In this age of instant gratification, one of the most common questions people have is: “How do I gain more real followers on Instagram for free”?
In case you’re one of those people, then you’re in luck! In this article, you’ll learn about a growth method which I PERSONALLY used to grow my Instagram account from almost zero to over 5000 ACTIVE and ENGAGED followers over the course of several years without spending a SINGLE DOLLAR!
Take a drink (or several), take a seat and let’s get going on a journey that’ll change your Instagram life forever!
This article was originally published on September 5th, 2022 and has been re-released on August 15th, 2023. The new version contains more information and has a better SEO compared to the original one.
Read: How to Remove Ghost Followers on Instagram WITHOUT Using ANY Apps
#1 – Introduction
The growth method that I’ll be describing in this article, the targeted following method, is a growth method where you’re sending follow requests ONLY to people that follow accounts similar to yours. This method is much better than the infamous follow/unfollow method because you … :
(1) … won’t be alienating people and/or ruining your reputation!
(2) … won’t get any action blocks and/or (shadow)bans – unless you’re overzealous!
(3) … will gain real Instagram followers, of which a significant number will be interacting with your content!
Before you start using the targeted following growth method, your Instagram account needs to be OF HIGH QUALITY and PUBLIC – if it isn’t, this method won’t work (very few people want to follow back an private account and/or one that’s composed of selfies)!
In the next section, you’ll see what you need to do to BEFORE YOU BEGIN using the targeted following growth method!
Read: How to Gain REAL Instagram Followers: The Definite Guide
#2 – What to Do Before Starting Out
Have a Nice Bio
When someone visits your Instagram profile, the VERY FIRST thing that person is going to notice is your bio! In order to make a KILLER bio which will leave people no choice but to hit that sweet Follow button, you need to ensure that it tells people, in a likeable and engaging way, WHO YOU ARE, WHAT YOU DO and WHAT KIND OF CONTENT YOU MAKE! Also, DO NOT hesitate to use emojis and other, more interesting (but easy to read) fonts in your bio!
As for your profile photo, pick one that you believe represents YOU and YOUR ACCOUNT the best – if you’re, for example, a car guy/girl, then pick a photo where you’re standing next to a car.
ensure that your pictures are of Decent quality
Since Instagram is a photo and video sharing platform, you’ll have to ensure that your pictures and reels are of decent quality. In order to ensure that they are (nobody wants to look at blurry, dark pictures) you’ll need to have a decent midrange smartphone or camera – in case you can afford a high-end one (or services of a professional photographer) then, by all means, go for it!
In my particular case, I have used a Samsung A51, a midrange smartphone (similar to the one in the image below) which I had bought before I started my Instagram journey. Although far from professional, my oldest photos on Instagram look decent enough (just like 90% of all photos on that platform) and I had no problems attracting followers using the targeted following method back then 🙂 !
have nice captions
No matter how awesome your image or reel is, it NEEDS to have some kind of message behind it – preferably one that PROVOKES POSITIVE EMOTIONS and SOLVES PROBLEMS some of your audience may be facing. That way, you will be able to create a much stronger relationship between you and your audience!
For example, if you’re using Instagram as an ugly to beautiful transformation journal, write inspiring (and fun) captions explaining how you’ve lost 5 kg this month and what you’ve learned from this. This tale of your struggle and eventual triumph will certainly capture people’s hearts and inspire some to start that journey themselves!
If you write long Instagram captions (like I do most of the time), remember to break them up into multiple paragraphs, so that they are easier to read! Nobody wants to read a wall of text, believe me! Also, don’t hesitate to use emojis to make it more interesting and fun!
No Too Much Selfies
Do you know what (aside from bots) annoys me the most on Instagram? Accounts that post selfies ALL the time! And I am quite certain that I am not the only one in that regard!
Don’t take me wrong…posting a (good) selfie from time to time is perfectly fine (like I did in the picture above), but posting them ALL THE time certainly isn’t! And you know from who this opinion is coming from? A millennial, believe it or not! (I’m 32 33 years old as I am writing this)!
Besides flooding your Instagram feed with selfies, also AVOID posting random pictures, over posting and ESPECIALLY virtue signaling!
Have a Nicely Designed Feed
The thing that you Instagram account needs to have before you begin using the targeted following method is a nicely designed feed that’s consisted of 9 photos/reels.
No matter what kind of Instagram feed you’re using (or are planning to use), you NEED TO ENSURE THAT IT STAYS CONSISTENT since our monkey brains love patterns – pick a few filters (there’s a plenty to choose from!), decide in which order are you going to use them and STICK TO IT NO MATTER WHAT!
As you can see below, my Instagram feed is a combination of monochrome and polychrome images. It is very simple to set up, quite uncommon and my followers find it very interesting! Feel free to “steal” it!
#3 – How the Targeted Following Method Works
Find People of Similar Appearance to Yours
After you’ve ensured that your account is ready, start looking for accounts of people that have physical characteristics similar to yours. Whenever you find such a person, add his/her Instagram handle to a list of lookalikes that you’ll write on a word processor (MS Word, Notepad and so on).
Keep looking until you find at least twenty lookalikes.
In my particular case, I would be searching for at least twenty Instagram accounts of bearded and black-haired guys of my race (white, of Mediterranean traits) and who are of similar build as me (athletic) like the guy in the picture below
“Tap” People
Once you found enough people, start “tapping” their followers, people who interacted with their content AND those they follow. In the context of this article, “tapping” means giving a like (and/or leaving a comment, if you so desire) on the LAST post of the person you just followed AND whose content you like. Now…you must be wondering…what’s the point of “tapping” people?
