As businesses worldwide grapple with changes in business structure, brands can no longer overlook the importance of having an online presence.

With 800 million active monthly users and a superior ultra-smart algorithm, Instagram is slowly becoming a preferred choice for customers and businesses.

Starting fresh on social media platforms like Instagram is like fighting another battle – you can’t expect desirable results in a day or two. Shortcuts like buying Instagram followers and using bots may do more harm than good to your brand.

Your brand grows when Instagram followers engage with your brand. A false figure may help you increase the followers but at the cost of your engagement rate.

That’s why to understand how to grow Instagram followers, focus on these ten steps to reach your marketing and business goals.

1.  Use Instagram reels

If you’re looking to take Instagram marketing to another level, it’s probably time to embrace Instagram reels- which are short 15-30 seconds videos that play on loop.

Just like TikTok, Instagram reels can go viral and give your brand the desired online presence. Since it’s the latest addition on Instagram, it’s a great idea to jump on the bandwagon before it becomes saturated.

With this social media platform giving extra prominence to reels on users’ feeds and explore pages, brands that use reels are likely to reach and attract more customers.

Take help from Instagram marketing tools like Unum to create videos and reels that your audience cannot overlook. This tool gives you insight into your engagement rate to know what’s working and what’s not.

2.  Conduct a competitive analysis

Conducting a competitive analysis to see what other marketers in your field are posting is great for understanding the type of content that resonates with your audience.

Review your competitor’s profile, search for terms related to your business to find similar accounts, and conduct a quick content audit. This will help you decode the popular hashtags and see what posts get maximum engagement and what caption they’re using to attract potential customers.

A competitive analysis works as a benchmark when starting and growing your business on Instagram.

3.  Use popular and trending hashtags

With hashtags, you can reach your audience and help them search for your business. It’s one of the top ways to encourage more engagement and attract potential new followers.

Search for popular and current trends in your industry. However, there is a thin line of difference between using popular hashtags and too many hashtags.

Often, brands take hashtag too seriously, and their caption is bloated with hashtags making the post unreadable and challenging to digest.

So, use only those hashtags that add meaning to your caption and are relevant and trending on Instagram.

4.  Include faces in your photos

More than brands or businesses, customers love the interaction with images with a face. As the human brain naturally wants to interact with people, including a face in your Instagram photos is a great way to grow your followers.

A face in a photo is enough to make your customers feel like they’re a part of your brand.

5.  Use keywords to appear in searchers

When it comes to the search feature, Instagram allows a customer to search based on the name and username.

The username is your Instagram handle, and making it in line with the name you use on other social media platforms can help you gain traction on this platform. Also, this can make it easier for people to find you.

So, if possible, use a name that people are more likely to use when searching for a product they require. To help customers reach your product, use a keyword for your business. Though keyword stuffing is not a good practice, it may work in your favor.

For example, most writers on Instagram use the keyword ‘writer’ in their username to help others search for their business.

6.  Use editing tools for your photos

The look and feel of your Instagram feed are as crucial as the content you share. From vivid bright colors to muted pastels to desaturated neutrals, whatever color palette suits your brand, use it to make your photos stand out.

You can always use the built-in feature of Instagram, but to leave a lasting impression on your customer’s use professional editing tools.

With a human brain wired to process images 60,000 times faster than text, brands that share vibrant and vivid images on Instagram are the ones that witness accelerated growth.

7.  Use a call-to-action to drive customers to your website

By now, you must be familiar with the fact that Instagram doesn’t allow clickable links in the caption.

So, how do brands drive customers to their websites?

Instead of using a link to your caption, focus on adding a link in your bio. Ask your customers to click on your bio to visit your website and learn more.

8.  Design an Instagram grid

Instagram grid is a great way to turn visitors into customers. When a visitor visits your brand for the first time and checks your profile, your grid is an opportunity to showcase your brand. A captivating and visually engaging Instagram grid can help in creating a lasting impact.

Instagram grid gives you a birds-eye view of the past posting history of the business.

From creating a checkerboard effect to committing to a color combo, these grids will likely make customers follow your brand. You can either choose the same color palette on your entire grid or have a different color on each palette.

Another great way of designing a grid is turning your posts into puzzles. A puzzle grid packs a punch and intrigues the interest of your target audience.

9.  Measure and track metrics

Simply spending money and time on marketing your business will not yield desirable results until you measure the performance metrics.

For instance, if your goal is to increase your brand presence on this social media platform, you may focus on increasing the likes you receive per post or increase the number of followers. Or, brands looking to increase their sales may measure the clicks back to their site.

Tracking helps you understand whether your efforts are meeting your business goals. You can even use different tracking tools to measure your performance metrics and understand what changes can result in a larger impact.

10.  Write long and compelling captions

Yes, you read the word “long.” When Instagram is a visual platform, you may wonder what’s the need to write long and compelling captions –they help you get more engagement and reach.

When writing captions on Instagram, remember that for anything above 125 characters, the user will have to tap “more” to see your full caption. So, create a caption that urges your audience to that extra tap. Try using emojis and different caption lengths to keep your audience engaged and interested.

Grow an Instagram following that accelerates your business growth

What was once a regular photo-sharing app has become a platform for providing an immersive experience that allows users to explore a company’s visual identity.

Armed with strategy, analytics, and high-quality content, you can use Instagram to take your business to new heights.

With these ten actional steps in your arsenal, building an Instagram following will not be that difficult.

Which of these ten steps are you planning to use?

Please share your thoughts with us!