How to: Grow your Social Media Following

We’re all aware of the importance of social media. Despite its noted negative impact on our wellbeing, it seems that the creative sector can’t live without it, whether you use it to promote your brand or the work that you do independently. While no one should be obsessed over followers or likes (that never accumulates into anything positive) utilising social media as a free platform to showcase your work can result in potential work. It’s how fashion stylist and creative consultant, Alizé Demange, went from using it for interactions with friends to help her find clients. But ultimately, it’s inherently her. “My social media is a space where I can just show my own personality and what I’m interested in,” she explains. “As well as the things that I’ve done as a stylist.”

She now has over 20k followers on Instagram and over 37k likes on Tik Tok, which has led to brand partnerships as well as her usual styling work. She, like everyone else on these apps, has fallen victim to comparing herself with the picture perfect influencers on her screen. It’s led to her putting in some boundaries to stop herself from doing so. “A way of stopping it is making sure you have limited time on the app and being really selective about what you consume,” she explains. “If a certain page or conversation makes you feel uncomfortable or negative, mute it. It’s worth prioritising what makes you happen and having tunnel vision on the things that uplift you.” Need some tips on how to grow your social media presence? Read ours, that are backed by Alizé, below.

Be yourself

“Being as authentic as possible is what’ll make you grow your community,” shares Alizé – and she’s not wrong. It’s been consistently proven that being genuine in a hyper-curated digital space will earn you a loyal following, but how do you strike the balance between being honest and professional at the same time? Mix your professional content with something personal, to show there is a real person behind that account.

Consistency is key

While it’s common knowledge that regularly posting will help you accumulate followers, as Alizé describes, consistency goes beyond posting at the same time and date. “Be consistent with your content’s meaning, have some thought behind what you’re posting. Something that an audience can participate in is easy content for you to create and will help your engagement.”

Engage with other profiles

“What does really help is engagement with other people’s profiles and platforms.,” shares Alizé. “It really helps keep it flowing to your profile,” so regularly like and comment on other people’s profiles and you may get their attention, as well as a few of their followers.

Don’t become too obsessed with it

As getting consumed with getting more followers can quickly spiral, as Alizé says; “You have to let it grow organically.” Don’t stress too much about how long the process is taking, if you stick at it you’ll reap the benefits soon. But remember, there’s more to your career than the amount of followers you have!