This Article Will Help You Find the Right Hashtags on Instagram Marketing to Reach More People
Have you ever looked at your Instagram digital marketing campaign and thought you weren’t reaching anywhere near the amount of people you wanted – so many do. Instagram’s highly popular as a social media platform, running entirely on people-to-people connection and hashtags. That’s right, we’re talking hashtags.
How you use them, which hashtags are right for Instagram marketing, and frequency of use are all important. Great campaigns are built off hashtags. Instagram success doesn’t happen by accident. Careful practices are used to gain more and more exposure, primarily through the selection of hashtags. For those that may be unskilled in this area or simply looking to brush up some knowledge on the most effective way to go about social media hashtags, consider the following.
Why hashtags on Instagram are important
Instagram hashtags can connect a brand with new customers who’ve not yet heard of them or who don’t follow them directly. They expand your reach significantly, can drop you into a conversation happening culturally where you get more exposure, and more. Instagram users follow hashtags, scouring new accounts for relevant posts in a social media conversation developed around their favourites.
Generic hashtags and specific hashtags
Generic hashtags like #toronto are followed by a larger group of users which naturally would mean more exposure. That said, your post will come and go on generic hashtags like hundreds more, potentially not being seen as much as you’d thin. There are more targeted hashtags, coming with less followers but possibly a more passionate follower base. Building an Instagram marketing campaign, you want a mix of generic and specific hashtags – all relevant to your industry or niche.
The social media and SEO connection
Searching out the hashtags you want to use, the research you conduct will be very similar to what’s applied in SEO keyword finding. You will want to draw up a list of popular Instagram hashtags, one or two words in length. These should be broad in reach. Then, you’ll want to find popular long-tail hashtags that target your brand and audience at a deeper level. Online communities such as those built around films, TV shows, music, or art may also offer some opportunities to get the word out about your brand.
How to choose the right Instagram hashtag
Though you can manually track hashtags and accumulate Instagram data this way, there exists programs and software that will do a lot of this for you. Something like Hashtagify analyzes the popularity of a hashtag, identifies related hashtags, finds top influencers using these hashtags, presents trending topics built around said hashtags, and more. Needless to say, there’s a lot that goes into finding social media hashtags specific to Instagram and what worked last month may not work for the next. It’s an ongoing battle to try and determine where an Instagram post is correctly hashtagged.
Different types of Instagram hashtags
There are a number of different types of Instagram hashtags, beyond the simple distinction between what’s generic and specific.
Trendy cultural conversations happen every day on Instagram under a hashtag. A lot of those topics can be controversial however and most of the time, you’ll want to avoid. Occasionally, some of the more fun hashtags you may want to jump on – as long as it’s relevant to your brand.
On Instagram, there’s a lot of young, fun hashtags that add personality and social appeal with new users. If you’re skilled with humor, grab onto a few of these hashtags. These hashtags might not necessarily always guarantee more exposure but their personality is what provides more insight into the voice of your brand. Puns, cheekiness and funny hashtags all fit into this category.
Geographic hashtags also have a purpose, tagging a post to a city or country you’re targeting. You can also use event hashtags if you’re contributing to the Instagram conversation about an event that’s happening.
How many Instagram hashtags to use?
Instagram will allow up to 30 hashtags but more isn’t necessarily always better and you don’t necessarily need anywhere near this amount. A general rule on how to maximize Instagram marketing is to use somewhere between 4 and 11 hashtags. Always use hashtags that are relevant, justified, and not seeking a follow or like. You don’t want to come across as low quality or desperate.
Look at the competition for inspiration
Check out the types of hashtags your competition is using. Anyone with a similar target user as you can provide inspiration for the types of hashtags that work and resonate with this audience. Follow feeds, write down any hashtags that are getting engagement, and try a few yourself, noting if you get the same response. Surveying influencers in your niche can also provide information on what sort of hashtags are working at any given moment.
Local hashtags build awareness for local businesses
Consumers are encouraged to buy local. Use 2 – 3 location-based hashtags to help your brand get found by potential customers in your neighborhood. Like other hashtag recommendations found in this article, these can be applied to Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and elsewhere – not Instagram exclusive.
Hashtag social media campaigns
Launch a contest and create a winning hashtag Instagram campaign to instantly generate conversation. Coca-Cola’s #ShareaCoke and KFC’s #NationalFriedChickenDay are both examples of high quality social media hashtag campaigns that have won a lot of attention. Campaigns like this also generate a lot of user content which can be put into your hashtag network, exposing you to new customers.
Ensure you understand every hashtag
Corporations have got into all sorts of trouble by jumping on the bandwagon of hashtags misunderstood to mean something they didn’t. You can in fact cause yourself a PR nightmare, being unaware of the hashtags you’ve chosen to tag a post with. When in doubt, don’t use a hashtag you’re unsure about. No one wants to be accused of something negative or to be assigned a label that doesn’t represent your business. Always ask yourself, is this hashtag relevant to my brand – if not, lose it. Do I fully understand this hashtag – if not, be on the safe side.
It’s still a game of trial and error
Even with all these high quality recommendations for social media marketing and Instagram hashtags, at the end of the day, it’s still about trial and error. Some strategies can fail – even if they’ve been shown to work for competitors. Be conscious of Instagram analytics and monitor posts to see what’s engaging your user base as well as how many views you’re actually getting. Remember, you can always pivot to another plan if a campaign isn’t working like you thought it would.
Don’t forget to use hashtags on your bio
Hashtags aren’t just for posts. They can be used on an Instagram boil. By adding hashtags on a profile page, you make yourself more easily discoverable for interested parties. Don’t use too many hashtags in an Instagram bio – only the most relevant. You may also want to include relevant similar or related hashtags, something which could be easily discoverable simply by searching out posts under a hashtag on Instagram.
Create your own!
If you’re using 4 – 11 hashtags per Instagram post, or potentially more, not every single one you use needs a built-in audience. Everyone’s expecting to see hashtags on a social post. Increase excitement and engagement around your brand by creating your own hashtags. They can be sort of in-the-moment observations or funny remarks, or they can be in celebration of an event, contest, product, or service. Every successful Instagram promoter are generating success over established hashtags but they’re also likely creating their own hashtags in some form or another.
Are you looking for the ultimate Instagram digital marketing campaign, complete with expert-selected hashtags, photos, and video – we can help. Contact Unlimited Exposure and get set up with your very own team of experts working on your behalf.
