistency indicates professionalism and attention to detail, which instills confidence that your content is valuable and that your account is worth following. 
 
Additionally, a cohesive feed establishes a sense of familiarity and increases brand equity, making your profile memorable amidst the vast sea of content on Instagram. 

Download our E-book: How and Why to Create Your Own Social Media Brand Guidelines 

Tip #7: Collaborate with influencers and brands

Influencers bring credibility and trust to brand collaborations. On average, for every $1 invested in influencer marketing, brands can make up to $5.78. With such incredible ROI, it makes sense to double down on them. Influencers' expertise in niche areas shapes how followers perceive them, and this credibility contributes significantly to brand growth when you collaborate with them.  

Beyond influencer collaborations, brands can benefit from partnerships with other businesses. By joining forces, brands can tap into each other's audiences and amplify brand visibility and reach. Moreover, collaborative efforts between brands often lead to the creation of amazingly innovative social media marketing campaigns.  

For instance, let’s look at the collaboration between Ben & Jerry’s and Nike. In May 2020, the Ben & Jerry's and Nike SB Dunk Low "Chunky Dunky" sneakers were released in limited numbers. Their friends-and-family pairs came in giant ice cream pint-shaped boxes, adding excitement to this unusual collaboration. Through it, they drummed up a lot of buzz for the drop and their brands. 

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Learn More: Influencer Marketing Strategies to Improve Engagement 

Tip #8: Use relevant hashtags

We’ve all heard about how hashtags can improve the searchability and discoverability of your content. But how do they do it?  

• Your post might appear on the relevant hashtag page, allowing anyone who clicks on it to view your post, even if they don't follow you. 
• Hashtags enhance the visibility of your post in Instagram search results. Using relevant hashtags in your social media posts makes it easier for users interested in those topics to find your content. 
• Since users can follow hashtags that are aligned with their interests, your post might surface in the main feed of the people who are interested in your niche. What’s more, these potential followers have viewed content similar to yours, which prompts Instagram's algorithms to push your content to their feeds. 

💡 Pro Tip: Leverage future-facing solutions to track and manage your Instagram hashtags without extensive manual intervention. Sprinklr's Instagram Hashtag Manager, which comes under the Sprinklr Social product, identifies and monitors hashtag performance to help maximize post engagement. It quickly searches, filters and checks the status of hashtags for streamlined management. The tool can also export hashtag data to Excel for comprehensive offline social media analysis.  

If you want to know more about how you can find the hashtags that will help rope in more followers, read our dedicated guide on how to find the right hashtags. 

Tip #9: Promote user-generated content (UGC)

Simply put, user-generated content (UGC) is the content that brand advocates create using your product or service. It can be a powerful strategy to accelerate follower growth and create a vibrant community.  

To begin with, you can incentivize your followers to create UGC through social media contests and giveaways or by showcasing them on your feed. Once the UGC starts coming in, do not forget to repost (with permission), tag and promote the content.  

By consistently promoting UGC, you can cultivate a sense of belonging among your followers and attract new ones by showcasing experiences shared by real customers. 

💡 Pro Tip: Ask users to use a hashtag they easily associate with your brand to find all your UGC content in a single space. For instance, Apple asks users to use #ShotOniPhone for people to discover photos taken with Apple iPhones. 

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Tip #10: Experiment with Threads

In March 2024, Threads recorded around 28 million app downloads worldwide. The X (formerly Twitter) rival is being promoted heavily on Instagram. It’s possible that being more active on Threads can encourage the Instagram algorithms to promote your posts.

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Tip #11: Engage with your audience

Have you hit your engagement metrics?  

How many followers do you have?  

Have you posted that Reel with the latest hit audio track?  

