Updated 23 July 2025 at 12:44 IST
From 0 to 10K: How New Creators Are Hacking Instagram Growth in 2025
New to Instagram in 2025? Learn how to grow your account from scratch and beat established creators with this step-by-step growth guide.
Not everyone has had an Instagram posting schedule since 2012. In 2025, hundreds of new content creators are joining the platform, hoping for success.
If you are one of these new content creators, know that you can also grow your Instagram account from scratch. Many others are already doing so and even overtaking well-established content creators.
The following guide will show you how to grow on Instagram in 2025, no matter your current follower count.
What Instagram Looks Like in 2025
Unsurprisingly, Instagram users are more diverse than ever before, and by default, so is their content. The algorithm is very busy prioritizing this content based on authenticity, value, and engagement.
Furthermore, organic growth is at the order of the day, especially when combined with paid follower strategies.
Using paid and organic strategies is one of the best ways to increase follower numbers on Instagram in months, not years.
This, along with building a strong Instagram community and creating a target audience, is allowing content creators to see incredible success in 2025.
A Case Study in Hacking the Instagram Growth Curve
The easiest way to highlight how to grow on Instagram in 2025 is through a general case study. You can apply any niche, but for this exercise, the niche is DIY sustainable fashion.
The gist of the case study is growing to 10,000 Instagram followers in seven months. The case study will explore how content creators achieve this using a mix of content formats, paid-for-engagement, and tried-and-trusted organic Instagram growth methods.
How To Get More Followers On Instagram
Nate Summers, Head of Instagram Growth Research at Blastup, calls the 2025 approach to Instagram growth 'visibility stacking.'
He reiterates, "Visibility stacking in 2025 celebrates small growth success across content formats to build momentum. It is not about pushing ads, but about delivering relevant content consistently to the right audience."
The Growth Blueprint to Go From 0 to 10K Followers
The core Instagram method to follow for growing an account from 0 to 10K in months includes the following main steps and actions.
Blueprint Example
Step | Action | Outcome |
1. | Attract a fashion-forward, eco-conscious Gen-Z audience aged 18-30. | Create consistent content and industry-specific hashtags |
2. | Write a purposeful bio, create a memorable Instagram handle, and add a website or e-commerce page link. You can alternate with multiple links if possible. Mention your other social channels and your other brands, if relevant. | Builds a positive first impression |
3. | Ideally, post daily feed posts and Instagram stories. Additionally, post four reels every week (as a start). | Builds frequency and indicates post consistency to the algorithm |
4. | Mix broad hashtags with brand-relevant ones and add three to five of them to each post. Captions must be short and sweet. | Improves search results for your profile. |
5. | New content creators can benefit from a collaboration with established content creators. Start with mini-takeovers or product launches to draw attention. | Collaborating with others is a great way to tap into a wider ideal audience. |
6. | If you want to promote a specific post, product, or service, a paid boost strategy can get you the engagement you need. | More potential to go viral and draw new audiences |
7. | Make the most of the paid boost by creating posts using engaging content ideas. | Engaging Instagram content can help build a wider, organic audience. |
8. | Track engagement rates, likes, follows, comments, video views, saves, etc. | You can fine-tune your content based on this information. |
9. | Keep doing what works; discard what doesn't. | Constantly optimize your Instagram content via Instagram insights and follower feedback. |
Reels and Viral Content = Growth Hacking
If you want to grow your Instagram followers even faster, focus on posting reels. Reels are one of Instagram's best features for growth, as they boost in-feed visibility. Your followers can view your reels in the Explore and Reels tabs.
Moreover, viral content ideas usually come from well-performing reels. This means you can keep an eye on what your competitors are doing reels-wise and put your own spin on it.
As soon as you have a viral reel going that is also visually appealing, you will get traction fast.
For case study purposes:
● Filming 15-30-second fashion DIY clips must hook viewers within the first three seconds. This can be achieved by adding an enticing title like 'DIY fashion upcycle hack.'
● Always add subtitles, since many viewers prefer to watch with the sound off.
● Keep clips as short as possible without losing the core message.
● Growing on Instagram is easier with videos that viewers will watch to the end.
