People sometimes ask me what the hardest part of Instagram was for me. The honest answer is getting from 0-100 followers is extremely challenging and is usually the reason most people get put off the whole idea. Why’s it so hard though? Firstly Instagram is on to you from word go, checking you out to see if your account is real or fake. All of their action block rules are way stricter and because your account has next to no followers people are less likely to collaborate with you because it has no value to them. You have no followers. The way to get to 100 is to hustle. After that, it’s like a snowball effect. Every single new follower you get it will just get easier and easier and eventually you’ll be going through it so fast you’ll be amazed. On my best period I had 400 followers in one day and that was in a week going consistently on 300+ followers every day, and this was only on one page!
Now I’m sure you’re dying to get in to some tactical stuff so let’s dive right in to it.
0-100
Every follower is like a gold nugget to you. If you allow yourself to get stuck here you will make slow progress. It’s that simple.
Start by getting all of your friends to follow you and make sure you follow all of them too. If they’re willing ask them to give you a shout out. After that find accounts similar to yours and go ahead and like 5-7 of their posts and follow them. They will in some instances thank you for it by giving you a story shout out and a follow back. Make sure you follow people but never exceeding the safety limits. Try commenting on some posts. You’ll get good results by interacting.
At this point you’ll want to actually post quite a few photos. I’d say get 9 posts out as fast as you can but at very good quality so that people when they see your account get an idea of what it is you offer and do and then they’ll give you that golden follow. This is where your identity begins to get moulded.
It’s not just about getting followers but it’s also about keeping them. Make sure you engage with their posts and follow back people who follow you. Also make sure you post regular stories to keep people interested.
Getting that first hundred is tough and requires a lot of effort. It won’t just happen by itself so be prepared to spend a few hours on it.