Focusing on how to grow your Instagram channel can get overwhelming. But between all this, don’t forget to engage with the community that you’ve built. Here are some ways to interact:  

• Respond to comments: Regularly monitor and respond to comments on your social media posts. Acknowledge all comments, express gratitude and swiftly address any questions or concerns. Here’s a complete guide on how to respond to customers on social media. 
• Ask questions in captions: Encourage interaction by including questions in your captions. For instance, a caption for a glimpse of your office on a Friday could be: "How do you like to boost productivity as the weekend approaches? Share your tips with us in the comments below!" 
• Host ask-me-anything (AMA) sessions: Use Instagram Stories or Live sessions to host AMAs. This allows your audience to connect with you directly, providing an opportunity for real-time interaction.  
• Use Instagram polls and surveys: Leverage features like polls and surveys in Instagram Stories to gather feedback and opinions from your audience. 
• Go live: Host live sessions to connect with your audience in real time. Use this opportunity to share updates, answer questions or provide behind-the-scenes (BTS) glimpses of the brand to create a more authentic connection. 
• Utilize direct messages (DMs): Encourage followers to reach out via direct messages for inquiries, feedback or customer support. Respond promptly and personally to foster a direct and meaningful connection.   

💡 Pro Tip: Keen to see how your customers perceive you? Track their comments and online interactions with Sprinklr's AI-powered social listening tool. With it, you can: 

• Gain access to billions of customer conversations across 30+ social and digital channels 
• Keep track of user-generated content as well as visual brand mentions on images, videos and more  
• Monitor core brand KPIs, including brand awareness, share of voice and customer satisfaction across Instagram and all other major social channels  
• Track brand mentions to protect your social media reputation and proactively manage crises 

FIND OUT HOW YOU'RE ENGAGING USERS NOW

Tip #12: Get verified

An Instagram-verified account has a blue tick (called a badge) next to its username. When an Instagram user encounters this profile or discovers the username through search, the blue tick verifies that the brand or individual is authentic. 

Verified accounts often enjoy greater visibility and may get prioritized in search results, enhancing their discoverability. The verification badge validates your account and urges users to prioritize your account over others.  

Tip #13: Promote your Instagram everywhere

Don't be afraid to use your own media to promote your Instagram account. Here's how you can go about it: 

• Insert a website footer: Add your Instagram account to your website's footer. Pop all social media icons in the footer and hyperlink them to your profiles.  
• Embed links in your emails: Always include links to all your social media accounts in your employees' email signatures and marketing emails. 
• Feed on your website: Many e-commerce websites embed their Instagram and TikTok feeds on their website. This way, they can feature direct links to the products featured in each post and promote their social media handles.  
• Develop dedicated landing pages: Create dedicated landing pages on your website that highlight your Instagram content, recent campaigns or featured posts, along with a strong CTA to follow you on Instagram. 

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Tip #14: Create shareable content

Shareable content has the potential to go viral, organically expanding your reach beyond your current followers. Memes are incredibly effective for generating reach, especially when they align with current trends in popular culture. But what else? Try leveraging: 

• Informative carousel posts: Use carousel posts that provide valuable information or tell a compelling story. By offering useful tips, step-by-step guides or in-depth insights, you can attract more shares and saves. 
• Engaging captions and CTAs: Write compelling captions that encourage your audience to share your posts. Use clear call-to-actions (CTAs) such as “Share this to win a free [XYZ product]” to prompt interactions and shares. 
• Quotes from industry leaders: Share quotes from well-known figures in your industry. Tagging these leaders and using domain-facing hashtags can attract attention and shares from their followers. 
• Trending content: If you post content that’s relevant to current events, holidays or trending topics, it's more likely to get shared. Timely content resonates with what’s on people’s minds, making it more share-worthy. 

💡 Pro Tip: While keeping track of the news is one way to be aware of the latest events with traction around them, it can be difficult to be in the loop as and when they unfold. This is where Sprinklr’s AI-powered social media management solution can be a friend. It helps you stay on top of what’s trending across the world in real time. To top it off, you can analyze those trends based on brand, country, topic and severity, too. 

How does Sprinklr help streamline Instagram engagement and grow followers?

Businesses face several unique challenges when they try to grow on Instagram. They are expected to create and post engaging content that resonates with their audience, adapt to frequent changes in Instagram's algorithms and utilize platform features to maximize reach and engagement.  

Make it easier for yourself. Partner with an eco-system enabler.  

With Sprinklr Social, you can streamline your Instagram growth strategy and ensure consistent, data-driven results. It offers a suite of automation tools — from publishing and engagement to social listening and conversational commerce — to help your brand maximize its impact on Instagram. 

Want to see first-hand how Sprinklr can help your brand build its Instagram following?