It’s a common question – how do I get more followers for my business’ social media profiles?
More followers means more potential customers to market to, and that can mean more sales for your business. Unfortunately, it can be tough to grow your following. It’s even tougher to grow your following in a way that ensures you’re reaching real people who can become customers – not bots or uninterested follow-happy social media users who will never become customers.
In this guide, I’ll break down 26 ways to get more social media followers, spanning Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat.
Let’s get into it!
How to Get More Followers Tip #1. Coupons for Followers
One way to simply get more Facebook Followers is to offer coupons to your Page’s followers. You’ll simply want to post an image on your Facebook Page that highlights your discount offer and the conditions for receiving it (basically, you want to tell them that they need to show they’ve Liked your page to be eligible for the discount).
Obviously, this only really works well with brick-and-mortar businesses, as you’ll need to see proof that they’ve Liked your page when they’re shopping. Running this promotion for only a limited time makes it more urgent, increasing the chances that people will actually Like your page and come to your store.
How to Get More Followers Tip #2. Optimize post timing
Though Facebook no longer organizes its users’ News Feeds chronologically, optimizing the timing of the content you post can still have a large impact on the success of your Page.
Make sure you post at the times that will maximize your content’s reach and lifespan to help it reach more people, increasing the likelihood that you’ll get more followers. It’s important that you know your target market – the best time to post is when your followers are using Facebook.
Here’s a guide, but remember it’s always better to test than to trust:
How to Get More Followers Tip #3. Facebook Live
Live is an awesome content platform for any business using Facebook – it’s currently one of the best ways to maximize your Facebook reach. Why? Facebook likes to incentivize its users to use new media types and Live is no exception.
Facebook’s algorithm heavily prioritizes Live video, and that means any Live stream you create will almost certainly be pushed right to the top of your followers’ News Feeds. Creating a compelling Live video that’s engaging, exciting and easily sharable can help your business reach more people, helping to increase your Followers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #4. Reviews
Though Yelp might still reign supreme as the go-to place for business information, Facebook is hot on its heels. In many cases, it’s a close second.
As on Yelp, you want to paint the best possible picture of your business on Facebook. A big part of this picture is your business’ review score out of 5. To ensure this stays as high as possible, you want to encourage happy customers to leave reviews on your page. You can do this with a quick message in a receipt, or prompting your customer support people to send happy customers to Facebook for a review.
How to Get More Followers Tip #5. About page
Continuing from the previous point, having a reliable and informative Facebook About page can go a long way towards making your Page a good source of information for customers.
Keep your information up to date, including your opening hours, address, website and a little blurb about your business. This helps to increase your Facebook Page’s SEO and draws people to Like your page since it’s reliable for information.
How to Get More Followers Tip #6. Facebook Ads
If you really want to increase your Facebook Followers, sharing your page with people who are likely to be interested in your business is an awesome way to do it. Facebook Ads are the most reliable avenue to reach new people, and they’re great because it allows you to target people precisely to maximize the chances that you’ll get them to become Facebook Followers.
And the best part of Facebook Ads? If you take into account how much your time is worth, it might be cheaper to create an ad. You’ll get more bang for your buck.
How to Get More Followers Tip #7. Schedule posts
Maintaining a consistent flow of content is integral to showing page visitors that your Facebook Page is a good place to be and a Page worth liking. Whether it’s updates on the latest promotions, information about the latest products, or just posts that share your company’s culture, you want to keep your page up-to-date to maximize the chance that a visitor will like it.
To get a better idea, check out our article What to Post on Facebook: 20 Ideas, Examples & Strategies (2017)
How to Get More Followers Tip #8. Create high-quality content
When it comes down to it, Instagram is still a content-driven platform (and I’m very thankful for that).
But that means you need to ensure your content strategy is at the top of your Instagram priority list. No meaningful people (AKA potential customers) will become followers if you’re not sharing awesome content that they like. Take great photos, edit them nicely and new visitors will become permanent followers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #9. Use hashtags strategically
Instagram’s a prime platform to use hashtags – there’s a ton of them and they work well to help your posts reach more people. Using hashtags that are relevant to your content and your industry will help to connect you with users and accounts who are interested in your business and products, leading to an increased number of followers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #10. Tag influential accounts
Influencer accounts are a big part of Instagram as a platform. Whether this is single influencer or influential accounts (large-following accounts that post about a specific topic), tagging these accounts in your photos can cause your photos to show up on their “tagged in” feeds and increases the chances that it’ll show up on their followers’ Explore feeds.
Lots of these accounts also repost photos that are relevant to them. This can be a great way for your account to get featured.
How to Get More Followers Tip #11. Geo-tag photos
This isn’t the most effective way to get more followers, but geo-tagging your photos (and even your Story) is a decent avenue through which to reach local followers. Though people don’t often browse geo-feeds, local posts often show up in their Explore feeds or can be featured on a local Story, meaning your business reaches more local customers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #12. Run an Instagram contest
A contest is one of the best ways to promote your Instagram account to get more followers. A simple type of contest to run is to get potential participants to enter by liking and commenting on your contest photo, tagging two (or however many) friends, and following your account. This serves the purpose of increasing your followers and spreading your business and post to as many people as possible through comments and engagement. If you’re able to, partnering with another brand or an influencer is an awesome way to share this contest with even more people.
How to Get More Followers Tip #13. Post Story discounts
Your Story is a big part of your Instagram profile, and one that shouldn’t be neglected at all.
