How to get more followers on Instagram: 16 strategies
Written by Kelsey Herbers
Published on August 6, 2025
Reading time 13 minutes
Table of Contents
Many brands use Instagram as the foundation of their social presence since it can drive traffic, support sales and engage customers. But if you’re not thrilled with your Instagram marketing growth and engagement, you’re not alone.
Competition on the network is fierce, and cracking the code of Instagram’s algorithm can be tricky. However, taking steps to increase your audience is absolutely worth it. The bigger your audience, the more opportunities you’ll have to build brand awareness.
If you’ve been feeling stuck, follow these 17 strategies to learn how to tweak your online presence to get more followers on Instagram.
16 key strategies to get followers on Instagram (for free)
To be clear, this post is about building an organic following—and yes, the distinction matters.
Some brands turn to pay-to-play sites that help them instantly up their follower count for the right price, but these services aren’t worth it for brands long-term. The Instagram algorithm weeds out low-quality accounts and fake engagement from paid bots. Plus, these “followers” aren’t going to turn into paid customers or valuable referrers.
Growing your audience authentically gets you results that actually matter to your business: brand awareness, increased revenue and loyal customers.
Watch the video below and continue reading for best practices on getting more followers for your Instagram account (the right way).
- Schedule posts in advance
- Post consistently—and strategically
- Make your profile worth the follow
- Place keywords in your name, handle and bio
- Showcase your Instagram wherever you can
- Organize your stories as highlights
- Leverage short-form video content
- Go live on Instagram
- Create content that highlights your brand’s personality
- Use relevant hashtags and geotags to increase discovery
- Engage like your brand depends on it
- Engage with customers and brand advocates
- Collaborate to expand your reach
- Maintain a strong Instagram aesthetic
- Keep an eye out for new trends
- Continuously test your Instagram strategy
1. Schedule posts in advance
There’s no denying that brands rely on the Instagram algorithm for reach. Still, posting at times when your audience is most active can give your content more visibility and help you maximize engagement.
Sprout Social’s research on the best times to post on Instagram shows a correlation between time of day and engagement. This speaks to the value of scheduling Instagram content when your audience is most active or likely to engage.
Scheduling content like Stories, carousels, Reels and posts in advance ensures control and organization. Using Instagram scheduling tools can help make sure your posts go out at optimal times, no matter how busy you are. The ability to crosspost content from other networks helps here, too.
While the above posting times are true at a global scale, they might not match when your followers are online. To get more granular data, you can also use Sprout’s ViralPost platform, which analyzes your engagement history and identifies the most active times for authentic interactions. You can then publish content automatically or manually.
2. Post consistently—and strategically
Momentum matters in social media marketing. In other words, it’s tough to get more followers if you post sporadically. However, how often you post may not matter as much as it used to.
Today, quality trumps quantity. As consumer expectations shift toward authenticity and originality, brands that focus on connecting with their followers through high-quality content are more likely to stand out.
According to research from the 2025 Sprout Social Content Benchmarks Report, social media users consider how brands interact with their audience before deciding to hit “follow.” This gives you an opportunity to focus less on publishing and more time on meaningful engagement.
Posting less doesn’t mean doing less—it means making every post, interaction and partnership more purposeful.
If you’re still worried about visibility, consider how features like Instagram Stories can get more eyes on your content if it didn’t get the expected reaction the first time.
3. Make your profile worth the follow
Your Instagram profile is part of your brand identity and can act as a first impression. Make sure you’re putting your best foot forward by presenting a clean, professional look and the information audiences need to quickly understand who you are. You can do this by:
- Using your brand name and an appropriately sized logo to make your profile instantly recognizable
- Adding your location to push your profile higher up in search results for local audiences
- Writing an engaging bio with keywords related to your industry, products and services
- Including links that drive meaningful interactions, like specific product pages or a social landing page with additional link options
(Source: Instagram)
4. Place keywords in your name, handle and bio
If you want more followers, your target audience needs to be able to find you. One way to make your profile more discoverable is to add the right keywords to your account.
There are three places to focus on here:
- Your username (or handle)
- Your profile name
- Your bio (or description)
To create a search-friendly username, stick to either your brand name or whatever’s closest to your existing social handles.
If your name is too long, shorten it to a variation that your audience will recognize. For example, Cold Stone Creamery’s account is @coldstone. You can always write the full version in your profile name.
(Source: Instagram)
Next is your bio. You can use this space to add keywords related to your niche, industry, products or services.
