1: What are Hashtags?

You probably know what hashtags are, but have you ever wondered why we use them? Have you wondered why bloggers and social media users even know what they are? If you’ve ever used one, you know what it means. Maybe this blog post will give you an idea of what this trending yet unknown tool is.

If you want your content to get traction on social media, hashtags are a smart way to get it. By using them, you can connect with your audience more personally, allowing them to respond to anything you share with their network. By exposing your followers to original content and opinions, they boost engagement.

Use hashtags to categorize content and make it more discoverable. They’re letters, numbers, and/or emojis followed by the # symbol.

Instagram hashtags are clickable. If you click on a hashtag or do an Instagram hashtag search, you’ll see a page showing all the posts tagged with that hashtag.

People can share content on a relevant topic by adding a hashtag label to their message. They can then discover other messages on the same platform by searching for that label.

2: Why use hashtags on Instagram, tiktok and other social media posts?

On Instagram, hashtags are a very effective way to grow your audience. It shows up on the hashtag page when you use them. When you use a hashtag on your Story, it’s in the relevant hashtag Story, which shows up on the hashtag page too.

Social media hashtags can be useful for a number of reasons.

1. By using hashtags, you’re able to reach your target audience, as well as make it easier for other people to find your stuff.
2. When a user sees a post they’re interested in, they’ll likely spend time looking through hashtag-related content.
3. A study by Buddy Media found that tweets with hashtags got twice the engagement as tweets without hashtags. Put another way, hashtags can double your engagement and increase your click-through rates.
4. In these days of hashtags, users get more and more information about what’s happening directly on social media.
5. It’s easy to find relevant content with hashtags because they make social media easier. Having a unique hashtag makes your message stand out.

3: Types of Hashtags

Choosing the right hashtags is the key to success on Instagram.

The Instagram Hashtag Funnel shows hashtags from very popular (high competition) to less popular (low competition).

Here’s a hashtag funnel to help you pick the right Instagram hashtags.

It’s advisable to use a well-balanced mix of Instagram hashtags if you want to reach a broader audience on Instagram. Especially if you’re a business.

In order to prepare your hashtag groups, you should use (and mix) 9 types of Instagram hashtags.

1. Industry hashtags
2. Niche hashtags
3. Brand hashtags
4. Community hashtags
5. Location hashtags
6. Event hashtags
7. Celebration hashtags
8. High density hashtags
9. Low density

4: How many Hashtags you should use?

In a regular post, you can use 30 hashtags, and in a story, you can use up to 10. Anything more than that won’t work.

You don’t need that many hashtags for Instagram, just because you can. There’s no right hashtag count for every business or even every post.

It’s recommended to start with about 11 hashtags, but it’s most common to use between 3 and 5 on Instagram.

Your particular business will need some testing to figure out what works.

5: Pros and Cons of using Hashtags

PRO: FINDING POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS WITH HASHTAGS

Use hashtags to make your Instagram post stand out. You can include hashtags that describe your business, the picture, or your customers.

Suppose you’re the owner of a bagel shop in Lavallette and you want to reach all the bagel people on the Jersey Shore. You’ll be able to connect with potential customers if you put “#jerseyshorebagels” on your next pork roll, egg, and cheese sandwich.

PRO: A SPECIFIC HASHTAG CAN BE USED TO CREATE A MARKETING CAMPAIGN

In 2017, Disney and the Make-A-Wish Foundation collaborated to create #ShareYourEars. Disney donated $5 to Make-A-Wish Foundation for every picture posted with #ShareYourEars.

With $2 million in donations, this campaign was a big hit. As this strategy shows, hashtags help you gauge the success of your marketing campaign.

CON: Using too many hashtags can turn away followers

You can boost your Instagram engagement with hashtags, but too many hashtags can turn users off. You want your captions to be informative and thoughtful, not a jumble of tags.

You don’t have to insert a dozen hashtags within your Instagram caption, but you can add up to 30 in a separate comment.

CON: A HASHTAG CAN BE QUITE NOISY

People love hashtags like #PhotoOfTheDay and #FlashbackFriday (#FlashbackFriday has 15.1 million posts). However, its commonality is a problem! Overusing hashtags means low reward – your post might get lost in the noise and not get seen.

If you want your Instagram posts to stand out, use niche hashtags that aren’t too generic. Use hashtags that are specific enough to get your target audience’s attention, like #jerseyshorerealestate or #northernnjrealestate instead of #realestate.

6:  6 Pro tips for using best Hashtags strategy for your Instagram post.

Hashtags on Instagram will continue to be one of the most effective ways to get more eyeballs (and engagement) in 2022.

How do you come up with an effective hashtag strategy?

Here are 6 pro tips for implementing hashtags into your Instagram marketing strategy.

1. Find out who your audience is

In order to build an effective strategy, you need to know what your audience wants. And hashtags are no exception.

You can use hashtags strategically to raise visibility by figuring out what your audience cares about and what they’re interested in.

2. Identify your brand’s popular hashtags

Finding hashtags relevant to your brand is the next step to building an Instagram hashtag strategy. Check out the hashtags influencers and brands in your industry use.

3. Before you use a hashtag, do your research

Find out who else is using the hashtag and what content they’re creating around it before you use it.

The fact that a well-known influencer or business uses it doesn’t mean it’s relevant to your content.

4. Combine popular and niche hashtags

You can reach a wide range of audiences by combining popular and niche hashtags.

Also, since so many accounts use popular hashtags, it might be easier to rank on smaller, niche hashtags.

5. Don’t forget to use seasonal hashtags

Your Instagram hashtag strategy should include time-sensitive content.

In order to keep your posts fresh and easy to find, use hashtags related to the year, season, month, week, day, holiday, or events in your sector.

6. Don’t overdo it with hashtags

If you don’t find the hashtags relevant and targeted to your post, don’t use them. But you can use up to 30 hashtags per post if you want, but you should avoid them unless they’re suitable.

As well, Instagram has changed its guidelines about how many hashtags to use. Instead of spamming audiences with lots of hashtags, Instagram suggests using three or five highly relevant hashtags that relate to your post topic.