You’ve probably seen those ads everywhere. “Get 1,000 followers for just $10!” It sounds tempting when you’re staring at your social media account, wondering why your follower count isn’t growing faster.
Here’s the truth: buying followers is like putting a fancy sports car body on a broken engine. It looks good from the outside, but it won’t get you where you want to go.
The Real Cost of Fake Followers
Over 5.2 billion people, about 64% of the global population, use social media in 2025. With so many real people online, why would you want fake ones following your account?
Fake influencer marketing is estimated to cost businesses more than $1.3 billion every year. That’s money down the drain because fake followers don’t buy products, share posts, or recommend brands to friends.
Here’s what happens when you buy followers:
Your Engagement Rate Crashes. Instagram generates 4.2 billion likes every day. However, overall engagement has declined by 28% year-over-year, resulting in a 2025 engagement rate of 0.50%. When you add fake followers to the mix, your numbers get even worse.
Think about it: If you have 10,000 followers but only 50 likes per post, something looks wrong. The RivalIQ study found that the median Instagram engagement rate for the top 25% of brands is 1.02%. Fake followers make it impossible to reach these benchmarks.
Algorithms Stop Showing Your Content. Social media algorithms prioritize posts that generate meaningful engagement. If your engagement rate plummets because your fake followers aren’t interacting with your content, your posts are less likely to be shown to your real audience.
Your Account Gets Flagged. If you’re found to be buying fake followers, your account could face penalties, including reduced visibility, account suspension, or even a complete ban.
What Real Engagement Looks Like in 2025
Let’s look at what’s actually working on different platforms:
TikTok is the Engagement Champion. TikTok leads the pack with an average engagement rate of 4.07 percent, making it the most interactive platform in terms of likes, comments, and user participation. User engagement remains strong and consistent, with an engagement rate of 2.50%.
Video Content Rules Everything Posts with videos on Instagram get 49% more engagement than photo posts, and on LinkedIn, video drives 5x more engagement than other formats. Video content dominates user behavior, accounting for more than 60% of time spent on the platform.
Short-Form Content Gets Results. A December 2024 Statista survey confirms that short-form video reigns supreme as the revenue powerhouse of social content marketing. The competition isn’t even close. Only 22% of marketers said long-form video had the highest ROI.
The 3 DO’s of Building Authentic Engagement
DO #1: Create Content That Starts Conversations
Ask questions in your posts. Share behind-the-scenes moments. Behind-the-scenes content is that you might even reach a completely different audience than you would reach with your regular, planned content.
Example: Instead of posting “Check out our new product,” try “What’s the biggest challenge you face with [relevant problem]?”
DO #2: Respond to Every Comment and Message
According to our partner, global social media agency Social Element, there are two critical factors that drive success for outbound engagements: timeliness and length. Engagements decrease dramatically if you comment on an original post that’s more than 24 hours old.
Comments between 10 and 99 characters drive the most engagement; anything more or anything less, including emoji-only comments, are a total bust.
DO #3: Use Platform-Specific Strategies
Each platform has its sweet spot:
- Instagram: Use a mix of widely popular hashtags (1m+), mildly popular hashtags (100k+) and a few niche ones
- TikTok: According to TikTok, “When brands feature songs that TikTokers like in their videos, 68% of users say they remember the brand better”
- X (Twitter): Tweets with one to two hashtags have a 21% higher engagement rate than tweets with three or more
The 3 DON’Ts That Kill Your Engagement
DON’T #1: Buy Followers, Ever
In a review of over 1,000 Instagram audits conducted using our tool, we found that accounts with 25% or more suspicious or dormant followers consistently saw engagement rates below 1.5%, even when the content quality was high.
DON’T #2: Post Without a Purpose
Many brands fall into the trap of posting just for the sake of filling up a content calendar. But truly effective social media efforts start with a clear goal in mind.
Every post should have a reason: to educate, entertain, inspire, or start a conversation.
DON’T #3: Ignore Your Analytics
Use analytics tools to monitor significant numbers and understand what’s practical. Watch Engagement Metrics: Follow likes, comments, shares, and click-through rates to understand how your content connects with your viewers.
If you don’t know what’s working, you can’t do more of it.
Success Stories: Brands Doing It Right
Nike shifted its approach to community-driven content and micro-influencers. On Instagram and TikTok, they share insights into the team’s creative processes, athlete stories, and customer highlights. This strategy humanized the brand, with micro-influencers generating 52% of Nike’s Media Impact Value (MIV) in 2023.
Nike’s #YouCantStopUs campaign combined sports highlights with a powerful social message to drive engagement and brand affinity. By aligning the message with ongoing social conversations, Nike got a 20 percent increase in online interactions.
The Science Behind Real Engagement
81% of consumers are swayed by social media to make spontaneous purchases multiple times a year. But this only happens when they trust and connect with your brand.
When consumers are ready to purchase social media, Facebook is frequently the first network they turn to (39% of consumers), followed closely by TikTok at 36% and Instagram at 29%.
The key is building relationships, not just follower counts.
Your 5-Minute Daily Challenge
Here’s a simple challenge that takes just 5 minutes per day but will transform your social media engagement:
The Daily Connection Challenge
Every day, spend exactly 5 minutes doing this:
- Minutes 1-2: Find 3 posts from accounts in your industry or niche
- Minutes 3-4: Leave genuine, thoughtful comments (10-99 characters each)
- Minute 5: Respond to any comments on your own posts
That’s it. No fancy tools needed. No complicated strategies. Just 5 minutes of real human connection every single day.
Here’s why this works: 41% of organizations have been testing out proactive engagements and seeing results. 1.6x higher engagement when the original creator replies to a brand comment.
The Bottom Line
Building authentic engagement takes longer than buying followers, but it’s the only way to build a business that lasts. Your real followers will buy your products, share your content, and recommend you to friends.
Fake followers? They’ll just sit there, making your account look hollow while destroying your engagement rates and credibility.
Start your 5-minute daily challenge today. Your future self (and your business) will thank you for choosing authentic growth over empty numbers.