Though the content you post on your Story can vary widely, one way to use it to increase your follower count is to provide high value – for example, a discount or coupon code. Posting content as valuable as a discount shows anyone viewing your story that your account is worth keeping an eye on – and that means more followers for your business.
How to Get More Followers Tip #14. Host an influencer takeover
Like I mentioned, influencer marketing is an absolutely massive part of Instagram marketing. A strategy that leverages this marketing trend to help share your business with more people is to host an influencer takeover. Basically, you partner with an Instagram influencer, who highlights your products and your business, leading their (ideally relevant and targeted) following to your account. This serves the double purpose of increasing brand awareness while helping to drive increased sales.
**For more on Instagram influencer marketing, check out How Influencer Marketing on Instagram Became a $1B Market (Infographic)
How to Get More Followers Tip #15. Offer support
Compared to other social platforms, Twitter is the place for short, simple interactions with followers and customers. One awesome way to make your Twitter a must-follow for followers and customers is to offer customer support through your tweets and DMs. Sometimes, it can be difficult to find the proper channels for your customer support (social profiles often rank higher than a business’ actual website) – offering simple, quick and responsive support on your Twitter account will help you grow your follower count.
How to Get More Followers Tip #16. Use hashtags
Twitter is the granddaddy of hashtags. Just as on Instagram, using relevant hashtags to tag each of your tweets and attach it to a certain topic or trend can help you reach relevant people who keep a close eye on certain hashtags related to specific topics. I will mention, however, that hashtags can help you grow your follower count but might not help you find a ton of followers who would actually be potential customers. Unfortunately, Twitter is full of bots who auto-follow people using a specific hashtag – that means less real people and less real followers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #17. Interact with people you follow
One way you can generate real followers, however, is to interact with the accounts you follow. Respond to tweets, weighing in with your own thoughts and starting discussions, and you’ll start to build relationships with the people in your network. Meaningful interactions can lead to more followers. Though this isn’t the fastest way to do it, it is a way to get more followers without making compromises about the quality of these followers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #18. Use the “Who to Follow” list
If you’re really just out to boost your follower count as fast as possible, you can take advantage of the fact that many people just follow back people who follow them. A good place to start is using Twitter’s “Who to Follow” list, which is full of accounts that are relevant to your business and the accounts you already follow.
How to Get More Followers Tip #19. Tweet your blog posts
It can be hard to come up with a steady stream of good content on Twitter, but posting consistently (using the relevant hashtags) is a sure-fire way to maintain your follower growth. Use a tool like Buffer to keep your Twitter queue full. This allows you to keep your content rolling, and this maximizes the number of opportunities you have to reach new people and get new followers.
How to Get More Followers Tip #20. Run a Retweet contest
Similar to the Instagram contest type I mentioned above, running a Retweet contest is an awesome way to massively increase your Twitter reach. It’s incredibly easy to set up, easy for people to enter, and can spread your business’ Twitter account rapidly to legions of potential customers. One thing you should watch out for is bot accounts, who might just retweet your contest tweet without meaning to enter. Check to make sure your winner’s a real account once your contest is over!
Snapchat
How to Get More Followers Tip #21. Add your Snapcode to social profiles
It’s tough to get more Snapchat followers – increasing your Snapchat following requires people to manually add you, which can be a tough ask in a world full of lazy social media users. Adding your Snapcode to your social profiles is a great way to get people to add your Snapchat account. It greatly reduces the amount of time they need to spend to add your Snapchat account, as all they need to do is scan.
How to Get More Followers Tip #22. Post your Snapchat name on other platforms
Similarly, putting your business’ Snapchat name on your other social profiles (in your Instagram/Twitter bio, Facebook about page, etc.) will make it easy for followers to find and add your Snapchat account.
How to Get More Followers Tip #23. Post snaps on other platforms
One of the worst parts about using Snapchat as a marketing platform is that someone who isn’t already following your Snapchat account can’t actually access any of the content you post on the platform. To circumvent this, consider posting your snaps on other platforms (Instagram comes to mind) to help direct people to add your Snapchat account. You can do this in a few creative ways, including putting your Snaps in your Instagram Story or in a carousel post followed by your Snapcode.
How to Get More Followers Tip #24. Link to your Snapchat profile from content
Early last year, Snapchat actually added the ability to easily share your account with others using a simple URL: www.snapchat.com/add/yourusername. This URL loads your Snapcode in a browser, making it easy for desktop browsers to snap a picture of it (and add you) or to open the page in the app, automatically adding your account.
How to Get More Followers Tip #25. Add your Snapcode to store materials
Because a Snapcode is essentially a QR code, you can print it out onto store materials if you’re really looking to grow your following. This includes (but isn’t limited to) things like receipts, in-store posters, or even product packaging.
How to Get More Followers Tip #26. Host an influencer Story takeover
Similar to Instagram, Snapchat is home to a ton of influencers who have amassed dedicated Snapchat followings. Take advantage of these dedicated followers by partnering with an influencer to take over your Snap story, and advertise it in the days leading up on both your business’ and the influencer’s various social platforms.
Wrapping It Up
I’ll end this article with a word of caution: I don’t like using follower count as a way to measure your success on social media. At best, it’s an indication of the size of your fanbase – at worst, it’s a weak vanity metric that doesn’t really correlate with your business’ actual social media ROI.
That being said, more followers means a larger audience, and that means more people to market to. It’s never a bad thing – just make sure it’s not your only focus when it comes to social media marketing!
Good luck!
carlo