Organic Instagram Growth – Update: 2022

I get so many questions from you on “How can I grow my Instagram?“, so I decided to make this blog in the form of a Guide, that would be my gift to you 🎁 

Although Instagram’s potential keeps fizzling out because of low engagement + competition from new platforms, like TikTok, seems that still everyone (me included) is looking for ways to grow their Instagram.

Here, I will share with you, some of the ways that are working for me, and my clients accounts, that will surely work for you, no matter the niche you are in.

The “Vanity Metrics”, like the number of likes only, is not the most important thing anymore! The number of people Reaching, is much more important than likes and comments (and that’s what brands are looking also, if you want more sponsorships). 🤑

Growing your following organically can be challenging, but it doesn’t have to be. In this blog, I give you 7 sure ways to take your Instagram game to the next level ⚡️

Let’s dive in!

1. What are the best Instagram hashtags for followers?

Let’s talk about hashtags. You probably already know that hashtags are crucial in making your posts discoverable and bringing in views on your posts. When used right, hashtags are one of the best ways to increase the reach of your posts and, hopefully, get more followers and engagement on your account. At worst, they’re like black holes—your post gets sucked into a content abyss, never to be seen by human eyes again.

instagram hashtag reach and strategy

Let’s look at why:

Popular hashtags vs targeted hashtags – which are better?
A hashtag with a million posts might seem great at first glance (who hasn’t been tempted to use a cheeky #NoFilter or #ThrowbackThursday?, but it’s actually very hard for your content to stand out with a hashtag like this.

The hashtags that will work best for you depend on the size of your account, your engagement, and your niche.
You should be aiming for hashtags that don’t have too many posts, and where the featured “top posts” have, on average, the same number of likes that you get on your own posts. 

2. 📲 How to write captions for Instagram

Writing good captions can be challenging. Who hasn’t spent more time than you’d like to admit trying to write the perfect caption, getting the tone “just right”?

A good caption can give you more likes, engagement, and followers. It can even drive traffic to your website and conversions for your business.

If there was a magic formula to captions, it would be this: a good caption contains elements of authenticity and storytelling, gives value to the reader (whether it be entertainment, education, inspiration or something else) and prompts the reader to take action with a strong CTA.

RELATED VIDEO TO WATCH 👇

3. 🌿 Your bio is your business card.

Think of your bio as being like a business card and storefront in one. People coming to your profile will decide whether to follow you in a matter of seconds, so the job of the bio is to convince them to do so.

The best Instagram bios have a few things in common: they give the reader a clear picture of what the page is about, include something that piques the reader’s interest, such as a relatable detail or humorous line, and prompt the reader to take a specific action.

Choose an attention-grabbing profile picture.

It seems obvious, but we’re going to say it anyway—choose a clear, attention-grabbing profile picture.

Let your audience know what to do with a strong CTA – Call To Action.

Don’t forget to include a call-to-action in your profile. Use the opportunity to direct people to your website, sign up for your webinar, download a freebie or use a discount code on your stories. 

4. 💫 Use Stories & Live Streaming to boost your Instagram growth.

Stories might be one of the newer features of Instagram, but they should not be left as an afterthought if you want to boost your Instagram presence.

Use the interactive features to engage with your audience, e.g. with polls and by asking questions. New features are being added constantly, so you’ll never be short of options.

They’re also a great way to fill in gaps in your content calendar—and to keep your audience engaged.

Here are some tips + tricks to get the most out of your Stories:

Tip 1: Use hashtags in your Stories to maximize their reach.

I recommend using the full 10 hashtags for a greater chance of getting featured. 

Tip 2: Use geotags to target (strategic) locations. 

Geotags allow you to tag a specific location in your Stories. Once tagged, your story has the chance to be featured in the hashtag’s highlight reel for 24 hours.


What some might not know is that you don’t always have to tag the location where you’re actually in. If you want to build your following in a specific location, you can tag the location in your story.


Try tagging a popular location, such as New York, to see if that brings in more
views. And just like with hashtags, if geotags don’t fit the look you’re going for with your Stories, you can hide them in the background or behind a gif.

Tip 3: Highlight your best Stories.

Don’t forget to add Stories to your Highlight reel in order to allow your followers to view the best ones even after they have been deleted after 24 hours. 

