Build Your Instagram Following

By Jill Kurtz, Owner Kurtz Digital StrategyInstagram is one of the fastest growing social media channels, meaning your competition for the attention of your audience increases every day. While you need to work a little to increase your followers (never buy followers), you can do it. Here are some ideas.Be activeThe best way to gain followers is to post regularly. Commit to a posting schedule that is doable with your resources and stick to it. You need to be active to be found.Use hashtagsUsing hashtags is a great way to attract new followers to your account. Many instagrammers find posts by searching hashtags.Be creative with your profileFormatting your bio in a unique way catches attention and can help your brand stand out among others. Do get custom formatting, you need to write and format your Instagram bio in an external text application and then paste it into your Instagram bio field.Pay attention to Instagram’s algorithmInstagram keeps its algorithms pretty tightly guarded to prevent users from gaming the system, but it’s safe to assume that, like Facebook, Instagram factors in how many fans you have and much they’re engaging with your content. Encourage your followers to like and comment on your posts. Sometimes this just means asking, other times you need to offer some kind of incentive.InteractInteract with your followers. Like and comment on other users’ accounts. Make all your comments unique and sincere.Mix it upMake sure there is variety to your posts. One great way to add to your feed is to use some animated GIFs. One app for finding and posting GIFs (with a built-in integration for Instagram) is GIPHY. You can also add videos.[author]About the Author: Jill Kurtz founded Kurtz Digital Strategy to help clients see the communication potential of the newest trends and technologies. She is an expert at website strategy and redesign, social media planning, and developing exceptional content.[/author]