What Should Be the Objective When Asking People to Follow You?

The objective when asking people to follow you should be to get them to visit your profile. This smaller, more focused ask is easier to achieve and convert than a bigger ask, such as directing them to visit an external website.

Full Explanation

When inviting people to follow you, it’s important to understand the desired outcome. The primary goal should be to encourage them to simply visit your profile. This is a more attainable request that makes it easier to engage your audience effectively. Larger asks, like encouraging people to go directly to your website, create higher barriers and reduce the likelihood of conversion. By keeping the objective clear and simple—just visiting the profile—you increase your chances of success.

Step-by-Step Breakdown

Set a clear goal: Ask people to visit your profile, not to take a more demanding action immediately.
Minimize friction: The smaller the ask, the easier it is for your audience to respond positively.
Focus on conversion potential: Once people visit your profile, you have better opportunities to engage and convert them over time, rather than losing them with a big initial demand.

Real Examples

Consider a social media scenario: if you ask your audience to visit your profile page, they can quickly explore your content and decide to follow you. However, asking them to leave the social platform and visit your website right away is a much bigger ask and often leads to lower engagement. The easier and more immediate the action, the better the response.

Common Mistakes

Requesting too much too soon, such as asking visitors to immediately visit an external website.
Failing to focus on a clear, achievable first step like profile visits.
Overcomplicating the call-to-action, which can discourage people from engaging at all.

FAQs

Why is it harder to convert from website visits compared to profile visits?: Website visits require a larger commitment and often involve leaving the platform where the audience is already engaged, making conversion more difficult.
Can I ask people to visit my website eventually?: Yes, but it is more effective to first build interest and engagement by getting people to visit your profile before making bigger asks like website visits.
What makes visiting a profile an easier ask?: Visiting a profile usually takes less time and effort and can happen within the platform, which reduces friction for the user.

Key Takeaways

Keep your ask simple and clear.
Focus on getting people to visit your profile first.
Avoid large asks that require more effort, like directing visitors immediately to your website.
By making visits to your profile the primary goal, you improve the likelihood of converting followers over time.