12 New Insta Growth Hacks For 2020

We have all experienced the client that always want to grow their Instagram following.

Over the last two years, Social Media Managers and Social Media Agencies have found this to be easier said than done.

Thankfully, we know exactly how to make your business stand out, show off your brand, and get more followers on Instagram — so you can work smarter, not harder. 

We have put together a list of 12 things you can do to help grow your Instagram following:

1. Create an IGTV series

IGTV isn’t going anywhere for 2020 — in fact, we’re expecting to see a lot more brands jumping on board and getting creative with Instagram video. 

Jon Youshaei, Product Marketing Manager of IGTV, said Instagram is building an entire destination right in the Instagram app for people to go and browse.

“We’ve seen so many people go to this destination and find new content,” Jon says. 

For viewers, this means that they can intentionally browse and pick a video when they’re in the mood to really engage and pay attention — kind of like how you could browse Netflix to find the perfect program. 

So our top prediction for IGTV in 2020 is that brands will start using it as a platform for serial content, and viewers will turn into followers as they tune in for each new episode. 

To take advantage of this trend, Jon recommends having a “repeatable theme and style that your audience can expect in every episode.” 

2. Work with micro-influencers

If you’re looking to reach new audiences, Instagram influencer partnerships are by far the best performing platform for brands. 

With an average 3.21% engagement rate compared to 1.5% across all social networks, having a strong influencer campaign strategy is a real asset to brands looking to grow on Instagram. 

But it’s not just any influencers — brands are starting to sway towards building long-lasting partnerships with micro-influencers. Simply because, when done right, micro-influencer marketing works!

3. Write longer captions on your posts

If you’re looking to get more followers on Instagram, it’s time to let your audience in.

Instagram used to be all about the visuals — a cohesive aesthetic, high-quality photography, and on-brand images were a must.

But the biggest trend for 2020 is authenticity, with long-form captions that allow your audience to learn more about you, your brand, and your mission. 

And in 2020, our feeds will be filled with an average caption length of 405 characters — which averages out to be 65-70 words!

When you can share more with your community through your Instagram posts, you can build a stronger relationship with your audience (both new and existing). 

It lets your audience be involved, and behind the scenes of our business so you might find you gain new followers, and better retain the audience you already have. 

4. Appear in the related accounts suggestions on Instagram

This is a majorly under-utilized Instagram hack to grow your following — and one you should definitely try out for 2020! 

Instagram curates this list of Instagram profiles based on your interests, who you follow, but also based on that account’s activity. 

The Instagram algorithm can tell that we have a relationship with these brands and thinks that they would be of interest to anyone who follows Sociale Media Agency. 

You might also spot some of our industry competitors on that list.

That’s because Instagram knows we’re in the same industry based on the keywords we have in our Instagram bio, so recognized that we’re all in a related field, and might all be of interest to a new follower. 

5. Treat your Instagram profile like a homepage

If you want to get more Instagram followers in 2020 you need to pay attention to what your Instagram profile looks like as a whole.

Your feed is the first opportunity you have to make a great impression and entice people to hit the “follow” button. And since your Instagram profile is becoming as important as your homepage, you want to make sure it looks on point.

6. Post more video on your feed

Video is the future of Instagram and a ton of brands are now creating long-form video content for IGTV and their feed to drive real business results. 

IGTV is super-immersive and, thanks to some recent changes, more closely connected to Instagram so it’s easy to align your Instagram audience with your IGTV content. 

Plus, video content tends to get more traction on your feed — more engagement and eyes on your video posts could result in more followers! 

Thanks to the new IGTV preview feature for the grid, it’s even easier to double-up your efforts and make the most of your video content. 

7. Share more selfies (yes, really)

There’s no denying that Instagram is still a very social place. And people want to follow accounts that they can relate to, regardless of whether that’s a brand, influencers, or person they went to high school with.

So it’s important to make your Instagram account as personable and relatable as possible, and really show off what your business and brand is all about if you want to get more Instagram followers.

This all tied back to 2020’s biggest trend — authentic content! Plus, did you know that photos with faces get 38% more likes on Instagram?

8. Promote your Instagram content on other platforms

If you want to get more Instagram followers, it’s time to think about your Instagram strategy as a part of your wider marketing efforts and look at how you can grow outside of the Instagram app.

Instead, think about how your other marketing channels — like your website, email newsletter, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Pinterest — can lead your audience to your Instagram page.

Cross-promoting your Instagram content on other channels is a really easy way to guide your existing followers to your Instagram page (where they’re likely to tap follow as they already know your brand!) or introduce yourself to new audiences if they’ve found you from a different platform.

9. Create a custom Instagram Stories filter for your brand

“Augmented Reality,” or AR for short, may seem like space-age jargon, but it’s kicking off in a BIG way on Instagram. 

What started out as cute puppy ears or heart filters on Instagram Stories, has now evolved into a whole library of thousands of filters that level-up your stories content. 

Apart from the content and AR creators on Instagram who have used Facebook’s Spark AR Studio to create camera-effect, color grading, and fun face-altering filters, we’ve spotted plenty of brands getting on board the trend too. 

10. Collaborate with awesome brands

The power of a collaboration or a co-marketing campaign for your business is huge!

Teaming up with like-minded and complementary business and brands will introduce your profile to a new and engaged audience you may never have reached before.

So when an Instagram user discovers your profile through a co-marketing effort, they’re likely to hit that follow button if they have similar interests or are the right demographic for your brand.

Plus, co-marketing campaigns don’t have to be complicated or costly! What’s more important is who you partner with. You want to make sure that you have a mutually beneficial partnership and that both your audiences will benefit from your collaboration efforts.

11. Use a branded hashtag to create an Instagram community

Branded Instagram hashtags are a great way to help spread the word about your business, find content created about you by your followers, create a community around your business, and attract new followers. 

In fact, according to a study by Simply Measured, 70% of the most-used hashtags on Instagram have branded hashtags created by businesses.

A branded hashtag is a hashtag that’s unique to your business. It can be as simple as your company name, tagline, or the name of one of your products or campaigns. 

12. Create memes that resonate with your audience

Brands have realized the power of clever Instagram memes, especially when it comes to building brand identity, driving product interest, and getting more followers.

While most of us will immediately recognize a meme when we see one, nailing down a definition is surprisingly difficult to do.

In the broadest sense possible, a meme is any piece of media that passes from person-to-person on the internet. They usually have some kind of cultural relevance, they’re often funny or clever, and they typically feature a combination of text and imagery (this can be a photo, a GIF, or even a video). 

Remember it’s a combination of creative content, targeting the right audiences, and promoting your business in the right way. Try out some of these tips in 2020 and see how much your account can grow this year!