(Source: Instagram)
The keywords in Peach Slices’ description make the skincare brand more likely to pop up for search terms like “K beauty,” “skincare” and “acne.”
5. Showcase your Instagram wherever you can
If you want more followers, don’t be shy about promoting your Instagram account on every network you have.
Here are a few smart ways to do it:
- Add social media icons to your website and emails. This makes it easy for people to find and follow your business.
- Embed your Instagram feed on your homepage or product pages. Many e-commerce and consumer brands have dedicated user-generated content (UGC) feeds to showcase real customer experiences.
- Repost your Instagram content on other social channels. For example, use TikTok or Facebook to talk about an upcoming Instagram Live.
(Source: Sony Cine)
Pro tip: Use Sprout’s social media scheduling and publishing tools to plan and share posts across multiple social media networks from one centralized dashboard. You can create a customized post for each social network within the same Compose box so you don’t have to duplicate them just to make small tweaks.
6. Organize your Stories as highlights
Ever created a killer Instagram Story that you wish could live on your profile forever? With Story highlights, it can.
Highlights are curated collections of expired Stories. You can organize them by theme or topic—such as Q&As, tips or events—to make it easy for visitors to quickly find relevant content.
(Source: Instagram)
Because Highlights appear at the top of your profile, Instagram users often check them before scrolling down to your posts. Think of them as a carefully selected portfolio that reflects the best of your brand.
7. Leverage short-form video content
According to Sprout’s 2024 Social Media Content Strategy Report, audiences want brands to focus on short-form videos (under 15 seconds). That means Instagram Reels should be on your radar.
Reels are fun and snappy algorithm gold. Use them to share tutorials, product highlights or quick behind-the-scenes peeks.
(Source: Instagram)
Since you only have a few seconds to grab attention, be sure to get creative. Add stickers, cuts, filters, music, voice-overs and transitions to craft trendy, eye-catching videos.
The best part? You can cross-promote these bite-sized videos on networks like TikTok to reach new audiences and attract more followers.
8. Go live on Instagram
Instagram Live is a powerful way to interact directly with your audience and build a sense of community.
Lives are great for product launches, candid chats and Q&A sessions. If you run an e-commerce store, you can even use them to let viewers browse and buy your products in real time.
Plus, you can repurpose Live videos by downloading them and uploading them to your Stories for up to 24 hours, giving followers who missed out a chance to catch up.
In the example below, Chipotle used Instagram Live to share a margarita recipe for Cinco de Mayo celebrations.
(Source: Instagram)
9. Create content that highlights your brand’s personality
Content that highlights your personality and the people behind your brand can help you connect on a deeper level. This includes:
- Inspirational content
- Humorous content
- Resharing UGC with unique captions
- Storytelling posts
- Behind-the-scenes photos and videos
- Posts raising awareness for social causes
Make sure everything aligns with your brand voice and values to avoid coming across as robotic or overly sales-driven.
10. Use hashtags and geotags to increase discovery
Location tags and hashtags are powerful tools on Instagram. They can help your target audience discover your posts (and profile) faster.
While Instagram hashtags have long been a staple on the network, how you use them matters more than how many you use. Dumping the maximum number into your posts isn’t going to get you any new followers.
The key to using hashtags is to focus on industry-specific tags that are relevant to your customers. For example, Lashify regularly posts to the #LashEducation hashtag, which is less general and competitive than #beauty. Becoming visible within niche tags can be a meaningful way to increase discovery.
(Source: Instagram)
Understanding how your hashtags perform is also critical. Sprout’s hashtag analytics tools give you direct access to in-depth performance and usage data to take the guesswork out of knowing which ones to use.
Geotagging is a smart way to attract local followers. Using geotags in your posts and stories makes your content visible to nearby users and those checking where you took the photo or video.
(Source: Instagram)
To tag the location in your Instagram Story, simply use the location sticker and type in the place you want to tag.
11. Engage like your brand depends on it
Instagram is perfect for conversing with followers. In fact, many popular Instagram post ideas center around asking questions and engaging in a dialogue. Off-the-cuff questions, shipping concerns or praise for products are all fair game from followers.
For example, coffee company Cometeer actively responds to customer queries in their comments, showing genuine engagement.
(Source: Instagram)
(Source: Instagram)
You’d be surprised at how much your follower count can increase once you start acting more personable.
Being responsive to comments, mentions and DMs shows your followers you care. You don’t need to monitor notifications constantly, but replying within a few hours during the business day can be a huge differentiator for how people perceive your brand.
