Hashtags are a way of organizing and categorizing content on social media. When you include a hashtag in your post or comment, it becomes searchable by other users. But how do you find the best hashtags for Instagram? In this post, we will be looking at the best Instagram hashtag strategy for your business.
For businesses, hashtags can be a great way to reach a larger audience and grow your following. Using popular, relevant hashtags related to your industry or niche allows you to connect with potential customers and followers who might not have otherwise found your account.
How to research the best hashtags for Instagram account
There are a few different ways to research the best hashtags for your business. I recommend creating hashtag bundles by their function. Here are some ideas for hashtag bundles:
- Brand hashtags such as #lisalamphaure
- Hashtags concentrate on your ideal client, such as #skincarelover
- Location Hashtags such as #NYC or #Chicago
- Hashtags that market products or services specifically, like #digitalmarketing
The idea of creating hashtag bundles will allow you to use a mix of general and industry-specific hashtags will help you reach a broader audience on Instagram.
Here are the steps to finding relevant hashtags
After you have created hashtag bundle topics, you will need to find these hashtags to include. Any hashtag besides your brand hashtags should have between 250K to 750K posts tagged. Hashtags with this range of posts will ensure that your hashtag reaches new audiences.
You can start your hashtag research with the search bar and your list of bundle topics. I would start with an obvious hashtag, click on popular posts, and review the hashtags listed.
Pro Tip: While researching hashtags, you may run into hashtags that do not have a “Most Recent” tab. This indicates that the hashtag has been shadowbanned. DO NOT USE THIS HASHTAG.
Tips for using hashtags effectively on Instagram
After you’ve compiled a few different hashtags bundles for your business, it’s essential to use them effectively on Instagram. Here are a few tips for using these bundles effectively:
Keep an eye out for new trends
New hashtags might pop up overnight, so it’s a good idea to keep an eye out for new hashtags. By checking the “Top Posts” section on your Instagram feed, you’ll see newly-popular hashtags at or near the top of the list. You can also search these hashtags to find popular posts and explore related topics.
Don’t fill your posts with hashtags
Although you want to use the best hashtags for your business and reach a larger audience, don’t go overboard. Using too many hashtags in a single post makes your content look messy and unprofessional. It can also clutter up your image or video and make it difficult to see what’s going on. Be selective about the hashtags you use and stick to between five to eight hashtags per post.
Should you add your hashtags in the comments or IG caption?
Many social media schedulers will allow you to schedule your “first comment.” Although the trend of adding hashtags in the comments to keep a clean aesthetic became popular, per the head of Instagram, he recommends adding the hashtags in the post for best performance within the algorithm.
See which hashtags are attracting new followers.
Now that we’ve gone over some tips for using hashtags effectively let’s look at how you should review their performance. By checking your post’s insights, you can review each post’s analytics and see how many followers versus non-followers have seen your post. If there are a large number of non-followers, it is an excellent indication that your hashtag strategy is working. On the other hand, you know you need to tweak your hashtag bundles if your posts are mainly reaching your followers.
The importance of staying up-to-date with the latest trends in hashtags
As social media platforms continue to evolve, it’s crucial to stay up-to-date with the latest trends in hashtags. By using the latest and most popular hashtags, you can reach a larger audience and get more engagement on your posts. I recommend reviewing your hashtag performance and updating your hashtag bundles quarterly.
This is a powerful strategy to help your business stand out from the crowd.
We have gone over some tips for using and researching the best hashtags for Instagram to reach a larger audience. Are you ready to take the next step in your Instagram? Let me know today if you need help in creating an engaging and strategic Instagram strategy.
