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In today’s society, it is evident that obtaining a large number of followers has become one of the most important factors for people as well as companies to be successful in the social media. Since the platforms are still expanding and evolving, so does the algorithms which makes it a lot harder to garner a large and real audience. The situation has changed in September 2024 with the recent update of Instagram, and so, the ways that can help you gain more followers should be changed as well. In this article, we will also look at the new trends and how to grow your followers and also introduce you to tools like Soc-Promotion which have embraced these changes.
The Post-September 2024 Instagram Algorithm Update: What Changed?
Instagram has been one of the most aggressive social media platforms in the fight against inauthentic activity for years. In September 2024, the platform launched a major algorithm change that was focused on fighting fake engagement and fake followers. The main goal? To fight against bots, fake users, and buying followers that have been reported to have corrupted the platform.
Here are some of the key changes Instagram introduced with the update:
- Enhanced Bot Detection
The bots or fake accounts that try to follow users on Instagram will now be more easily detected and removed by the platform’s new machine learning models. The platform identify these fake accounts through analyzing account behavior, engagement and activity within the account. Consequently, the process of buying followers that used to be quite common has become much more challenging and dangerous.
- Tougher Consequences for Inauthentic Subscription
Formerly, using such tactics like buying followers or engagement, the accounts can be only suspended or banned permanently, but now there are some new penalties such as shadowban. With the current enhanced Instagram detection systems, fewer fake accounts penetrate the system and, thus, users are left with no choice but to concentrate on the natural growth.
- Greater Emphasis on Engagement Quality
Instagram’s new algorithm now focuses on the engagement rate instead of the number of followers. In other words, it is better to have few followers that are active than to have many followers who are inactive. Interactions such as likes, comments, shares, and saves of posts are considered more in ranking the account on explore page and in the feeds of the users.
The Decline of Follower Buying: Why It No Longer Works
Previously, a shortcut to buy followers was quite popular among companies and social media personalities. But with recent measures that Instagram has taken towards inauthentic activity, these services have become less useful. Fake followers are often detected and deleted and if an account is found to be interacting with bot accounts or fake followers it faces consequences.
Before the Sep, 2024 update, it was very simple to buy a lot of followers across various social media sites. A number of these services provided what looked like real accounts that could follow your profile, thus making it look like you have many followers. Nevertheless, such accounts were frequently bots or inactive users who did not contribute much to the interaction.
The new Instagram algorithm makes it much harder for such strategies to succeed:
- Low-Quality Followers Are Flagged: Now, Instagram has come up with a new system to easily distinguish between poor quality or fake followers. These are usually deactivated ensuring that the effects of the buying of followers are limited.
- Engagement Rates Matter More: It means that the number of followers is not enough to ensure success. Now, Instagram takes into consideration engagement rate, therefore, it is better to have active audience that engages with your content rather than having a large number of bot followers.
- Risks of Shadowbanning: Any account that still participates in buying followers will be in high risk of being shadowbanned, this means that the content that they post will not appear to other users.
Organic Growth Is the Future: New Strategies for Success
Well, since buying followers is out of the question in 2024, what strategies can businesses and influencers turn to in order to build up their Instagram following? Here are some key strategies to consider:
1. Focus on Content Quality
To get more followers you need to ensure that you are providing quality content that is relevant to your followers. This includes:
- High-Resolution Images and Videos: Since Instagram is a visual social media, quality content can be seen better in users’ feeds.
- Authentic Storytelling: It helps build a relationship when you share your story, mission or backstage content with your audience.
- Value-Driven Posts: Engage your followers and give them something to look forward to whether it is information, fun or motivation.
2. Optimise on Instagram Reels and Stories
To be precise, Instagram tends to promote those who use all the platform’s options actively. Reels and Stories alone are given a lot of importance as far as the visibility is concerned. This means that posting regularly great contents in these formats can help increase the reach of the account.
- Instagram Reels: Video content in a concise format is now trending, and Reels are Instagram’s version of TikTok. Make interesting and entertaining or educational Reels that will be more likely to be seen by a broader audience.
- Instagram Stories: Using Stories, you can post frequently, post about whatever you want, and ask your audience questions and involve them by using polls, quizzes, or questions in a box.
3. Interact with the Other Creators
Partnering with other influencers or brands will help in getting your profile to the notice of new followers. If you work with accounts whose audience is similar or at least related to yours, you can reach their audience and vice versa, while giving them something valuable. It means combining giveaway promotions, shoutouts, or shared posts to increase the audience’s engagement.
4. Optimize Your Hashtags
In the past few years, the hashtag algorithms of Instagram have shifted, but they are still relevant in the discovery process. Make sure to:
In this case, you should apply certain and specific hashtags in order to target users that might be interested in your post. Don’t use vague hashtags that are broad and have a lot of posts. This means that you should use both frequent, somewhat frequent and specific hashtags to ensure that you get as many views as possible.
5. Engage With Your Followers
Real engagement is now more crucial than it has ever been before. Reply to comments, like other posts, as well as via DMs or comments. This also helps in creating a community as it increases your engagement rate thereby making your profile more popular.
Soc-Promotion: The Best Way to Increase Your Followers Naturally
As a result of the most recent changes made to Instagram, most follower growth services are no longer effective. But there is one platform that has changed and even grew after the update and this is the Soc-Promotion. It has updated its procedure to meet the new algorithm of Instagram which has recently updated in September 2024, by providing its users a secure method to enhance their followers.
Here’s why Soc-Promotion stands out in the new era of follower growth:
- Completely Organic Growth: While other services that sell followers use bots and fake accounts, Soc-Promotion works with real and active followers. The platform allows users to identify and engage the right audience who are likely to be interested in the content being shared and the behavior of potential followers. This way you are sure that the people that are following you are real and they are interested in what you post.
- Tailored Targeting: Soc-Promotion’s algorithm has been changed to work based on the number of engagement and not the number of followers. It allows you to find out who is more likely to engage with your posts and, therefore, boost your engagement.
- Safe and Compliant with Instagram’s Guidelines: Thus, being compliant with the latest rules of Instagram, Soc-Promotion makes sure that your account won’t be penalized, shadowbanned, or banned. The platform does not let the user engage in any activity that is seen as inauthentic through employing the use of Artificial Intelligence.
- Detailed Analytics and Insights: Soc-Promotion has a tracking system that will help you monitor your progress, discover which kinds of material are most effective, and see which approaches are most successful. This way you are able to perfect your strategy and grow the subscribers list gradually.
Conclusion: Analyzing the trend of Instagram Follower Growth in Future
The shift in the growth of social media, especially on Instagram, was massive in September 2024. What used to be effective such as buying followers is now counterproductive and dangerous. Organic growth is the new way of building your online presence based on the quality of the content, audience interaction, and collaboration. Applications such as Soc-Promotion which have grasped these changes provide a risk-free and effective way to increase your followers’ number without violating the Instagram policy.
So, if you are an influencer, a small business or a large brand, wanting to grow your Instagram followers in the year 2024, it is going to require a bit of planning and strategy. Stay true to who you are, give your audience something they need, and know how to use resources to scale your channel without hurting it.
Therefore, based on the above guidelines and using tools such as Soc-Promotion you will be in a vantage position to foster the growth of a great community on Instagram and other social media platforms.