Prompt responses not only show that you’re attentive—they also build trust with potential customers, as they know they’ll be able to reach you if they need help.
Tools like Sprout’s Smart Inbox make this easier by routing incoming messages from all social networks into a single stream so you don’t have to stay on top of multiple message centers. The Collision Detection tool makes sure you aren’t sending duplicate messages if multiple team members are responding to queries from the same account and at the same time.
12. Engage with customers and brand advocates
Figuring out how to get more followers on Instagram means engaging your audience, and user-generated content is one of the best ways to do that.
UGC campaigns create social proof and show followers you’re invested in them. For example, Drunk Elephant skincare regularly regrams posts from community content it’s collected through branded #DrunkElephant and #DrunkBreak hashtags. These reposts often spark further engagement, like congratulatory comments from other followers.
(Source: Instagram)
But don’t just wait for UGC to happen—spark it yourself by encouraging your customers to create content. Give them a reason to share. For example, you could run a Reels contest where followers show off your product in action. Winners might receive free merch and a feature on your page.
13. Collaborate with influencers to expand your reach
If you want more Instagram followers, consider teaming up with social media influencers and other brands that share your values. Collaborations open doors to new audiences and help you build trust quickly.
Working with influencers in your niche, especially those with small but highly engaged followings, can amplify your reach and boost your visibility. However, finding the right influencers can be tough. Not every creator aligns with your brand or has an authentic following (in fact, they might be bots).
The good news is that Sprout Social Influencer Marketing (formerly Tagger) makes this task easy by letting you use smart filters to sort through vetted influencers that match your brand. You can also check out Sprout’s free influencer database by industry, which is full of insights to help you plan your next influencer marketing campaign.
Strategic brand partnerships can also boost your Instagram engagement and inject a fresh perspective into your feed. You don’t have to limit yourself to your own industry—think about your audience’s broader interests to come up with creative collaborations.
For example, Uber Eats teamed up with Blueland, a sustainable home essentials brand, to let people buy the eco-friendly company’s products directly from the Uber Eats app. The campaign included a co-branded Instagram Reel to drive awareness.
(Source: Instagram)
When approaching potential partners, focus on mutual value. Start small—co-hosting an Instagram Live or sharing each other’s content—then build bigger campaigns based on your results.
14. Maintain a strong Instagram brand
Instagram is a highly visual network. If your images or graphics aren’t eye-catching or interesting enough, they’ll quickly become victims of subconscious scrolling. And, if they aren’t consistent in terms of color, formatting, imagery and fonts, it’ll be hard for your audience to recognize what content is yours in their feed.
But brand consistency isn’t just important for in-feed posts—it’s also crucial for your profile. Consistent visuals help you create a cohesive, well-branded account. Disorganized or clashing content can make your profile feel unprofessional and overwhelming, which may turn away potential followers.
15. Keep an eye out for new trends
Jumping in on new Instagram trends can help you reach new followers in a fun, authentic and intentional way. But because trends can come and go quickly, it’s important to keep an ear to the ground and watch for formats and features that are rising in popularity.
This may mean using trending audio, mimicking a viral video or simply joining the conversation by creating a Reel with your thoughts. Keep this content light and creative—trends are your chance to show your personality.
16. Continuously test your Instagram strategy
A lot goes into planning Instagram content. Choosing filters, captions, content types and post times doesn’t even scratch the surface. What works for one brand might not work for the next, especially with a constantly changing algorithm.
Finding the best follower growth strategy takes time. Experiment, take risks, make mistakes and learn from every interaction—they’re all part of the process.
Pay attention to which posts get more Instagram likes and shares, and try to identify the common denominator. The more you test and refine your strategy, the better and more follower-friendly your content will become.
How to grow your Instagram following with Sprout Social
Sprout helps social media marketers adopt a data-driven, intentional approach to gaining Instagram followers. This way, you don’t have to guess what to post or when.
Post when your audience is most active
Sprout’s Optimal Send Times feature automatically identifies several suggested times for you to post based on past engagement data. The times are suggested in the Compose box, eliminating the need to research your analytics every time you go to post.
(Source: Sprout Social)
Posting when your audience is most active increases your chances of engagement and expands your reach as they share your content.
Create smarter content, faster
With the help of AI, you can keep creativity and post inspiration flowing no matter how often you post. Sprout’s AI Assist capabilities help you generate multiple Instagram captions in seconds. Just drop in a link or a couple of ideas, and it will deliver different drafts that match your brand voice.
