How To Grow a Following on Social Media

Happy 2019, babes!

I know I’ve said this before, but I swear every single year just goes by faster and faster. 2018 was truly one of my BEST years yet, and I cannot wait to see what 2019 has to offer. Here is a quick overview of moments that stood out!

• Worked with some of my dream brands ( Anthropologie, Madewell, Sephora, La Mer, Amuse Society, Saboskirt, VICI, Olay, Lulu’s, Revolve, Neutrogena, Raw Sugar, T3Micro just to name a few! )
• Turned 27 ( truly has been my favorite age )
• Went to Coachella on behalf of a brand
• Did countless weekend trips with Brennan to Palm Springs, Santa Barbara, Big Bear, and San Diego
• Quit my job to blog FULL TIME
• Went to the Emmy’s with Dooney & Bourke for a 2nd year!
• Went to Mexico ( TULUM ) for the first time
• GOT ENGAGED
• Flew first class with Olay to NYC. One of my biggest *pinch me* moments to date.
• Hosted my first meet & greet
• Went to AMAZING events hosted by some incredible brands
• Ended the year with a ton of family time in Minnesota and California

Feeling SO blessed by the incredible ups and downs that we went through this past year, and am so excited to jump right into 2019!

I know it may seem overdone at this point, but I truthfully love making resolutions. This also may be linked with my obsession for planning things ahead of time and making lists…so here are a few:

2019 Resolutions and Intentions

• Continue to eat as clean as possible ( still not eating meat, and doing my best to cut back on dairy and gluten just to see how different my body feels )
• Workout everyday, even if this just means walking on the treadmill for 10 min! I’ve realized that my mind is SO much clearer even from just a 30 min sweat sesh, and it’s been revitalizing. I also started ending each workout with a sauna sesh so I can read, and I cannot tell you how good it feels. I feel so much more mentally ready to face the day after a quick 45 min-1 hour down in the gym!
• Define a daily process that works for me to stay organized, on-track, and proactive in my business.
• Develop a product – more on this to come 😉
• Stick to writing weekly blog posts!
• Travel as much as possible ( we’re headed on a huge road trip in 2 weeks and I can’t wait! Palm Springs, Arizona, and back to San Diego to round it out. It’s going to be a blast! )
• Push myself to meditate even though I find it difficult
• Continue to practice self-love in all regards

What are your favorite resolutions? I love hearing peoples’ goals so much!

Today’s blog post is very in-line with my resolutions after yesterday’s exciting announcement: my FREE GUIDE for the 5 Things Every New Blogger Should Know is officially LIVE!

I’ve been SO EXCITED working on this for a few weeks now and could hardly wait to get it out to you guys.

One of the most frequently asked questions I get daily on IG is how to start a blog, and what tips I have for new bloggers just starting out.

As much as I LOVE that you are all so eager to get started on your journey, or just strengthen your skills on the journey you’ve been on for a while now, it got to the point where I just couldn’t keep writing out the same tips anymore. I could talk on this topic for HOURS…it’s my favorite and I am so passionate about it. So instead of continuing to write out the same things over and over, I thought…why not give you a guide?! It’s been a long time coming, and I’m so thrilled that so many of you have already downloaded it!!!

PLEASE – if you have any questions at all, reach out to me! I’d love to elaborate or hear more about what my free guide may be missing if you have a specific question or struggle that you’re working on that I may not have covered. This will only lead to more valuable content for YOU!

If you follow me on IG then you probably saw my IG story question a few days back asking specifically what you struggle with as a new blogger. There were a lot of common questions, and I think the biggest topic of concern was how to grow your social media following.

Though all of the questions were good, and I plan to answer them all on here in the coming days – I wanted to start with this one because I myself struggle with this daily.First of all, let me just remind you that I’ve been doing this since December of 2012; I am currently at 48,285 followers on IG. I’m active on other social media websites as well, but I know that Instagram is always the main topic of discussion, so we’ll just focus on that for now.

ANYWAYS! I say this because I want you to realize that it’s NOT all about your following number. Though it is important, yes, I always stress that CONTENT and ENGAGEMENT are the two things you should be focussing on.

The followers WILL COME if you continue to post quality content and you’re focussing on engaging with your community.

It’s taken me 6 years to get to this point! And I still have so much more to learn, and so much more growth ahead of me.

I get it…it’s discouraging when you see girls grow (what feels like) overnight and land the brand deals that you’re desperate for…but I promise you that there is NOTHING WRONG with a slow and steady build.

I was able to go full-time at about 30k followers. There are quite a few things I had to do in order to ramp up to this, but I want you to know in your heart and deep in your soul that just because you don’t have 50k, 30k, 10k…does not mean that you are not killing the game and doing your absolute best.

Anything worth having in life takes time. If you want this to be your career, your end game, your main goal…then focus on the process. Work day and night on your brand, outline your goals, define your strategies, brain dump your biggest dreams with your business…take your TIME, and the followers will come.

