How to get your first 1000 followers as a Creator (or business).
OK, I’m going to be honest with you for a quick second. Building followers is not easy. It’s not easy if you are a Creator, or even if you are a brand.
But there are several things you can do to grow that are well within your control.
They just take a little, consistent effort. OK, a lot of consistent effort.
But if it’s your business, then it’s worth it, right?!
These tips can be applied equally if you are a Creator or even a business just getting started on social media. A lot of business growth actions are the same for both Creators and businesses, that’s why we don’t segregate brands and Creators inside the Scrunch365 community. We believe we all win together.
1. Follow accounts that are in your niche.
If you plan on monetising your account, it’s important not to just think about the number of followers you have, but who they actually are. If you plan on selling your own products and services you’ll want to be more intentional about attracting a particular demographic of followers. So if you have that ideal follower in mind, you want to start following them. When you follow an account on Instagram (or any channel for that matter), they will get a notification. And depending on the owner of that account, they’ll probably check you out. If they see you are in the same niche/community then they might just follow you back. Rinse and repeat.
2. Engage with accounts in your niche.
It’s not just enough to follow your ideal audience, you need to engage with them as well. There’s a reason why they call it ‘social media’. Like and comment meaningful comments on posts that resonate with you in your industry. Again, when you do this, you will show up in the notifications of those accounts and they might just start following you!! Rinse and repeat.
3. Post consistently
Social platforms value quality content and consistency in posting. So the more you consistently show up and post great content, the more likely it will be discovered by new followers. Rinse and repeat.
4. Take advantage of hashtags
Different social channels have different rules about hashtags, but the point is you want to max out the number of hashtags on each platform to make sure you and your content are the most discoverable.
Instagram - 30 hashtags per post
TikTok - 3 - 5 hashtags per post
LinkedIn - 3 - 5 hashtags per post
YouTube - 3 - 5 hashtags per post
Facebook - 3 - 5 hashtags per post
Twitter - 2 hashtags per post
The best tip with hashtags is to use a combination of general niche/industry hashtags and more targeted/specific hashtags to your content/offer. Rinse and repeat.
5. Try new features - like reels
When social platforms release new features, they are usually doing it to compete with another platform. So they really reward users who jump on the bandwagon.
Try testing out a range of different features on a channel e.g if you are using Instagram try reels, carousels, posts, stories and lives. See what drives the most growth for you. Rinse and repeat.
6. Collaborate with other accounts
Collaborating with other accounts is a great way to get seen by an audience that’s already pre-built in your niche. Find another account that’s complimentary to yours and pitch ideas to work together… maybe it’s jumping on a live together to discuss a topic… or sharing each other’s latest blog article. Rinse and repeat.
7. Share on your other channels
If you already have an audience somewhere - a website, an email list, another social channel, even a personal profile… tell everyone on those channels that you’ve started the new account and that they can follow you there for different content. Rinse and repeat.
8. Get into the real world
When you connect with people in real life, you often want a way to stay in touch. Business cards are old school corporate… why not share your social media account?
Or if you are the one hosting an event, be sure to have your social media on a QR code so attendees can easily scan and follow you.
Rinse and repeat.
9. Be searchable
Most social platforms are now optimised for SEO (search engine optimization). This means everything about your profile - your name, your bio and all of your captions - should use relevant keywords for your industry so that you show up in more searches.
Rinse and repeat.
10. Advertise
OK, this one is a bit advanced… but if you want to shortcut your follower growth and you have an advertising budget consider using ads to grow on social media. The best tip here is to send your ads to some kind of FREE value that you offer (maybe it’s an eBook, or a checklist or virtual workshop), this usually has the best conversion rate.
Rinse and repeat.
Why do I keep saying Rinse and repeat? Because this isn’t a one-and-done task list. Each item should be implemented… and then implemented again until you see the level of success you are after… then it’s on to next level strategies to keep seeing growth.
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