Why not to buy followers on social media
OK – so although this may seem like an obvious one – our latest blog focuses on the (many) reasons why you shouldn’t buy followers or use spam accounts to boost your likes on social media.
The idea of quickly gaining followers and appearing more influential online sometimes appeals to users, but here’s a great example of why you should stick to trying to engage genuine, authentic followers:
It had been speculated for some time that many companies and figures in the public eye were using spam-bot accounts to boost their social media followers. This all came to light recently when what has been dubbed the ‘Instagram Rapture’ happened unexpectedly overnight.
Instagram stripped users of all unreal accounts, having a substantial effect on many people’s follower totals. Celebrities were amongst the hardest hit – Rihanna lost 1.15 million followers, Kim Kardashian lost 1.3 million and Justin Bieber topped the rankings with a staggering 3,538,228 lost followers – almost 15% of his overall amount.
Not only did the ‘Rapture’ make users look slightly foolish, it also made them look deceitful and dishonest. It’s a prime example of the importance of an honest approach when it comes to social media.
Another reason why you shouldn’t buy followers or use spam-bot accounts is their negative effect on engagement values. Having a large number of inactive accounts skews your post / followers ratio, de-valuing your activities on social media and affecting your monthly reports.
Respectable follower numbers can instead be achieved by an effective social media strategy, based on steadily building a strong portfolio of regular followers who have a reason for engaging with you and are more likely to respond, like, share and retweet.
If you would like to discuss how you could build your social media following or if you are looking for ideas for a new campaign, call our social media team on 01709 300130 or email enquiries@dragonflypr.co.uk