Instagram’da Büyümek: Takipçi Etkinliklerine Yönelik Karma Bir Analiz
Growing on Instagram: A Mixed Analysis of Follower Activities

Summary/Abstract: Instagram has been in use since 2010 as an application that allows anyone to share photos or videos with public or private accounts. According to 2022 data, it is the fourth most used social media platform in the world. Türkiye is also the country that spends the most time on Instagram, with an average of 20 hours per month.Many people regularly follow this platform for purposes such as becoming an influencer on Instagram, gaining more followers, sharing their hobbies, selling their products, and collaborating. The purpose of this study is to reveal the concept of "growth on Instagram" from the perspective of users who engage in follower activities. This study provides an understanding of the nature of follower activity on Instagram through the collaboration of both quantitative and qualitative research techniques. Although studies on Instagram are gaining weight in the literature, a sample study presenting the details of one-to-one follower activities was not found in the databases searched due to the limitations of the researcher's examination possibilities. This study will contribute to eliminate the gap in the field.In this study, a three-stage method was followed. In the first stage, the researcher opened an Instagram account, participated in follower events until March 2022-March 2023, and documented the impressions gained from these events using the virtual ethnography method. "Netnography", one of the virtual ethnography approaches, was used as a method. The details of this method are explained in detail in the method section. In this way, the researcher was able to experience the nature of follower activities on Instagram by being directly involved in the data collection process. In the second stage, the data on 500 accounts selected through a systematic sampling from the most popular page organizing follower events were coded with SPSS 22 and the characteristics of the accounts were revealed. In this way, detailed data on the followers, number of followers, themes, the companies they collaborate with, and the purposes of the accounts participating in the follower events were obtained and comparative analyses could be made. In the study, 254 (50.8%) Instagram accounts with less than 20 thousand followers and 246 (49.2%) with more than 20 thousand followers were examined. A total of 352 accounts have 10 thousand or more followers (83.4%). Different themes were evaluated according to the number of followers.Then, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 users selected among the accounts with the most followers. Thus, interviews with the accounts with the highest number of followers who agreed to respond to the interview questions allowed us to obtain their views on follower activity and growth on Instagram in detail.Follow activities on Instagram are managed by various groups and these groups see each other as competitors. Sponsorship fees are charged for the events organized to increase the number of followers of some users, and this area takes on a commercial character. There are many organizations on the internet that provide paid followers, and these organizations provide guidance, sell users, and guide people on how to promote themselves.When the accounts participating in the follower activity are examined, it is seen that although the accounts are mainly for commercial purposes, they are also areas where people share their hobbies, family relationships, and emotions. Accounts that increase the number of followers directly develop behavior to develop cooperation with accounts such as YouTube and Trendyol. Such companies promote products that evoke the theme of the user's account on these pages. For example, a page that presents tea/coffee presentations can easily be accepted to collaborate with the products of these large companies that reflect the theme of kitchenware.Interviews with ten users with followers ranging from 28.6 thousand to 335 thousand reveal that the platform is a suitable environment for monetization when the necessary tools are used effectively. Follower activity is an important method, an initial step that users choose to be recognized in the first stage. However, later on, variables such as the quality of content they share, regular sharing, interactivity, and activity levels affect the future of their pages. The study is important in terms of revealing the nature of Instagram in the context of follower activities and understanding the nature of daily posts on Instagram. This study has shown that similar virtual ethnography studies can be useful for understanding the nature of social media. In summary, Instagram is becoming more and more widespread as a very effective tool on a commercial scale.

• Details
• Contents