Tip 4: Tease your new posts in your Stories 

With the ongoing stream of content on Instagram, it can happen that some of your followers miss out on seeing your new posts in their feeds.
To promote a new post in your main feed, post the image in your Stories, but
cover a key part of the image with an emoji or gif.

instagram hashtag growth reach and strategy

⚡️Pro Tip

Remember that even more important than when to post, is that you post
consistently.

The truth is that growing your Instagram following is to some extent a numbers game—the more you post, the more chances you have to be discovered and followed by your potential and ideal audience, and the more engaged existing followers will feel with your message and your content.

It’s worth it to experiment with various types of content to see what resonates with your audience.

Remember that Instagram is about community! In the end, no amount of optimization will help if you aren’t consistently providing your audience with more content + kind behavior. Engage with them by commenting on their content as well.

Focusing strictly on numbers can also distract you from what’s really the core of Instagram (and all social media)—community 

RELATED: How I went from 9-5 to Digital Entrepreneur by Becoming a Freelance Instagram Manager.

Instagram Growth Hacks from an Instagram Manager
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Instagram organic growth 10k followers 2022
Instagram organic growth 10k followers 2022
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73 thoughts on “Organic Instagram Growth – Update: 2022”

  1. I really must try teasnig my next post in my stories. Great tips for boosting stories, I’ve been having such a huge problem in this area.

  2. Wow! It is work growing on instagram in 2020. Thanks for the hashtag tips. I thought it was good to use popular hashtags but now it makes since that those hashtags won’t be seen if it’s millions of posts associated with it. Time to do research!

    1. I used to do the same thing and got nothing from popular hashtags. It is really a research game as we all need to see where we can rank and be related. Good luck!

  3. Taylor Justin

    Great tips! As a blogger, I love learning these new tricks and can’t wait to apply them to my own IG.

  4. This is a great post! I’m trying to build my Instagram following and these tips are awesome, especially all of the info on hasthtags. Thanks for the post!

  5. This is great post! I will definitely be putting these tips to use. Thanks for all the wonderful detailed info!!

  6. These tips are so helpful! I love how in-depth the analysis of hashtags is. Sometimes it can seem like a daunting math problem! But it was simple how you mentioned we need to think about how we rank with the hashtag that we use.

  7. I find that I dislike Instagram, even though I have an account. I agree with the post that quality of followers is better than quantity.

  8. The Digital Vixen

    Hi,
    This article is great but it really seems like it’s a lot of work involved and quite time consuming… You really have to make time for it in order to reap results, lol… I guess ill have to put in the time ;-p

    1. I completely agree with you. It has taken me a lot of work. You can try applying them one by one, for only 10-15 min a day 🙂 it is worth a try

  9. There was a lot of great advice in this article. Instagram is something I’ve been trying to master, so I appreciate the breakdown on how to find good hashtags.

  10. What a superb detailed article on growing an Instagram account the proper way. I’ve just recently started focusing more on this platform and enjoy including many of the photos in my blog posts. Will definitely pay more attention to your recommendations – excellent post! 🙂

  11. This is really great information! I’m putting hashtag research on my to-do list ASAP and creating a few groups of hashtags to use. Thanks for this excellent post!

  12. These were extremely helpful! Thank you for taking the time to help other bloggers and people to grow their followings organically. It is not automatic, and it does in fact take work and time, but the payoff is much more sustainable.

  13. Thank you for sharing you knowledge and tips on growing! Instagram is difficult to crack for me and I am going to try out your tips! Thank you!

  14. hauteandcomely

    Instagram is becoming difficult to navigate I find. But these are so helpful. I’m trying to improve my engagement rate. This comes handy

  15. So much useful information. Thanks so much for a great read! And you’ve gained a new follower 🙂

  16. Thanks so much for all the tips! I am definitely going to start using stories more to increase engagement. Great article!

  17. I love how comprehensive this post is! Hashtags are indeed powerful and I’m constantly experimenting what are the best hashtags so I appreciate you breaking it down and how to use hashtags the right way. 🙂

  18. This post is very comprehensive, which I appreciate! Thanks for breaking hashtags down and how to use them the right way. I am constantly experimenting with what are the best hashtags to use so I appreciate you breaking it down.

  19. highly appreciate ! the author didn’t encourage people who wants to grow his/her instagram follower with the bot, instead of the more ” natural way” it seems to be the longterm solution.

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