There’s a strategy behind every viral Instagram content you see online. Are you wondering why other brands are getting thousands of hearts while you are barely getting enough attention? You’re probably missing out on the secret sauce of successful Instagram marketing—the Instagram hashtag strategy!
What is an Instagram Hashtag Strategy?
An Instagram hashtag strategy is a well-thought-out approach for using hashtags to increase the number of people who see your posts. Rather than randomly putting a handful of hashtags on, creating a strategy allows users to find your content.The proper use of hashtags does more than just bring in new followers to a specific niche. To stay up to date on a particular topic or trend, you can also follow and engage with particular hashtags. Ultimately, you can make your own hashtag to promote your new product or service.Hashtags should make sense inside a post. However, some businesses continue to utilize irrelevant hashtags in their posts simply because they are popular. The result: irritated audience who will click the unfollow button.Experts say hashtags are basically SEO components of social media marketing. So, how can you use it to increase your online visibility?
Instagram Hashtag Strategy and Tips that Marketing Experts Swear By
Instagram's hashtag strategy keeps on evolving rapidly due to system updates. But the best practices that stand the test of time will always stay. Learn this expert advice on using Instagram hashtags so you won’t come back to constantly using the same hashtags.
1. Use the ideal number of hashtags
The most common mistake that businesses make in their hashtag strategy is to come up with a long list of hashtags. Unfortunately, just because Instagram allows you to use hashtags profusely doesn’t mean you should.Notice that when you go beyond 30 hashtags, your comment or caption won’t post. This is because Instagram limits users to only using 30 hashtags on a regular post and up to 10 hashtags on a story.Using many hashtags could help you increase your reach. But be careful not to be detected by Instagram’s security systems. Instagram often detects spam posts from accounts that overdo their hashtags.The ideal length for IG hashtags can be tricky. But experts recommend finding the sweet spot between what’s relevant to your community and which hashtags have a high number of posts.If your business is just starting out, it’s ideal for you to begin with 10-15 hashtags. Although these numbers are too generous, be smart enough only to include what’s relevant.Before jumping into popular hashtags, make sure you have first added your product/service hashtags, niche hashtags, and other phrases related to your brand.
2. Consider Instagram hashtags density2.
Using a good amount of hashtags is not enough. So do you want to get the best out of your Instagram hashtag strategies? First, you need to learn how to classify them in terms of density.The total number of posts linked to a hashtag is known as hashtag density. Therefore, the level of competition for a specific hashtag is determined by hashtag density, which is similar to SEO keyword rankings.Instagram hashtags are classified into high,medium, and low density. Here’s your guide for Instagram hashtags density.
High-density hashtags
These are popular hashtags with over one million posts. You’ll be in the right category if you use this hashtag. However, because these hashtags are constantly added to new posts, it’s far more difficult to rank them.
Medium-density hashtags
These are popular hashtags with over one million posts. You’ll be in the right category if you use this hashtag. However, because these hashtags are constantly added to new posts, it’s far more difficult to rank them.
Low-density hashtags
On the other hand, low-density hashtags are hashtags with less than 50,000 posts. Since it’s too niche and specific, it doesn’t have a high number of posts. But ranking for it at the top posts is much easier.To reach a wider audience, marketers recommend using a mix of high, medium, and low-density hashtags. You can find how many posts a hashtag has by typing a keyword in the search bar.
3. Check if a hashtag is banned on Instagram
Have you ever had trouble finding your post on hashtag searches and explore pages? There’s a good chance you happened to use a banned hashtag.Hashtags that Instagram users have reported for violating some of Instagram’s community guidelines are known as banned hashtags. The result is that every post containing that hashtag will be hidden from view, limiting your organic reach and growth efforts.If you use too many banned hashtags, Instagram will not just hide your post. They may also flag your account, which might result in a “shadowban” or even the removal of your account.Some of the hashtags that have been banned include those that are blatantly seeking likes and followers. #followme, #like4like, #follow4follow, #tagsforlikes, and so on are only a few examples.You may check this page to learn more about banned Instagram hashtags to avoid this in 2022.
4. Look over the hashtags that your audience is using
Are you struggling to find hashtags relevant to your brand? Your audience may help you with that!Check the profile of the people who follow you or have interacted with you. You’ll get an idea of what hashtags they are using and what they care about. By doing this, you’ll find community-oriented hashtags that can be useful for your brand.Community-oriented hashtags allow you to engage with people in a focused, active community. Using these hashtags will help people find more of your content. At the same time, you’ll be able to reach out to those who are most likely to be interested in your business.
5. Build your own branded hashtag
On Instagram, over 100 million photographs and videos are shared every day. As a result, it’s challenging for branded content to stand out among the crowd. To get their content seen, businesses use branded hashtags.A branded hashtag is a custom hashtag associated with a specific brand used on social media. Also, they range from words to slogans that motivate individuals to get a brand involved in conversations.Some of the great branded hashtags are #ShareACoke, #MyCalvins, and #BeyondFiveStars, which made a successful hashtag campaigns for big brands like Coke, Calvin Klein, and Uber.Whatever hashtag you create for your brand, always keep your audience in mind. Remember that your goal is to earn the attention and engagement of your customers. If you make them use your brand hashtag, it would be easy for you to collect user-generated content.For small businesses, it’s hard to crack on branded hashtags because most users only interact with big brands. But this shouldn’t dampen your spirit. If you want to turn the tables, you may start by announcing offers, discounts, or freebies.This is exactly what Sephora did upon reaching their 200K fan-following milestone. They decided to honor the occasion by presenting a special offer.Sephora urged their followers to take part by posting images of themselves with the hashtag #SephoramyFans and tagging their friends who needed to repost their content with comments. Today, Sephora is among the esteemed brands with a staggering 20 million followers.
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