{"id":32137,"date":"2024-02-21T01:00:39","date_gmt":"2024-02-21T08:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/?p=32137"},"modified":"2025-02-27T22:51:13","modified_gmt":"2025-02-28T05:51:13","slug":"what-are-followers-on-instagram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/what-are-followers-on-instagram","title":{"rendered":"What is an Instagram Follower? Explained"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Instagram followers. What are they? <\/span><b>Why do followers matter? <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re new to the world of social media and have always wondered what people are talking about when they say, \u201c<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I got a new follower<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">,\u201d you\u2019re not alone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many people join the platform every day.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And with nearly <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1.4 billion<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> daily active users, you can gain a <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">huge following on the platform<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No one has yet to hit 1 billion followers, but some of the world\u2019s leading celebrities and sports stars do have hundreds of millions of followers.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong><span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">What is<\/span> an Instagram Follower?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>A Instagram<\/strong> <\/span><b>follower<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a user who saw your post and profile and actually clicked \u201c<strong>Follow<\/strong>\u201d on your account. It sounds simple, right? But it\u2019s actually a big deal. When someone follows you, it\u2019s a commitment to continue seeing the content that you post.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, followers are very important for creators of all kinds: <strong>individuals, business owners, singers, artists, photographers and everyone<\/strong> in between.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Why are Followers <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Important?<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b>You know what a follower is, but <\/b><b>what does it matter?<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Who cares, right? Followers are huge because:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> A follower has chosen to see your content on their feed. When you open the Instagram app and see content from people you follow, it\u2019s only displayed because you\u2019re following the creator.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> You have an immediate connection with followers, so they will see your most recent content. If you\u2019re a business or brand, this is a touchpoint that can lead to immense sales and brand recognition.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Engagement from these followers is often higher, allowing you to leverage your hard work and effort to go viral. If you have 10,000 followers, you\u2019ll have 10K immediate people who may see and engage with your content without finding it on the Explore page.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Followers are crucial for anyone who wants to be an influencer or make their social accounts into a marketing machine for their business venture. Direct connections via follows are crucial to your success online.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Of course, you\u2019ll come across different follower types, and there are high-value and low value followers.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Brand followers, or people who follow brands because they\u2019re interested in their products or services. If you follow Nike, you\u2019re a brand follower. You&#8217;re staying up to date on the brand and what they have to offer, but you\u2019re not expecting to connect with the brand on a deeper level.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Community followers, or people who follow hashtags or certain people. You may follow Jay Cutler not because of who he is, but because he represents the fitness community. You seek knowledge from him on fitness, and while he may post a handful of personal posts, most fall within the fitness community. You can also follow hashtags, but this is slightly different.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Fake followers, which are easy to spot. You can use a <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/instagram-fake-followers-checker\">fake follower checker<\/a> to identify these accounts, but they\u2019re easy to spot because they\u2019re often obviously fake pictures or empty profiles. These followers often follow thousands of accounts and have very little followers of their own.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You&#8217;ll also come across what people call \u201c<strong>passive followers<\/strong>.\u201d If you\u2019ve ever been on a person\u2019s profile often but never engage with their posts, you\u2019re a passive follower. You&#8217;re not adding value to the person\u2019s account, nor engaging with it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But you do follow the person and want to see what they post in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, we have <\/span><b>active followers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. You want to have as many active followers as possible because these are the accounts that engage with you. Consider these followers \u201c<strong>fans<\/strong>,\u201d because they will:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Share your posts<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Leave comments<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Like your posts<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A follower who is active is very serious about what you\u2019re posting and will be an asset because they\u2019ll help your account grow. You want to have 100% active followers, but it\u2019s almost impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>How are <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Followers Different<\/span> from Following?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Followers. Following. <\/span><b>What&#8217;s the difference?<\/b><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><\/td>\n<td><b>Followers<\/b><\/td>\n<td><b>Following<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Definition<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The people who follow your account on Instagram.<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The accounts that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">you <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">follow on Instagram.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Likes and comments<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Followers can comment and like your content.<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can comment on and like the content posted by accounts you follow.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Content viewing<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Followers can view and interact with any type of content you create<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can view and interact with any content posted by people you follow.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Account growth<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Followers help your account grow, especially when they engage with your content.<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The accounts you follow can inspire you and help you create new, unique content.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Monetization<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">More followers give you the opportunity to generate revenue through sponsored posts, affiliate marketing and merch sales.<\/span><\/td>\n<td><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The accounts you follow are an opportunity to connect and collaborate.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><b>A <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/difference-between-instagram-following-and-followers\">follower and following are two different things<\/a>, although they sound very similar to one another<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. In short:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Followers are the accounts who have chosen to follow you.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> Following are the accounts that you chose to follow.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you review the chart above, you\u2019ll see that there\u2019s a very distinct difference between a follower and a following.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While you can have, as far as the world knows, an unlimited number of followers, you cannot follow more than 7,500 accounts. You may also be following hashtags, such as \u201c#savethebees,\u201d which means that any time a person uses this hashtag, it will show up in your feed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want to follow a hashtag, it\u2019s a great way to stay in the loop on topics and trends while not having to follow dozens of accounts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Some of the topic hashtags on Instagram that you might want to consider following are:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> #love<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> #fashion<\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> #photography<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Should You Have <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">More Followers Than Following?<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b>Instagram\u2019s algorithm doesn\u2019t care if you have fewer followers than following<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. But from a brand- and image-building perspective, it\u2019s generally better to have more followers than following.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Because when you have more followers than following, it means that your content is interesting to many people in your niche. When you have a large following, it\u2019s much easier to attract even more followers because you already have an established audience that gives you credibility.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>What is the Ideal <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Followers vs Following Ratio?<\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your <a href=\"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/followers-to-following-ratio\">follower-to-following ratio<\/a> calculates how many followers <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">you have compared to the accounts that you follow.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s say that you have 100,000 followers and you follow 1,000 accounts. Your follower-to-following ratio is 100, which is relatively high. On the other hand, if you follow more accounts than you have followers, your ratio will be low.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>So, what\u2019s the ideal ratio?<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-list\" style=\"margin-left:0px\">\n<ul>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> For businesses, 10 is a good start.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> For personal accounts, 5 will suffice.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> For influencers and content creators, you want to aim for a ratio of 10-30.<div class=\"su-spacer\" style=\"height:10px\"><\/div><\/li>\n<li><i class=\"sui sui-chevron-right\" style=\"color:#5339D3\"><\/i> For mega-influencers or celebrities, the ratio should be 30 or more.<\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Will <span style=\"color: #5339d3;\">Following People Help<\/span> You Get More Followers?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><b>Following other Instagram accounts is a great way to get more followers.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> When you follow an account, the user will get a notification. When they get that notification, there\u2019s a good chance they will check their account and your profile.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your content looks interesting to them, they will likely follow you back.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many Instagram users will automatically follow people back, so this can be a great strategy for getting more followers.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Summary<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">An Instagram follower is a user who follows your account. They will see the content you post in their feed and will be notified when you go live. Most Instagram users want to grow their followers, especially if they are building a brand or running a business. The more followers you have, the more opportunities you have to monetize your account, grow your influence and increase your reach.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Wondering what an Instagram follower is? Find out everything you need to know about Instagram followers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":32282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[76],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-instagram"],"acf":[],"modified_by":"John","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32137","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32137"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32137\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38049,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32137\/revisions\/38049"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/viralyft.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}