How to Get 500 Followers on Instagram for Free
Six years after its launch, Instagram has grown into a massive online phenomenon. Today a majority of the top brands have adopted Instagram as part of their online marketing strategies. With 73% of Instagram users between 15 – 35 years old, this visual-content-sharing platform is great for reaching younger audiences. In fact, it's tailor-made for marketing because of the way images stick with us and evoke our emotions. Instagram only works though if you have a solid, engaged audience.
Keep reading to learn some tricks you can use to get 500 Instagram followers for free.
Link to your other social media accounts
To get people to follow you on Instagram, first you need to let them know your profile exists! By linking your Instagram account to your other accounts and profiles on various social networks, you can drive traffic from these other networks to your Instagram profile. Once your accounts are linked, every photo you post on Instagram can easily be shared with your followers on these other networks as well. This is a particularly effective hack for picking up free Instagram followers.
Some of these followers active on other networks who are also on Instagram are likely to follow you there as well. In addition, when your Facebook friends join Instagram, you will receive a notification. You can then follow them and expect some of them to follow you back. You can also simply ask your followers on these other sites to follow you on Instagram.
Use lots of hashtags
Hashtags allow you to reach new audiences outside your circle of followers and friends. You can think of hashtags as a way of indexing posts from across the platform with a certain keyword in one place. Anyone who searches for a particular hashtag can find you regardless of whether they follow you or not.
Research what hashtags people in your industry are using and put them to work for your account. You should also make use of hashtags that ask people to follow you. All the people using these hashtags are looking for followers, and will not hesitate to follow you, with the expectation that you will follow back. Some of these hashtags include #FollowFriday, #F4F, #Instafollow and #Followback. Using these hashtags, you can easily gain 500 followers on Instagram for free.
Make sure every post is relevant to your audience
Before starting out on Instagram, you should decide on a central theme for your account. You should then define who your target audience is and what they’re interested in. Once you get started, stick to this theme. Do not post images or videos that aren't relevant to your particular message. For instance, if the theme of your Instagram account is fashion, do not depart and start posting about food. This is a surefire way to lose followers.
Plan some shoutouts
This trick is based on reciprocation. As you grow your following, you can tag other popular Instagram users in your posts’ descriptions, comments and photos. This will help them expand their reach to your followers. Later, you can have some of these users give you shoutouts in their comments as well, helping you expand your reach to their followers. To be effective, you should exchange shoutouts with users who have a sizable and relevant following. You can also try reposting cool images from other users, so long as they align with your profile's key message.
Below you can see an example where a hair vitamin brand @sugarbearhair is receiving a shoutout from @kimkardashian, which put their brand message in front of her 77.9 million followers.
Ask followers to “tag a friend”
Encourage your followers to drive their friends directly to your profile by “tagging a friend.” The best way of doing this is by hosting a contest. To be eligible to win, people have to tag their friends by mentioning them using their Instagram handles on the comments section of your post. You can also do this by posting a photo with lots of people in it and asking your followers to help you tag those in the photo. This will expand your reach and drive a lot of traffic directly to your profile in a short time.
Fill out your bio
Having a fully filled-out bio will make your account seem more personable and will attract more followers. You should keep your bio short and precise, while at the same time letting people know the kind of content they should expect in your posts. Do keyword research and include the relevant keywords you find in your bio. If you have some favorite hashtags that are relevant to your profile, include them in your bio, as well as a link to your website.
Comment on other users’ posts
This is among the best ways of organically gaining followers. Once you comment on another user's posts, you will show up in their notifications, and naturally, they might want to check out your profile. If they like it, they will follow you. Users are more likely to follow you if you comment than if you just like a post. Commenting on others' posts also starts conversations and helps you build relationships on the visual-content-sharing platform. This is another great way to get 500 followers on Instagram free.
Bonus: Buy followers
When you buy followers, it makes people believe you are already popular. As a result, more Instagram users will be inclined to pay attention to your posts and follow you. This works because in situations where people feel uncertain, they check the actions and behaviors of others to help them make a judgment. For instance, if many of your peers like an artist you have never heard of before, you will want to listen to his music because they’re already popular. Obviously, buying Instagram followers isn't free, but it can be a good way to jumpstart your growth, which will allow you to add on organic followers for free later on.
Interested in learning more about buying followers? Check out this guide about the Pros and Cons of buying Instagram followers to learn more.
Date: July 26, 2016 / Categories: Marketing, Tips, / Author: Charlie Luck