Carousel Posts and Educational Posts
Post consistently, especially carousel and educational posts, regardless of the content topic. Remember to add keywords as they relate to the topic.
For instance, educational posts on upcycling jeans are likely to receive both saves and shares. This can result in a wider audience engaging with the content and following the content creator.
Carousel posts are great for adding multiple tips to one post, and these tips can form part of evergreen content that you can reuse in reels or Instagram stories.
So, if your topic is 'building a capsule wardrobe' and you get 1,200 saves and 1,000 likes, you will draw at least a handful of new followers.
Plus, the saves and likes will fuel the Instagram algorithm to push your content further. The more visible your content becomes, the more followers you can gain.
Stories and Engagement (Grow on Instagram: Build Your Community)
When you repurpose your content into stories, you can build an even stronger online community. And, you can build this community quickly by turning new followers into active fans.
Stories allow you to create hype around your content - countdowns, polls, quizzes, and questions.
A topic like DIY sustainable fashion will be red-hot in Q&A sessions and useful for making behind-the-scenes clips.
You want your followers to be part of your process, whether it's making sustainable clothes, inventing new ways to write content, or simply sharing hacks that make life easier.
Follower Growth Milestones
As you work on growing your followers, set achievable goals along the way. The content strategy you use will get people to your profile.
Still, you need more than that to actually grow your follower numbers. Also, you need to keep tabs on how well these numbers are growing.
With Blastup, you get a two-in-one solution. Not only can you buy follower packages to grow your Instagram account, but you can also track the number of followers you get using the website's Instagram follower counter.
The best way to incorporate Blastup into your follower growth is to buy followers and build on this base by attracting more followers organically.
Throughout this process, you can check your progress on the Blastup website by entering your username on the follower counter page.
When you submit the form, you will get an instant update on your count as it stands, and the numbers will update every couple of seconds.
Why Use Blastup's Follower Counter?
Once you experience Instagram follower growth with Blastup, you can track which of your content strategies perform best.
Blastup's follower counter makes it easy to see when to tweak posts and when to leave them as is.
You will notice trends while using this counter, helping you understand your audience better as you grow on Instagram.
What Not to Do When Growing Your Followers on Instagram
The most important thing to remember when creating content is that you are creating it for a specific audience. This audience consists of real and active Instagram users.
When you buy Instagram followers, you also get an instant audience consisting of real followers. But this is only true when you buy from a reputable platform.
If you start taking shortcuts and buying from exceptionally cheap platforms, chances are you will end up with fake followers and bots. This will not only hurt your growth on Instagram but also your personal brand.
Only buy from platforms with a solid reputation, such as Blastup. This way, you can be sure that you gain followers who can interact with your content,
These real followers can also boost your organic growth strategies.
A Potential Growth Timeline to Aspire For (How to Grow on Instagram in 2025 | From 0 Followers)
If you follow the above strategies, the following timeline is attainable.
Keep in mind that this timeline is not a guaranteed achievement because of all the factors that play a role in growth, including niche, reach, engagement, and more.
This timeline is something new that content creators work towards over six months while populating their Instagram feed with content that appeals to their audiences.
Timeline Example
Month | Activity | Potential Followers Gained |
1 | Set up an Instagram account, define your brand, install Instagram scheduling tools, and post your initial content. Use paid boosts for important posts. | 500 |
2 | Plan three weekly reels of content and daily stories via the Meta Business Suite. | If stories go viral, follower count can increase to 1.5K |
3 | Create educational or practical carousel posts and incorporate Q&As. | Potential to increase to 3K |
4 | Be consistent with content posting, work on relevant hashtags, and captions. Keep tabs on follower growth | 5K |
5 | Focus on trending sounds and topics for reels / boost with paid-for followers | 7K |
6 | Conduct an analytics check, revising your Instagram strategy where necessary. | Continued growth up to 10K |
Getting Started is the Hardest Part
Right now, this is a lot of information to take in. As a new content creator, you probably cannot imagine reaching the 10K follower goal in just six months.
But new content creators are doing this all the time, and so can you. Getting started is the hardest part, but once you get going, nothing is stopping you from gaining more Instagram followers than you thought possible.
Published By : Shruti Sneha
Published On: 23 July 2025 at 12:44 IST