Fake it until you make it, or so the saying goes. But buying fake Instagram and Twitter followers is cheating, and you are eventually going to get called out for it.
During the last Fashion Week, I researched some of the so-called fashion bloggers. Most had an astounding amount on Instagram and Twitter. Fake fashion bloggers hack me off more than most. It could be because they lack any real style or the fact that they arrogantly prance around these industry events, taking selfies and posting to their tens of thousands of fake follower check. They are not adding any real value if they have no real influence.
Fake Instagram and Twitter followers, by my definition, are fake or dead accounts, and also real accounts from users in countries that have no influential value to the profile. Both of these types of followers are easy to buy.
There is no point in having tens of thousands of followers if they are meaningless. The value of someone’s social reach should be measured by their engagement, not by the total amount of followers they have. Quality, not Quantity!
SPOTTING FAKE INSTAGRAM AND TWITTER FOLLOWERS
Look at how engaged the user’s followers are. Are their followers commenting and liking posts? Are their followers part of the cohort you’re targeting?
There are a few ways to tell if someone has fake followers.
A SUDDEN SPIKE IN FOLLOWERS
Unless you’re Lorde and have shot to stardom in a super short amount of time, an unusual spike in followers can only be the result of a buying spree.
LOW INTERACTION WITH FOLLOWERS
I’ve seen Instagram accounts with over forty thousand followers, but each of their posts is only getting around 100 likes. The low engagement percentage shows that their influence on their followers is super low, and they most likely paid for the majority of their followers.
FOLLOWERS WITH NO PROFILE PICS
Another dead giveaway is followers with no account activity or profile pic. These accounts are ‘dead accounts’.
CHECKING FOR FAKE INSTAGRAM AND TWITTER FOLLOWERS
There are more and more tools coming out that help you see through the fakes. Here are ones I have found:
Don’t be tempted to buy followers. They bring you no value and you will be caught out!
Fake followers are easy to buy and very hard to get rid of.
Increasing your social reach should be part of your marketing strategy. Feel free to contact me if would like to discuss how to increase your social reach in a meaningful way.