Reach 10,000 Instagram Followers by the End of 2021

without buying followers, employing cringe-y follow tactics, or spending every minute of free time staring at your phone.

If you’re a personal brand, entrepreneur, podcaster, or blogger looking to grow your Instagram following to generate more income for your business, then you already know you need some actionable growth strategies.

Really, it almost goes without saying...

You know your tribe is on Instagram. Most users in the US are on Instagram daily – if not multiple times per day. In fact, over 40% of women in the US have Instagram profiles! (According to the most recent Pew Research study.)

You know it’s not all about numbers, but it kinda is. No, follower count isn’t the only number that matters, and you can make a living on the leads generated from a smaller following than 10,000. BUT, sales is a percentage game. The more followers you have, the more potential for sales. There’s no getting around the math.

You know you don’t have to have the swipe up feature to drive traffic, but it would make things a heck of a lot easier! The Swipe Up eliminates one huge barrier, sending your followers to the exact place you want them to go. They won’t get lost wherever that link in bio sends them.

You keep posting and posting hoping the next one will be THE ONE that goes viral and bring you a flood of followers. But, if there’s anything that 2020 taught us, it’s that viruses are bad. (Forgive me. Understatement of the year, I know!)

You know something’s gotta change. I mean, doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity, right?

You know there are some growth strategies out there but they all feel inauthentic and awkward. Follow-for-follow tactics and “Check out my thing here” comments are gross. Social media is meant to be, well, social. The most effective strategies are based on genuine, Golden-Rule-following doing unto others. Serve first. Period.

Here’s What You Might Not Know

You don't need to win a popularity contest.

You are enough. I’m not going to tell you that you can build a community like that other Instagrammer because you can’t. They built their community around how they can serve others. You will build one around what you were uniquely gifted to provide, your hard-won expertise and knowledge. With over a billion users, there are more than enough followers to go around. You will find those who need what you got. And, dare I say, like you too. You don’t have to be Miss Congeniality, and you don’t have to change who you are to build a community on Instagram.

You already have all the tools you need.

The person with the prettiest pictures, most expensive branding, or fanciest video editing does not win. You may want to subscribe to a scheduling service or get a tool or two to help make the process easier, but they are not required.

You don’t need to spend hours typing with your thumbs.

With a strategic plan for growing your followers on Instagram, you can accomplish the important tasks that bring people to your account in 15 minutes a day.

You can have a flexible system built around your needs.

Forget all those charts that say when you need to post and all the experts that say you need to post in all the places, all the time. Only you know what works best for you and your audience. Creating a posting system and employing engagement strategies that work for you and your schedule is 1,000% more effective. Why? Because you can actually keep up with it. You won’t get overwhelmed and quit.

You can do it alone, but who wants to?

Building a social media following means being a leader. And guess where it’s always loneliest? At the top. You need a supportive group of community leaders to help encourage and support you along the way.

5 Reasons Why You Haven't Reached 10,000 Instagram Followers

1. You're not giving them a reason to follow you.

People go to your profile and the question in their heads is: What’s in it for me?

It's your account, but it's not about you.

If they look at your profile and can’t find an answer to that question immediately, you won’t get that follow, pure and simple.

If they look at your bio and it’s all about you and what you like, and then look at your first 9 posts and you’re only using “I” and “me” pronouns. They don’t feel welcome or included.

Tell them immediately what value you’ll bring to their lives in your bio and continually invite conversation and inclusion in your posts.

2. You’re not trustworthy.

The guiding principle in making sales (and gaining followers) is getting them to know, like, and trust you. If they don’t, they won’t follow.

What fosters trust on social media? The secret lies in four of my favorite “C” words:

Consistency + Content + Clarity = Confidence.

Consistently showing up for your following shows them that you care.

Creating content that adds value to their lives makes them want to come back for more.

And being super clear upfront about what you will provide and following through on that promise, post after post, creates confidence.

And, as we all know, confidence is sexy.

3. You’re posting but not engaging.

Social media accounts aren’t virtual billboards where you post your announcements. Billboards don’t invite conversation or community. Social media is meant to be, well, social. So don’t treat your account as a one-way communication vehicle.

Don’t hit "post" and ghost your following. People want to see a fun, engaging place to hang out. No one hangs out at a billboard for fun and your followers won’t either.

Instead, ask questions in every post, start conversations, use those question boxes in Stories, and be genuinely curious. You’ll get genuine answers and people who genuinely want to hang around for the next conversation.

4. You're spending your time comparison scrolling.

You may think you don’t have enough time to start focused growth strategies. You spend time on Instagram. I know you do. You mostly post, then scroll to see what others are doing.

What if you took that time and spent it actually connecting with and finding new members for your community?

