3 Ways to Grow Your Social Following (from 0)

The best way to grow your social following from 0 is not by worshipping the almighty algorithm.

This may be a contrarian view.

I play the business game. In order to continue playing, I must make money.

In order to make money from social media, this process must happen:

1. People need to follow you on Instagram. This is a sign they care.

2. Those same people need to go to your website. This is a sign they have an intent to book.

3. After enough people visit your website, one will book. This is simple funnel math.

Posting all my content organically and waiting to go on a viral journey is not the most efficient way to do that.

I always pair posting with some form of advertising. Here's why:

• I'll quickly learn which content formats to make more of. (This increases my chances of naturally going viral).

• Followers come quicker.

• Which increases website traffic.

• And bookings.

I'm not saying posting without ad spend is wrong.

Instead, I'm saying ads will decrease the time to result. I don't like waiting so this route is my preference.

Social media managers might think this is cheating.

It might be. At their game.

But I'm not playing the social media game. I'm playing the business game.

Today, I'm going to share with you the three ways I take rental operators from 0 to thousands of followers.

If you're ready to use social media as a tool to generate bookings, this article is for you.

Let's dive in.

#1: Influencers

Some of the biggest rental accounts on Instagram were built using influencers. I would say this is the most popular way to grow an audience.

Here's how to get started:

1. Find 5-10 local influencers in the travel and hospitality business. If their feed has content of other stays and restaurants, you're in the right place.

2. Analyze their content to make sure people are liking and commenting. Robo-followers are a thing and the number of true fans these people have may be lower.

3. Your test size should be 1 influencer per month for 6 months. If it works, don't stop.

Results: When it rains it pours. Some creators might get you nothing. Some may take you to the moon. That's why the test size exists.

Cost: 2-3 night free stay and anywhere between $1,500-$2,500 per creator.

#2: Pay for reach

Every 3-4 weeks, take 3 posts with the most likes, shares or comments and throw some dollars behind it.

There are two ways to do this:

1. Boost posts within Instagram.

2. Run an engagement campaign on Meta ads.

Boosting shows your posts to people just like your followers. If your followers engage with your content, do this. If not, you may have low quality followers and might be better off with the next option.

If you run an engagement campaign, you can target specific interests. This is best if you want to test different audiences and find more engaged followers.

Results: Pretty consistent. Spend money, get followers and website traffic.

Cost: $10-$20 / day is plenty.

#3: Run ads

This is my favorite.

Like I said in the beginning, I'm in the business of bookings. My ads campaigns mirror that goal.

If you advertise for followers, you will reach people who have a deep history of following. But that doesn't mean they're buyers. Think of them like window shoppers.

Lots of looking. Very little buying.

If you advertise for purchases, you will reach people who have a history of buying things. This is a better bet for bookings.

These people will still follow you. Just maybe not at the rate of window shoppers.

Results: Follower growth here can be slow. But bookings are more predicable. So I like this tactic the best.

Cost: Start with $1,000 - $1,500 per month until you're profitable with these ads. Then increase the budget.

Notes before starting

Before you begin, take note of these expensive lessons I learned:

1. When you put ad dollars behind your posts and get views but no followers, it's a content issue. Which leads me to point #2.

2. The content you post should be good. Good content builds trust. This will attract higher quality followers and website visitors. These people buy things. Delete the blurry photos.

3. If you're getting followers but low clicks, it's a targeting issue. A.k.a find other people to advertise to. Which actually brings me to point #4.

4. 5-10% of anyone who visits your profile should click to your website.

5. If people are clicking to your website, nice job. But, if no one is booking, it's a customer flow issue.

6. Last note. Post at least 15 times per month. More is better.

If you want to play the social media game, study the algorithm and wait to go viral.

If you want to play the business game, do this:

• Work with influencers

• Pay for reach

• Run ads

So that you can:

• Get followers

• Increase website traffic.

• And bookings.

That's all for today. I'll see you in the next article.

P.s. Back home this week. Gearing up to head back east tomorrow for America’s coolest weekend of the year… (cliffhanger)

Before you go

I spend about 10 hours writing this newsletter each week. The rest of my time is spent running Lodge Social.

Our marketing team will help you get more guests to like, share and book.

Work with me and my team here.

Links you might like:

1. A properties design matters. Here’s why… (Wander)

2. $18,450 Instagram Reel secrets (The Lodge Social)

3. 2025 trends hospitality brands should know about (The Unique Stays Guy)

4. How to get more bookings from your ad spend (LinkedIn)