You can also generate posts based on your top 20 text posts from the past year to help spark original ideas that resonate with your audience. You can post these as-is or send them to the Compose tool for editing.
Instead of pouring your energy into writing each post from scratch, you can channel it into revising and optimizing your messaging to make the process faster and more efficient.
Keep your publishing strategy on track
Sprout’s social media calendar lets you map out your marketing strategy and content calendar in advance. Use one unified calendar to create a posting schedule across all your networks, then filter it to view only one network at a time.
This makes it easier to cross-promote content across networks, helping you attract new followers while making social media management a lot simpler.
Spot trends and hashtags that drive discovery
Sprout’s hashtag tracking tools within its social media analytics feature pinpoint which hashtags perform best with your audience, including which get the most engagement from non-followers. These insights help you fine-tune your content strategy to improve reach and visibility.
You can also use Sprout’s AI-powered Social Listening tool to track real-time conversations across millions of posts, so you can spot active trends and jump in on the action.
What not to do when trying to grow your followers
As the social space becomes more crowded and competitive, it can be tempting to take risks for the sake of instant results. But when it comes to building your Instagram following, some shortcuts simply aren’t worth it.
Don’t buy Instagram followers
Buying Instagram followers or likes might seem like a quick way to bump up your Instagram metrics, but it does more harm than good.
As social consumers get savvier, it’s easier for real followers to spot fake followers or bots. Privacy concerns and the rise of social scammers have made people hyper-aware of unusual activity, and a sudden spike in followers is a big red flag. This kind of surge can damage your reputation and hurt your long-term performance.
Also, fake followers don’t interact with your content, which drags down your engagement rate and signals to Instagram’s algorithm that your posts aren’t relevant. This could even lead to shadow banning, where your content becomes invisible to non-followers without warning.
Worse, buying Instagram followers violates the network’s terms of service. Meta has taken direct action against this practice in the past, including shutting down companies that sell likes.
All of this also rings true for follow-for-follow schemes. Following other profiles with the expectation of being followed in return might boost your numbers temporarily, but it typically leads to lower engagement and the same risks tied to suspicious activity.
How are you growing your Instagram following?
Getting more followers on Instagram isn’t going to happen by accident. And despite what you might have heard, there’s no silver-bullet solution.
Sustainable growth comes from consistent, data-driven strategies that attract an engaged, authentic audience. With a powerful publishing and analytics platform like Sprout, putting those strategies into action becomes faster and more effective.
Sprout’s platform supports Instagram audience growth through content planning, smart scheduling and performance analysis. Features like Optimal Send Times help you post when your audience is most active, while robust reporting tools surface insights about your top-performing content, hashtags and engagement trends.
Start your free 30-day trial today to see how Sprout’s suite of tools can help you build a stronger, smarter Instagram strategy.
FAQs Around Gaining Instagram Followers
How to increase Instagram followers?
Growing your audience authentically gets you results that actually matter to your business: brand awareness, revenue and loyal customers. Here are top 5 strategies to gain Instagram followers for free:
- 1. Optimize your Instagram account
- 2. Develop a solid content strategy
- 3. Engage with your audience and build relationships
- 4. Utilize tags and hashtags
- 5. Collaborate with influencers and other brands
How can you optimize your Instagram account to gain followers?
Here are a few tips on getting new new followers:
- Choose a professional profile photo
- Place keywords in your name, handle and bio
- Organize stories as highlights
- Add your location and relevant links
- Showcase your Instagram wherever you can
How to develop a content strategy to gain new followers on Instagram?
Here are a few content strategies to get new followers on Instargam:
- Schedule Instagram posts in advance
- Keep a consistent content calendar
- Have a strong brand and Instagram aesthetic
- Leverage short-form video content
- Post content that followers actually want to see
- Go live on Instagram
How can you leverage tags and hashtags to increase Instagram followers?
Location tags and hashtags are powerful tools on Instagram. They can help your target audience discover your posts (and profile) faster.
Here are three strategies you can leverage tags to grow your following:
- 1. Find hashtags where your followers hang out
- 2. Use geo-tagging to attract local followers
- 3. Leverage hashtag analytics tools to spot trends and gain insights
Can influencers help increase followers on Instagram?
If you want more Instagram followers, consider teaming up with other influencers can be a great way to reach new audience and increase followers on Instagram. Collaborations open doors to new audiences and help you build trust quickly.
Below are a few ways to expand your reach with partnerships.
- Find and work with influencers in your niche
- Partner with brands that are similar to yours
- Leverage influencer marketing tools to find best influencers & brands to collaborate.
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