Tricks to Grow Your Instagram Following (Authentically!)

Last week I wrote a post all about the big bad world of inauthentic blogging, how to spot it, & why it is just an all around bad idea (& could potentially kill the influencer/blogger industry).

A few days later, I participated in a loop giveaway & one of my readers sent me a message on the gram, inquiring into the difference between buying followers & paying to be a part of a loop giveaway.

She wasn’t challenging me, she wasn’t giving me a hard time, she was genuinely curious of my take on the authenticity of the loop giveaways so she could determine if this would be a good growth strategy for her own Instagram account.

I love having these conversations & talking shop with other bloggers or people in the industry, so naturally I wanted to bring the convo to the blog & share with you guys some of my go-to tips/tricks to grow my Instagram following the KOSHER way. READY? k… let’s do this.

tricks to grow the sh*t out of your Instagram… authentically!

1. Loop Giveaways: to answer the above question for you guys… NO- I 100% do not think loop giveaways is the same as buying followers!! I think of it as a marketing expense. I am joining up with like minded influencers with similar demographics & audiences to bring one of our lucky followers a great gift, & in turn we are all sharing each others audiences (collaborating > competing!).

You do have to pay to join & it depends how much you pay based on your “tier” in the social world (the more followers you have, the less you pay), but I think it is def. worth it. Also, if one of my followers won I would be SO stoked!!!

Search loop giveaways on Instagram & you can find different hosts, but please be sure to make sure the host you go with is legit. I did one loop giveaway a while ago & it was a total scam. The host of the giveaway just took everyone’s money & rigged the contest so there wasn’t a winner. It was horrible!!! Also, see who is in the loop giveaway as well, if the accounts aren’t similar to yours, the followers won’t stick when the giveaway is over (so, if you’re a fashion blogger… joining a bunch of fitness influencers for a loop may not be the best fit!).

2. Master Your Aesthetic: with Instagram, first impressions are everything. I put a lot of effort into editing my photos because I am OCD about my feed. I want it to look a certain way and I want it to be cohesive. To help find a feed you like and an editing routine to stick with, look up “VSCO filter recipes” on Instagram or Google to help find a vibe that works for you & just be consistent with it!!

3. Study Y0ur Insights: If you haven’t known about Instagram insights until right now, this is gonna be a major game changer for you. Read more about this relatively new feature here & use the data you discover to determine which content your followers like best (& then do much more of that!!).

4. Trade for Regrams: approach brands you love with loyal/strong audiences on Instagram & see if they’d be interested in a trade collaboration! Say you will post 2-3 Instagrams (whatever you are comfortable with) in exchange for trade along with a regram. When pitching the brand, send over a few examples of Instagram photos you have posted that match the brands aesthetic. If they like your photos, they will most likely agree to this because everyone needs good content!

5. Always Geotag: ALWAYS always geotag your photos. It helps people near you find you, & that’s always a good thing. When you’re on vacation, especially make sure you geotag. I get SO many new followers when I am out of town, which is great because it opens up my audience to new places!

6. Ask Readers to TAG A FRIEND: people are more likely to do something if you simply ask. Example can be found here, I asked my readers to tag a friend they want to drink this yummy beverage with. SO… I basically just kindly asked my readers to introduce me to someone… & hopefully that someone likes what they see & clicks that follow button! This is also a good stipulation for future giveaways (ask them to tag 2 friends in the comment section & you just got two more eyes on your page!).

7. Growth Hack: always be growth hacking & directing people to your Instagram. I slyly slipped three links to my Instagram in this post & always directing to my Instagram from Snapchat & Insta-stories. If you have a strong audience on a different social network, direct that audience to Instagram w/ something enticing!

8. Hashtagging: we already talked about the importance of hashtags in this post, but ICYMI… be sure to read again & keep your hashtag game strong!!!

9. Stay Engaged: they don’t call it SOCIAL media for nothing. Don’t be a wallflower on the gram. Communicate, comment, & just all around engage as much as you can. Slow & steady wins the race and although this seems tedious, it really is EXTREMELY effective for getting new followers!

wearing: Lioness Tuscan fling leopard dress (so cute worn alone, but I was too busty so I had to get creative w/ the last minute layering! LOL) | Guns N’ Roses graphic tee | Balenciaga boots | Quay ‘Santa Fe’ sunglasses

[ PHOTOS BY ARIELLE LEVY ]