When you’re just starting to build your business and brand, establishing your social media platforms can seem like an uphill journey. If you are starting from the ground up with 0 followers, you’ll be eager to get new followers quick.
Buying followers can provide instant gratification but in most cases, it’s never a good idea. For one, bought followers don’t engage and if your goal is to build your social media following up to boost brand awareness and sales, they are not going to buy anything.
Growing your social media following organically is the best route to go even though it can take some time. Here are a few key tips to keep in mind.
Start Following People Immediately
As soon as you create your social media page and fill out your profile completely, start following lots of people. You can start by following people who you already know. Then, just follow influencers in your niche or people who are recommended to you.
You can also search for common hashtags and follow people who use them. Once you start following people, odds are, some of them will follow back and become your first followers or likes for your fan page.
Commit to a Consistent Posting Schedule
No one wants to follow someone on social media who doesn’t even post updates so be sure to create an ideal posting schedule you can stick to so your followers are hearing from your regularly.
How often you post depends heavily on the type of platform. For example, on Twitter, you can post as many times as you want. It’s actually encouraged to post more on Twitter to increase your engagement.
On Facebook, it’s effective to post just once or twice a day and some people even find success by posting less.
You can schedule social media updates ahead of time to help your posts go live consistently. Free tools like Hootsuite, Buffer, and Later (for Instagram) are great to use. Tailwind and BoardBooster are tools you can use to schedule pins for Pinterest but they require a paid subscription.
Use Hashtags
This should go without saying, but if you are trying to build a following on Twitter, Instagram or even Facebook, you definitely include hashtags in your strategy.
Research what the best hashtags are to use for your niche and on each day of the week as it can help you connect with your target audience who will be more willing to follow you.
Share Other People’s Content and Tag Them
Your social media platforms are not just all about you. You can actually get more followers and engagement organically when you share other people’s content right along with yours.
If you see a funny meme or an interesting article that someone else wrote that you think your followers will love, share it on social media and see if you can tag them in the post.
If they see your tag, they might comment or like your post or even follow your page.
Focus on One Profile at a Time
Building your social media following organically is hard work and will take some time. This is why you might want to focus on implementing a strategy for one social platform at a time.
Focusing on just one platform will take a lot of pressure off you and allow you to get results quicker. Once you have a good system down, you can move on to the next platform and so on.
Summary: Be Patient and Strategic
A massive amount of social media followers won’t appear overnight if you go the organic route. You’ll need to make a consistent effort each day to put out great content and build your following.
Take your time and try out different strategies to see what works and what doesn’t work. Soon enough, you’ll have a loyal and engaged following you can depend on.
