In an oversaturated social media landscape, capturing attention and growing an audience on Instagram feels like an uphill battle. You‘re not alone – over 200 million businesses and counting compete for eyeballs on the platform daily.
Between pesky algorithms, shifting trends and competitors playing dirty, simply keeping up on Instagram can feel impossible. Just look at the stats:
- 32% of brands say engagement has decreased in the past year (HubSpot)
- Only 1.7% of followers engage with the average post (Trackerify)
It‘s no wonder that 56% of marketers name Instagram their most challenging network to grow and manage.
But desperate times call for smart solutions – not shortcuts.
In this post, we‘ll separate Instagram growth fact from fiction to help you build real community and impact – the right way.
The Problem: Quick-Fix Instagram "Growth" Services
Frustrated business owners and influencers alike have fueled a surge in promised Instagram growth services. Just Google "Instagram growth service" and 10 million+ dubious results appear.
These self-proclaimed "growth hacks" tout things like:
- Auto-liking and spam commenting
- Follow/unfollow bots
- Click farms for fake views
- Bought followers
The appeal is obvious. Who wouldn‘t want instant, magic bullet followers and engagement?
But these short-term vanity metrics lead to long-term disaster:
- Account Bans: Any service using bots, spam or other clearly prohibited tactics risks permanent suspension. And Instagram‘s AI is cracking down hard.
- Compromised Security: Sharing your login details exposes you to hacking, stolen content and PR crises.
- Ruined Reputation: Fake growth signals low credibility and quality to real users.
- Poor ROI: Even with more followers, engagement rates tank. And without engagement, no growth strategy delivers value.
Simply put, any Instagram growth service making big promises through shady practices should raise major red flags.
So how can you grow your Instagram the right way in 2023? Let‘s explore proven organic growth strategies, and alternatives to dangerous quick-fixes.
The Smart Solution: Safe, Sustainable Growth Tactics That Work
While growth hacking tactics offer overnight vanity metrics, legitimate growth takes time, effort and patience. But the rewards are worth it.
There are no real shortcuts, but plenty of proven strategies to build your community, trust and engagement over time:
Leverage Existing Followers
Start by activating the audience you already have:
- Share User-Generated Content (UGC): Content created by real fans and customers shows social proof and authenticity. Plus it saves you content creation time!
- Run Contests/Giveaways: Encourage followers to like, comment and share for a chance to win prizes. Incentivize engagement.
- Go Live: Instagram Lives keep your brand top of mind and humanize your business. They also boost discoverability in Stories and Reels.
- Send DM Offers: Deliver special, exclusive deals and content directly to loyal followers who opt-in to messaging.
Optimize Your Content
Engaging, high-quality content is still king on Instagram. Step up your content game with:
- Stunning Visuals: Eye-catching images and video that your audience loves and engages with.
- Strategic Reels: Fun, snackable content designed for the vertically scrolling, short attention span Instagram feed.
- Intentional Themes/Series: Cohesive content buckets focused on specific topics, campaigns or hashtags.
- Clear, Conversational Captions: Write like you‘re talking to a friend to drive comments and reactions.
Tap Into Instagram Insights
Learn directly from your audience using built-in analytics:
- Leverage Instagram Insights: Monitor when your followers are most active, plus your top-performing content. Then do more of what works!
- Analyze Engagement: Identify your most engaged followers and what posts resonate to guide your content.
- Review Comments: Feature followers in content, answer questions, respond to feedback.
- Send Surveys: Instagram Polls and Questions stickers provide quick opinions to inform your approach.
Network With Influencers
Partnerships, cross-promotion and influencer marketing amplify your reach:
- Find Nano/Micro Influencers: Every niche has smaller influencers hungry for brand deals under 5k-100k followers.
- Run Promos On Each Others‘ Accounts: Co-market giveaways, contests and activations together.
- Do Takeovers: Let an influencer post unique content and engagements on your Instagram Stories.
- Pay For Shoutouts: Negotiate sponsored Instagram posts and Stories promoting your brand.
Go Beyond Instagram
Use your full marketing mix to build buzz that drives Instagram growth:
- Website Content: Blog posts, guides and resources to attract organic search traffic.
- Email Nurturing: Promote Instagram content and engage subscribers.
- Paid Ads: Sparingly use paid search, social media and display ads to supplement organic efforts.
- In-Real-Life Activations: Tie Instagram into live events, trade shows, campus marketing, etc.
- PR Outreach: Pitch your Instagram content to media for added exposure and credibility.
Vetted Instagram Growth Services That Boost (But Don‘t Break) Results
While dodgy Instagram growth services should be avoided, legitimate professional services can provide a helpful boost while adhering to Instagram‘s guidelines.
These services won‘t work overnight miracles, but use proven growth frameworks and automation to supplement your organic efforts:
Growthoid
Growthoid kickstarts growth through tailored outreach and relationship-building with relevant accounts by real people – never bots. Set up an account manager for ongoing growth strategy and support.
Pricing: Starts at $49/month
Growthsilo
Growthsilo specializes in AI-powered mass Story watching to expose you to expansive new audiences without risking bans. Plus robust analytics help optimize your approach.
Pricing: Starts at $49/month
Trusy
Trusy takes a 100% organic approach of leveraging micro-influencers and UGC to build genuine brand love and community. Great for sustainable growth.
Pricing: Custom quoted
Upleap
Upleap‘s starter packages help kickstart momentum with easy auto-liking, following and engaging with relevant accounts. Use their free trial to test it out.
Pricing: Starts at $49/month
Combin
Combin‘s claim to fame is their intelligent content planning and UGC curation features to keep your Instagram thriving with fresh content.
Pricing: Starts at $49/month
Ektor.io
Ektor offers sophisticated security and risk monitoring to ensure your Instagram growth adheres fully to terms and avoid bans. Ideal for high-profile accounts.
Pricing: Starts at $247/month
Task Ant
While not a full service, Task Ant provides an invaluable AI-powered hashtag research tool to amplify your reach. Just $9.99/month.
The Takeaway
Growing an engaged audience on Instagram in 2023 takes time, creativity and patience. But legitimate growth services can provide a helping hand if used judiciously.
Focus on quality over quantity. Nurture real connections. And keep fine-tuning your visual content and messaging.
The rest will follow. Literally.
What strategies have you found most effective to grow your Instagram? I‘d love to hear what works for you in the comments!
