Wouldn't it be nice to have tons of followers on Instagram? That's assuming your Instagram account isn't private.
And wouldn't it be nicer to have tons of likes as well?
Now the question is, how to get those followers and likes to follow you and keep them interested on your photos and videos?
I'm not particularly sure how and there's no easy way (except for paying to get followers at a hefty price offered by a few websites out there) but being active on Instagram for probably a year now, I've learnt a trick or two on keeping things interesting.
Here's how.
First of all, don't buy followers. They're mostly fake and they are what we call the Ghost Followers. You get the number of followers but if you check them out one by one, they probably have posted only a photo or two and usually are photos captioned with suspicious, too-good-to-be-true websites offering you a guaranteed number of followers and likes within a certain period of time. I really do not suggest you try them out because there's no knowing whether or not they're legit. Just don't do it. Really, don't. There's also applications and softwares like the autobots (bots) to auto like, auto follow-back your followers, auto unfollow and auto comment out there but for Windows and Mac respectively. My two cents, again, don't become a victim of internet phishing and scam. I'm sure Instagram's team would have figured out ways to detect the automations as soon as these applications hit the market.
Secondly, you gotta find your niche. Unless you're a supermodel or a celebrity, don't expect people to follow you just to see photos of your meals, selfies and unrelated friends because nobody really likes that. Well unless you and your bunch of friends are filthy rich and super good looking 'cause we know the world loves seeing how good looking people spend their cash, how tragic.
By finding your niche, I mean focusing on a topic or two and really devote your account for that niche. For example, you'll find several accounts out there posting pictures and videos of only women's fashion or fitness tips or extemely beautiful sceneries or the latest gadgets. By doing so, they are keeping their followers updated with the latest information regarding the respective topic and thus generates the likes.
Now the first two steps are what I call the strategy phase.
Next, the marketting phase.
And yes, marketting is for everyone, not just the blue collars sitting in their thousand-square-foot offices on the 37th floor. What I mean by marketting is hashtagging. For every photo or video you post, make sure to hashtag. Instagram has their rules and regulations for the limit of hashtags you can tag on a post. So make them count. Tag anything you deem most relevant. Eventually, if you keep it up, you'll get some loyal followers and likes. If you don't know what a hashtag is, you better do some wiki search and get your head into the game!
What to do after hashtagging your posts? Interact with your followers! That's a very important part from your side to assure them that they mean something to you. That you are grateful that they appreciate your photos and videos. Chat with them, reply to their comments and if you're a forward-planning person, hint a little on what's coming up next. You'll be surprise how loyal followers can be, well, loyal. A side note though, try not to be too defensive in regards to abusive comments. There's an option within Instagram that you can chose to block certain people if they bug you too much with abusives or scams, or even trouble to your other followers. Make sure you use it wisely.
Then, frequent but not over-the-top updates. Don't post ten pictures in a row 'cause nobody likes scrolling down their feed only to see your OOTD (outfitoftheday) in ten different angles or five of your hairdo before and and another five after a haircut! What I would suggest is to post a photo in the day time and another one to conclude the day. I usually post a photo on average every three days. Your followers may not be online at the time of your first post and your second post may just be able catch them at a better time of the day for them.
Last but not least, remember to follow me at @zellent for more updates! Oh and especially if you love super (extreme) macro shots! Just to be clear, I'm slowly shifting to a more personal-life oriented account and considering setting it to a private one soon. So, be sure to follow if you're interested in an airline pilot's life and some extraordinary landscape shots from thirty nine thousand feet. And oh, if you're an animal lover, especially dogs, check out Lola, my Pomeranian puppy! She's the most adorable puppy I've ever met. She's just the best!
And wouldn't it be nicer to have tons of likes as well?
Now the question is, how to get those followers and likes to follow you and keep them interested on your photos and videos?
I'm not particularly sure how and there's no easy way (except for paying to get followers at a hefty price offered by a few websites out there) but being active on Instagram for probably a year now, I've learnt a trick or two on keeping things interesting.
Here's how.
First of all, don't buy followers. They're mostly fake and they are what we call the Ghost Followers. You get the number of followers but if you check them out one by one, they probably have posted only a photo or two and usually are photos captioned with suspicious, too-good-to-be-true websites offering you a guaranteed number of followers and likes within a certain period of time. I really do not suggest you try them out because there's no knowing whether or not they're legit. Just don't do it. Really, don't. There's also applications and softwares like the autobots (bots) to auto like, auto follow-back your followers, auto unfollow and auto comment out there but for Windows and Mac respectively. My two cents, again, don't become a victim of internet phishing and scam. I'm sure Instagram's team would have figured out ways to detect the automations as soon as these applications hit the market.
Secondly, you gotta find your niche. Unless you're a supermodel or a celebrity, don't expect people to follow you just to see photos of your meals, selfies and unrelated friends because nobody really likes that. Well unless you and your bunch of friends are filthy rich and super good looking 'cause we know the world loves seeing how good looking people spend their cash, how tragic.
By finding your niche, I mean focusing on a topic or two and really devote your account for that niche. For example, you'll find several accounts out there posting pictures and videos of only women's fashion or fitness tips or extemely beautiful sceneries or the latest gadgets. By doing so, they are keeping their followers updated with the latest information regarding the respective topic and thus generates the likes.
Now the first two steps are what I call the strategy phase.
Next, the marketting phase.
And yes, marketting is for everyone, not just the blue collars sitting in their thousand-square-foot offices on the 37th floor. What I mean by marketting is hashtagging. For every photo or video you post, make sure to hashtag. Instagram has their rules and regulations for the limit of hashtags you can tag on a post. So make them count. Tag anything you deem most relevant. Eventually, if you keep it up, you'll get some loyal followers and likes. If you don't know what a hashtag is, you better do some wiki search and get your head into the game!
What to do after hashtagging your posts? Interact with your followers! That's a very important part from your side to assure them that they mean something to you. That you are grateful that they appreciate your photos and videos. Chat with them, reply to their comments and if you're a forward-planning person, hint a little on what's coming up next. You'll be surprise how loyal followers can be, well, loyal. A side note though, try not to be too defensive in regards to abusive comments. There's an option within Instagram that you can chose to block certain people if they bug you too much with abusives or scams, or even trouble to your other followers. Make sure you use it wisely.
Then, frequent but not over-the-top updates. Don't post ten pictures in a row 'cause nobody likes scrolling down their feed only to see your OOTD (outfitoftheday) in ten different angles or five of your hairdo before and and another five after a haircut! What I would suggest is to post a photo in the day time and another one to conclude the day. I usually post a photo on average every three days. Your followers may not be online at the time of your first post and your second post may just be able catch them at a better time of the day for them.
Last but not least, remember to follow me at @zellent for more updates! Oh and especially if you love super (extreme) macro shots! Just to be clear, I'm slowly shifting to a more personal-life oriented account and considering setting it to a private one soon. So, be sure to follow if you're interested in an airline pilot's life and some extraordinary landscape shots from thirty nine thousand feet. And oh, if you're an animal lover, especially dogs, check out Lola, my Pomeranian puppy! She's the most adorable puppy I've ever met. She's just the best!