And whatever you do, do NOT pay for a service that promises you followers or likes. Sure, it’ll be nice to see your numbers grow by the hour, but you can’t keep up with that forever. And I can assure you that brands take notice of this. Don’t forget that it will be obvious when your growth is constant and significant and then one day it just stops…or starts to go backwards just as consistently. It’s just not worth it, and it’s a lie to your community and the brands that are paying you to sell their product.

If this pep talk hasn’t made you feel better, I will list the things that truly helped me grow about 20k followers in 6 months (this is a big deal for me because it took a solid few years to get to 25k in the first place, so to nearly double my following in a fraction of the time has been incredible).

How to Grow Your Social Media Following

• Look at the content that performs well for you and notice similarities. Why are you followers liking and commenting on these particular photos so much? Location? iPhone vs DSLR? Witty caption? Relatable outfit? Travel? Really dissect what content outperforms others and keep that in mind as you are shooting future content.
• Use IG analytics and figure out when your highest engagement times are. Mine are 12pm and 6pm. All of my viral posts have been posted at either of these time frames, and have gotten me the most followers.
• The 1st hour of your photo is CRUCIAL. When you post, set aside time to comment back within the first hour and engage with people who don’t follow you from the explore page. Instagram favors this behavior and boosts your photo – sometimes landing it on the explore page.
• Dedicate some time throughout the day when you need a quick break to comment on photos that you like. Not just an emoji…that doesn’t count. IG favors accounts who comment 4 words or more. QUALITY comments over quantity. The more you comment, the more your username will be discovered.
• Be an IG stalker ( not REALLY but hear me out ). When you’re going through the discover page, if you don’t want to sit and comment on a ton of photos, go onto profiles and like the first 5-6 photos. I know that sounds kind of creepy, but it’ll get someone curious and they’ll go onto your page to see who the heck you are. If they like what they see, they’ll press the follow button.
• Always be testing. If something falls flat, just accept it and move on. If you LOVE the photo and it doesn’t get very many likes…who freakin cares?! Don’t delete a photo because it isn’t gaining as much traction. Your profile is a reflection of what you love; if you’re only posting things you think others will love, you’ll start to feel stagnant. Don’t lose sight of the feeling you get when you create something you truly love.
• Find out what YOU have that others don’t. We all have something unique to bring to the table – whether it be with our look, our styling preferences, our beliefs, our past, our personality, etc etc etc. Whatever IT is that you can completely own…do it. Because people are looking for fresh ideas, perspectives, styles, and everything else in between. Be yourself, not a copy of someone else you follow on social media.
• USE HASHTAGS, but use them wisely. I hate when people diss hashtags. “They look so ugly.” I’m sorry what?!??! If it’s going to help you grow organically, then do it. Just do it strategically. Comment a set of up to 30 hashtags on the 2nd comment and you’ll be fine. Also remember to have 2-3 different groupings of hashtags on hand so that you’re not using the same ones everyday – IG will flag your account if it thinks you’re being spammy. As long as you alternate your hashtags each day, you’ll be fine.
• Do your best to find your “aesthetic” and stick to it. People love an account that’s easy on the eyes when they come across it. If you need to buy a preset, then try it out! Otherwise use VSCO if you’re not ready to make the investment. Whatever you do, just try to keep it consistent so everything flows. I use the Mobile Preset pack from @doyoutravelpresets and it’s been a game changer for my content.
• Don’t try to make your life look so perfect. People LOVE when they can relate to someone online; share your struggles, your real life moments, your opinions, etc. Give people something to connect to. The days of the perfect feed with the macarons and latte art are dead. People want raw, real, genuine, authentic content. Empower them, make them laugh, make them cry, make them feel inspired. Don’t make them feel lesser of a person because their highlight reel doesn’t look anywhere close to yours.
• DO NOT play the follow unfollow game. There are a handful of people that do this to me and I cannot STAND it. I notice, and it does not make me want to follow you. It makes me want to block you. Not trying to be mean, just sayin! Besides…how mean is that to follow someone JUST so they follow you back, and then you turn around and unfollow them?! Literally makes no sense and is a waste of time. Spend that time engaging with photos and liking and commenting and loving on people you find on the gram!
• Always, always, always TAG things! The location, the brand, the photographer…you get it. Don’t be shy about tagging as many things as possible in the photo. People follow you because they want to know where you’re going, where you’re eating, what you’re wearing, and who you’re hanging out and shooting with! Let them in on your life and share alllll the details. Besides, that’s why you’re an influencer, right?! You’re influencing others in countless ways. So don’t hold back – tag it all! This will lead to a more engaged audience, your images will most likely be regrammed more often by brands, seen by other brands you may want to work with, and discovered by people visiting the area you geo-tagged! It’s a win-win for everyone.

That’s all I’ve got for now! Many of them may be a little ranty, but what can I say. I’m passionate about this topic, people! You asked, I answered 😉

Do you do any of these? Or do you have any other strategies that you think help in your growth? Would love to know!

Top: Show Me Your Mumu | Bottoms: Show Me Your Mumu | Sunglasses: Ray-Ban | Hat: Lack Of Color 

Photography by Emma Bahrton