There are places your people gather. In-person gatherings (remember those?) have been replaced with a different kind of gathering system called hashtags. Showing up at hashtag parties and adding valuable insights to the conversation. You also learn what they’re into, where they struggle and where you can be of service.

And, you don’t even need to delve into hashtags. Your followers will tell you exactly what they want if you take the time to ask them. Everyone wants to give their opinions. All you have to do is ask in your posts, Stories, videos, DMs – anywhere!

5. You’re trying to do this alone (or worse think you’re the only one who can do it).

Building a following means building a community and that can feel like a weight on your shoulders. It can feel like you have to keep feeding the machine content for it to be happy with you. With algorithms changing all the time and new features being added, it can be hard to keep up.

You need to find a support network of other community leaders to help you bear that burden. Not only can they be a support to you but they can support your community as well.

Collaboration is powerful. Finding other leaders that are running parallel to you and working together – whether that’s sharing each other’s posts, guest writing blog posts, or hosting contests – bring your communities together. You share the burden and both communities grow. It’s WIN-WIN-WIN!

Bonus Reason: You haven’t given it enough time (or put the time in).

Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither are strong communities. Building your followers by thousands takes months, even years. And each community grows at its own pace. All you can do is faithfully, consistently put in the work.

Introducing...

The 10 Months to 10,000 Followers Instagram Challenge

Learn and employ the growth strategies that will get you to 10,000 followers and earn you the Swipe Up feature on Instagram.

Hi, I’m Megan Ericson and my mission is to help you grow your social media following so you can grow your business. I'm a social media manager with over a decade of experience. I publish over 100+ posts per week for my clients on all the social platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, LinkedIn, and even TikTok.

Shh. Don't tell anyone, but Instagram is by far my favorite!

I’ve helped my clients reach and grow beyond the 10,000-follower mark on Instagram but have severely neglected my personal account in the process. I’m living out the proverbial cobbler’s children who have no shoes.

I decided that ends in 2021. I’m going to put all the social media growth know-how I’ve collected over the years, and grow my account to 10,000 followers and get that Swipe Up feature.

Like you, I have business goals and I want to do everything in my power to position my personal brand for success.

My personal superpower happens to be social media.

Immediately after making that goal, I realized it wouldn’t be any fun doing it all by myself, so I thought I would invite you along to do the challenge with me.

Just like training for a race, it’s always easier with friends.

You’ll gain a training buddy, but not just anyone, someone who has crossed the finish line before and will coach you along the way.

Earn Your Very Own Challenge Medal!

Let's be honest: Sometimes we only run the race to get the medal at the end, amiright? Every challenge participant who completes all 10 months of challenges earns their own medal.

We can't control how many new followers we gain, but we can control our efforts to accomplish that follower growth. That's why this medal isn't earned when you hit 10,000 followers. The medal is earned when you faithfully invest in your business and your Instagram growth day-after-day.

That hard work deserves to be celebrated. You can display your medal with pride!

BUT WAIT...

THERE'S MORE!

Bonus #1:

Private Coaching Session

When you register to join the challenge, you’ll schedule a one-on-one coaching session with me. We’ll review your progress and goals thus far and map out a plan moving forward. You can feel free to ask me any questions about where or how you’ve gotten stuck on Instagram.

$97 VALUE

Bonus #2:

Social Media Audit

I’ll review your Instagram account prior to our coaching session and provide you with feedback for your specific topic or niche, and how you could makeover your account to be super attractive for your ideal follower.

$97 VALUE

Bonus #3:

The Really Simple Instagram Reels Workshop

If you’ve seen those fun TikTok-style videos on Instagram, but don’t know how to make one, my workshop will teach you how to create your own Instagram Reels in one hour.

See this page for more details about the Reels Workshop.

$47 VALUE

The 10 Months to 10,000 Followers on Instagram Challenge is perfect for you if…

1. You just started your Instagram account because you have a business, podcast, or blog, and want to sustainably grow from the beginning.
2. You've been trying to grow your Instagram account for a while and are tired of seeing little to no growth month-after-month.
3. You're an entrepreneur who knows the importance of the Swipe Up to get the sale.
4. You're a blogger or podcaster and need a place to gather your community online and gather feedback that a webpage or podcast app doesn’t provide.
5. You’re a tenacious go-getter that’s willing to roll up your sleeves and put your thumbs to work gaining new followers.
6. You’re already investing 2 or more hours per week actively trying to grow your Instagram following.
7. You’re excited to get started growing your Instagram following alongside a supportive group of fellow community builders!
8. You’re excited to get one-on-one coaching from someone who does this every day and can help you make changes to your account that will attract new followers in the first 60 days.
9. You feel confident giving this challenge a try knowing you have 60 days to see growth, risk-free.

If you said “yes” to at least 3 of the above, I can’t wait to do this challenge alongside you!