Instagram has over 1 billion members. That makes it one of the most important social media platforms in the world. So, it’s no surprise many brands and businesses are looking to increase their number of followers on the site. The question, however, is: How does a business significantly increase its follower count?
Of course, buying Instagram followers is always an option. However, it’s not a solution that will benefit your social media marketing and business presence. There are plenty of services offering this opportunity. But few of them are reputable. And if they are legitimate, they still won’t provide you the audience or engagement you’re looking for. Let’s take a closer look at why this is.
Followers Aren’t the Most Important Analytics Tool.
First things first, followers are NOT the most important analytics tool on Instagram. Simply having more followers doesn’t mean more people will see your posts. That’s not how Instagram’s algorithm works.
Instead, Instagram bases its algorithm on the number of engagements your posts receive. When your followers aren’t liking, commenting, or responding to your posts, it’s unlikely anybody outside your existing followers will see them. Engagement causes your posts to show up in hashtag searches and other feeds. And searches are how your account reaches new audiences.
Of course, you might assume having more followers could lead to more engagement. And as far as organic followers go, that very well may be the case. However, when you pay for followers, it’s unlikely you’ll get the kind of engagement you’re looking for. Here’s why…
You Won’t Find the Right Audience.
First things first, buying followers on Instagram goes against community guidelines. Instagram wants organic interactions on its site. That means if the moderators discover you’ve been buying followers, your account could be suspended or even closed. Obviously, this isn’t in your best interest at all.
Moreover, when buying followers on Instagram, it’s unlikely you’ll wind up with followers who are legitimately interested in your content. Most of the accounts offered when buying followers are bot accounts, and bots are a big problem for Instagram. The company is taking serious measures to try and stop them. And, of course, bots are unlikely to engage with your content.
Also, some of the accounts might be fake accounts opened only for the purpose of selling followers. When the accounts close, you’ll have a large number of dead accounts following you. Again, this won’t help with engagement.
Why Your Audience Won’t Engage
All of this assumes you gave your credit card information to a company reputable enough to provide bots and dead accounts as followers. Of course, though, if your account is followed mainly by bots and dead accounts, you won’t have the kind of engagement you’re looking for. This could hurt your posts, not only in the algorithm. It could also hurt your posts with other community members.
Engagement not only helps with Instagram’s algorithm. It also looks good to potential followers. When you have 10,000 followers but only 3 likes on each post, that could hurt your brand. It looks like you paid for followers, which you did. And it looks like your content isn’t interesting.
Social media builds on sincerity and genuine interactions. Nobody wants to engage with an account that can’t create exciting enough content to retain followers. That’s why you should never pay for followers on Instagram. However, there are still some best practices you can use to market your brand on Instagram successfully. This leads to the kind of social media strategy that can build you an engaged following, ultimately leading to legitimate sales.
Looking to enhance your social media? Send us a DM, and we can discuss your social media brand strategy.
See Also:
Avoid Social Media Gimmicks for Long-term Growth
Caption This: Accessibility on Social Media, and Why it Matters
