The dreaded question of social media marketers everywhere: “Why am I losing followers on Instagram?” I spent years in the trenches as a social media editor for media brands and know the daily toil it takes to keep up with the latest media trends, platform updates, and more.

Inevitably, a situation arises where you are losing followers and unsure of the cause. Is it me or is the algorithm? The answer is complicated. But according to our research, you’re not alone. Our Instagram Marketing Report found that 10% of Instagram marketers report losing followers in the past year.

If you’re a part of that 10%, you may be panicking trying to figure out what’s causing the decline. Don’t fret — I’ve got you covered. Below, I’ll cover the top reasons why brands lose followers on Instagram and offer some tips about how you might course-correct.

Why am I losing so many followers on Instagram?

1. You’re not posting often enough or posting too much.

When we surveyed Instagram marketers, 44% said that not posting enough is the number one reason why brands lose followers. On the flip side, 18% said posting too much can have the same impact.

Source

When it comes to posting, I’ve found success lies in the balance. You’ll want to post enough to make sure you’re reaching your target audience and not disappearing in a sea of posts, but don’t want to post too much that your audience is getting flooded with your posts all over their timeline.

As you probably know, it’s extremely unlikely that your audience even sees everything you post these days given the algorithm.

Here’s What I Recommend

• First, post at least once a day on the platform, whether it’s on Instagram Stories, Reels, or in-feed. If you have to choose, Stories is a great option just to stay current with updated content.
• Second, share an in-feed post two to three times a week. You can increase this cadence based on how your audience responds, but you probably shouldn’t lower it.

Also: Don’t forget audience engagement.

In my opinion, too many brands over focus on how and when they are posting and too little on how they are interacting with their audience. According to our data, this is a crucial mistake.

Increasing engagement is now marketers’ primary goal — and I expect this trend to continue in 2025. That includes likes, comments, interactive elements, and more. You can (and should) take your unique spin on it.

TL;DR: Don’t get so caught up in your total follower count that you forget to engage with your loyal audience. That’s what will contribute most to your growth in the long run.

2. You’re being too sales-y.

The second most common reason for losing followers is being overly sales-y. 43% of Instagram marketers said this is a major turnoff for audiences.

Our survey found that content centered around a brand’s products/services is leveraged by 37% of IG marketers and has the highest ROI — but yes, there is too much of a good thing.

Source

If it’s the only type of content you post, you might alienate your audience.

Here’s What I Recommend

Balance is the keyword here.

In addition to posts that highlight your products and/or services, you should also post content that:

• Reflects your brand values.
• Invites conversation.
• Builds community.

I know, as a user, I get frustrated if I open up Instagram while I have some time to relax and I feel like every post I come across is trying to get me to buy something — ick. I’m much more likely to engage with a funny meme or entertaining video.

The data backs this up, too: Our survey revealed that funny content is the second most effective for getting followers, shares, and engagement on Instagram.

Source

3. You had bot followers.

If you purchased bot followers, you’ll be in for a rude awakening when they all disappear and your follower list tanks.

20% of Instagram marketers surveyed say this is why brands lose followers.

While it’s tempting to buy bots to give the semblance of a strong follower base, this practice will only hurt you in the long run.

Instead, I recommend focusing on building a follower list organically through a consistent posting schedule, sharing valuable content, following trends, and listening to your data.

It doesn’t have to take long, either. Most marketers say it takes 4-6 months to reach 1K followers on Instagram. Only 17% reached that in under a month, and just 1% took over a year.

Here’s What I Recommend

If you’ve inherited a lot of bot followers, try manually removing inactive accounts to improve the quality of your audience and get better insights from your data.

Instagram now lets you look at your follower count and see any accounts that are flagged for review or inactive. You can start with these lists to start cleaning up your lists.

Source

4. You don’t have a consistent aesthetic and voice.

One thing audiences love is consistency.

Consistency in your branding and your creative assets is key in building strong brand recognition. In addition, consistency also helps build a visually appealing profile.

If a user visits your profile and every post looks like it was created by a different brand, they’ll have a hard time understanding what your brand is all about and choose to unfollow you.

Personally, if I’m scrolling and I notice a brand I don’t recognize on my timeline, I’ll visit their profile and if I don’t recognize their last few posts, I’ll likely unfollow them. I imagine many users behave the same way.

Here’s What I Recommend

With this in mind:

• Figure out what your brand identity and visual aesthetic are early on in your branding process.
• Leverage tools like Canva to build a visual profile that stays consistent across all platforms.

The Skimm, an email newsletter brand that sums up the biggest news of the day, is a great example of this. Their branding is clean and consistent from your inbox to your Instagram feed. And this consistency makes it easy to stand out from other news accounts I follow.

Source

5. Your audience has evolved and you’re not keeping up.

It would be so easy to market to our audiences if their interests and behaviors always stayed the same.

Unfortunately, that isn’t the case.

This requires marketers to stay on top of what attracts and retains their audiences. One of the most effective ways to do this is by relying on your data. What is it telling you?

Say you’re HubSpot and our feed consists of customer success stories, product highlights, company values, and industry trends.

Perhaps content surrounding industry trends used to perform very well but you’ve noticed a slow decline over the past six months. Perhaps your audience is not as interested in this content or the format in which it’s being presented.

Maybe if you used to leverage images, you should consider switching to video.

The biggest giveaway to me is using outdated tactics. If you’re stuck posting hashtag spam or posting giveaways to boost follower accounts, I’d recommend trying some of these new best practices. Audiences evolve fast — and the platforms evolve even faster — and it’s our job as social media marketers to keep up.

Here’s What I Recommend

If you’re looking for some help in evolving with your audience, check out our free Instagram for Business Kit. You'll learn how to get followers, build your audience, navigate algorithm updates, and measure success.

Source

Use This Data to Guide Your Instagram Strategy

My biggest takeaway from this data and from my years as a social editor? You need to give your audience a reason to follow you. It’s not enough to just show up and have a presence on Instagram.

You need to have a defined brand, a unique voice, and you need to show up authentically (and consistently!) to build meaningful relationships with your audience. That’s what your followers care about and, perhaps not surprisingly, the algorithm favors too.

Lastly, always use data to steer your strategy. If you don’t, you risk losing touch with your audience and slowly seeing your follower list decrease.

Losing Instagram followers can be a scary reality to face. However, once you identify the reason behind the decline, you can address it and regain them.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in February 2022 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.