Let me explain.
When you “tap” someone, you’re letting that person know that you are a quality follower who will, in all likelihood, be interacting with his/her content. Because of this, many people will take your follow request more seriously, which will significantly increase the chance of them following you back. And that’s something you want, right 🙂 ?
On the other hand, if you start following someone without “tapping” him/her first…you’ll be taken much less seriously. And being taken much less seriously reduces the chance of being followed back! And that’s something you do NOT want!
While “tapping”, make sure that the number of the accounts you’re following DOESN’T exceed the number of your followers. For example, if you have 2279 followers, you shouldn’t be following more than 2279 people. If you do, that’ll reflect poorly on your account – many people who you “tapped” will ignore you since they’ll assume that you’re a spammer!
People You Shouldn’t “Tap”
In order to save your precious time, there are four types of Instagram profiles that you should avoid “tapping”.
The FIRST TYPE are private accounts, which are very easy to notice. Don’t follow them UNLESS you know them in real life!
The SECOND TYPE are Instagram accounts of various (semi)celebrities and other very popular people. These people usually have tens of thousands of followers (real or, in many cases, bought) and they tend to follow relatively few accounts – usually of brands, other (semi)celebrities and people they know in real life! Don’t expect a follow back UNLESS you’re one of those – follow them ONLY if you’re interested in their content.
The THIRD TYPE are Instagram accounts of people that you “tapped” less than 4 months ago (you’ll recognize those people by the “like” you left them when you last “tapped” them). In order not to get a block instead of a follow-back (there was a guy who I blocked because he was sending a follow request every 2 weeks or so) it’s important to give them time to forget that you’ve ever followed them in the first place. Be patient and “tap” them again after those 4 months had passed. Who knows…maybe they’ll be more receptive next time 🙂 ?
And finally, the FOURTH TYPE of Instagram accounts that you shouldn’t “tap” are those that are following 7500 accounts. The main reason why you shouldn’t “tap” them is because they can’t follow you back even if they wanted to!
Wait for Response(s)
After you’ve “tapped” possibly hundreds of people…wait at least 48 hours for their responses. Sooner or later, you’ll notice that … :
(1) … some people will follow you back AND return the like (or giving you lots of them, possibly even leaving a comment). Do the same and keep interacting with their content!
(2) … some people will follow your back…and that’s it! Drop them a couple of likes and move on. If they don’t start interacting with your content soon, don’t unfollow them – mute them instead. Unfollow them only if they unfollow you first!
(3) … some people give you a couple of likes (and/or leave a comment) but won’t follow you back. Return the favor and unfollow them once you start unfollowing people that did not follow you back.
(4) … that the vast majority of people, for one reason or another, won’t respond – there’s even a good chance that NOBODY will follow you back. Don’t get discouraged by this – that’s completely normal and it happened to me a lot of times! Just KEEP USING the targeted following method, KEEP IMPROVING your content and most importantly, yourself as a person and someday, some of those people are going to be more receptive!
Unfollow People That Didn’t Follow You Back
After 48 hours have passed, it’s time to start unfollowing accounts that did not follow you back. Don’t risk your Instagram account by using any applications to do this – the use of any tracking apps is EXPLICITLY forbidden by Instagram’s TOS:
This includes creating accounts or collecting information in an automated way without our express permission.
Instagram’s Terms of Use
You’ll have to do unfollow by using, shall we say, the…old fashioned way. So… click “following” on your main page, sort accounts by Date Followed: Latest and…unfollow away!
While unfollowing, it’s important not to be overzealous – don’t unfollow more than 50 every hour -if you do, there’s a chance you’ll either get an action block (you won’t be able to follow or unfollow anyone) or get banned temporarily (from 1 hour up to 30 days). Also…keep in mind that your unfollow limit per hour may be lower than 50 per hour if you’ve just started with Instagram OR been action blocked/ banned recently. Should that be the case, be extra careful!
As far as accounts that followed you back are concerned, DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT unfollow them – especially if they returned likes! Those accounts are going to be the key to your Instagram success (and you in theirs) and the last thing you want to do is to lose and alienate people running them forever – don’t be another imbecile that uses the follow/unfollow growth method – there’s too many of them already! In the video below, you can see Liam Neeson’s rection after someone unfollowed him on Instagram ( I assume that this person most likely had “dissapeared”).
If you unfollow someone by mistake…quickly follow them back. Also, give them a couple more likes (and/or a comment, if you’re fancy) as an apology.
#4 – Some Parting Words
While using the targeted following method, it’s important to realize that this growth method is NOT MEANT to be used in the long term because it’s MENTALLY DRAINING (there will be days when you’ll get PLENTY of new followers, and days when you’ll get LITERALLY NONE), TIME CONSUMING (you’ll spend HOURS targeting people) and because you WON’T BE ABLE TO FOLLOW MORE THAN 7500 PEOPLE – ITS ONLY PURPOSE IS TO BUILD YOU A SOLID FOLLOWER BASE for future growth.
If you TRULY want to become an successful Instagram content creator that’s followed by millions of people, you NEED to use ads AND to find a way how to monetize your account in order to cover their cost.
Thank you for reading. If you’ve liked this article and want to see more like them, make sure you bookmark this site and to follow me on Instagram!
Until next time.
Your man,
-Leon
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