One big challenge your business might be facing is growing your following on social media platforms like Instagram. While you may be tempted to take the “easy” way and buy followers, you should know that the method has been proven to be a very unwise idea. 

The problem with buying followers is that most of the accounts will likely be bots or inactive users. While some bots (in theory) can be programmed to like and share content, these bots cannot interact with your content in any meaningful way. Even if they do interact with your posts initially, paid followers have been shown to decrease engagement as time passes. 

If you have a large number of followers with a low level of engagement, this will have a negative impact on your standing with the Instagram algorithm. Thus, the real followers that you do have likely will not see your posts pop-up in their feeds consistently, as the algorithm will deem your account to have low relevance. 

Not only will buying followers hurt your status with the Insta algorithm, you will also lose credibility with potential followers who make their way to your profile. If people notice you have thousands of followers with very little likes or comments, they will either conclude that you are cheating or that your content is very poor. Another downside to purchasing followers is that fake accounts will skew your Instagram social metrics, making it difficult to determine what kind of posts are most effective with your real customers. 

Not only is purchasing followers incredibly lame and ineffective, it may turn out to be a complete waste of money as well. According to Hubspot, “Instagram has updated its terms of use to identify and remove inauthentic accounts from its platform. Instagram is removing any likes, follows, or comments from third-party apps that are designed to artificially grow accounts' audiences. By buying followers, you violate Instagram's community guidelines and it may trigger a reaction from Instagram moderators.” 

Hopefully by this point you have realized the downsides to purchasing followers to grow your account. Thankfully, there are many different alternatives to organically growing your following. Keep in mind, these methods do take time and commitment, but isn’t this true of all things organic? 

Below is a list of 25 potential alternatives, among other methods to grow your Insta account organically: 

1. Publish High Quality Content 

2. Research Relevant/Effective Hashtags 

3. Like and Comment on Other Accounts 

4. Create an Attractive Profile 

5. Relevant Name/Username

6. Link to Your Website 

7. Make Sure Your Whole Logo Fits in the Profile Picture 

8. Display Highlights 

9. Link Your Instagram Profile on Your Emails 

10. Make Your Instagram Social Link Highly Visible on Your Website 

11. Get Your Instagram Account Featured on Another Relevant Account 

12. Add a Location on Your Posts 

13. Follow Users Who Follow Other Relevant Accounts 

14. Collaborate with Other Businesses (Story Swap) 

15. Encourage Your Followers to Tag Their Friends 

16. Use Longer Captions 

17. Display Your Instagram Handle in Your Physical Store 

18. Promote Your Instagram on Other Social Channels 

19. Utilize Reels 

20. Go Live with Other Instagram Creators 

    *BONUS: Create Challenges/Contests!

While this list may seem overwhelming and time consuming, it is not necessary to implement all 20 ideas at once. Rather, you can focus on a few elements at time and build-up your followers at your own pace. If you have any questions about how to execute anything on the list, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

Interested readers can contact us here.