The truth is, you need Instagram followers to engage with the content you are going to be posting daily. Another fact is you don’t need to spend an outrageous amount of money to get them or try to get fake Instagram followers.

Getting fake followers does absolutely nothing for your followers. It’s shameful to claim to have 40,000 followers, but when you post content, you are getting only four likes on a post; that’s a fraud alert! There are lots of genuine ways to get Instagram followers, and the best part is that you can do them single-handedly.

Let’s look at the right steps to take to help you get Instagram followers for free!

Get started with your profile

If you need a reasonable following and you are not a popular celebrity, then ensure your profile is on point. Most Instagram users check out an accounts profile before considering following them. Why?

Your profile gives a bit about your personality. Are you business-minded? Are you playful and carefree? Do you have a vision and purpose, or you there to waste people’s time?

If you are running a business account on Instagram, your profile should have your brand’s name, username, some of your goals, your website, and every other information the Instagram business account requires you to fill.

Uncompleted profiles rarely get followers, nor does profiles without a clear or unconvincing goal. Also, remember to have enough content which non-followers can go through. Ensure they are compelling enough to cause a follow. Also, highlight your best content to show at the top of your profile.

 There must be something exciting about your profile that will encourage non-followers to click that follow button. It all lies in your profile.

Create and post quality contents

The contents you post matters and the time you post it. You will not get followers if your materials are looking dull, blurry, and gloomy.

 One attribute of Instagram is the high-quality pictures and videos- quality is the watchword. Why do you think women are more active on Instagram? Because they love shiny things and Instagram is where they get to satisfy their cravings, be it by binging on pictures of beauty products, fashion items, or whatever picks their interest. But it needs to be shiny.

If you want to get more followers, concentrate on creating quality images and videos and interesting texts when necessary.  When your content is perfect, you’ll get an increased engagement from your followers, which Instagram’s algorithm will notice and give you a free promotion by expanding your reach, which translates to new followers.

Cross-promote your account

Let people find your account through other social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, and Pinterest. You can also share your Instagram link on your blog, website, LinkedIn, Quora, emails, and other social networks. The goal is to reach more people and make your account discoverable.

Seeing that most people would not follow your account because you said so, you need to add something attractive like a coupon code or tell them about the excellent content that is only available on Instagram.

Before promoting your Instagram account on other platforms, do ensure you have enough content that viewers can go through before deciding to follow your brand. Include some of your best Instagram posts on these platforms and consider promoting them to reach more people and get them to click on the link to your Instagram page.

Use your Instagram codes

You can even tell people offline to follow you and make it easy for them by using your Instagram nametag, which is a code people can scan with their mobile phones and follow instantly without having to use your Instagram handle. You can see the code when you tap the three lines at the top right of your profile.

Make use of hashtags

The hashtag is an Instagram thing. You can add up to 30 hashtags after your post on Instagram. And if you don’t want it to make your post look untidy, you can also hide it. Check out our article on Instagram hacks for marketers to find out ways to do it.

Hashtags help people searching for content related to your niche or Industry discover your posts or stories, and eventually,  your account through the hashtag bank on Instagram. Know the right hashtags to use when posting an image or content.

However, you need to be smart when using hashtags. Don’t fill your posts with only personal formulated hashtags. Preferably, search for popular hashtags related to your niche or industry with Instagram’s search option.

Avoid trying to get followers using hashtag gimmicks such as #likesforlikes and so on as it will only get you people who want a follow back and not those interested in your content or brands, which is the same thing as getting fake followers.

Get features

Search for Instagram accounts that feature other accounts by sharing their content and tagging their account handle.

Find out the feature accounts related to your business, especially those with a large following, and see how you can get them to feature your account on their page. Getting your account featured with a “follow this account” call to action text will send new followers to your account.

Follow and tag relevant users

Find users pertinent to your business, such as influencers, and follow them. When you follow them, they’ll get tempted to check out your brand and if your profile impresses them, you’ll have a follower.

You can find them out by using social listening tools to find conversations relevant to your brand. However, avoid following too many accounts, so your brand doesn’t appear desperate.

You can also tag relevant users through Instagram’s tagging or using the mention tag. You can tag an account to your Instagram story, and if they like the content, they’ll share it on their story and their followers will see it along with your username. If it’s interesting content, they’ll check out your user name and probably follow you.

Be consistent with posting

Post every day if you wish to get more followers. When you post daily, your followers will interact and engage with your content and their followers will see your content because of how often they interact with it.