Instagram hashtags have the power to make or break your Insta strategy. With the right usage, you can make your post get noticed by more people.
But, when used wrong, they cause a lot of damage, from irritating prospective followers to getting reprimanded by Instagram’s algo.
Hence, you should know how hashtags work to use them effectively. Read on to know how to do that:
What are Instagram hashtags?
A hashtag is a mix of alphabets, numbers or emoji with the # symbol in the front. They categorize content and make it easily discoverable. You can click on a hashtag to see pages showing all the posts tagged with it.
Why should you use Instagram Hashtags?
Hashtags help you expand your targeted Insta audience and enhance your reach. Once the hashtag is used, your post appears on the page of the hashtag. People who follow that hashtag can see your hashtagged post in their feed, even when they don’t follow you.
It is a good way to build community online so people can get engaged with your brand. However, remember that the most famous Instagram hashtags may not be the most effective one.
Types of famous Instagram hashtags:
- Product or service hashtags: They are keywords to describe your service or product #purse or divebar.
- Emoji hashtags: They include emojis like #??? Or words and phrases with emojis.
- Acronym hashtags: Acronym hashtags like #TBT Throwback Thursday or #OOTD Outfit Of The Day.
- Niche hashtag: They are niche specific #foodblogger.
- Industry hashtags: They are related to communities present on Instagram such as #gardenerofinstagram
- Special event hashtags: They are related to specific holiday, season or event.
- Location hashtags: Even after you have geo-tagged your post, it is still suggested to use a hashtag referring to your location.
- Daily hashtags: There are too many to use right from #sundayfunday or #mondayblues
- Relevant phrase hashtags: They include product hashtags, community hashtags and niche hashtags.
How many hashtags can you use on Instagram?
It is recommended to use around 30 hashtags on a normal post and 10 hashtags on your Story. Using more than these will not show up in your caption or comment. Do some testing to find out what numbers work best for you.
Tips to hide hashtags on Instagram
There are ways to make your hashtags less visible:
- Mention your caption but don’t add hashtags.
- After the post is published, click the speech bubble icon to leave a comment.
- Now type the hashtags you want to include in the comment section and post it.
- So, your hashtags will become invisible unless someone taps on the View all comments on their smartphone, but on desktop they will still remain on the top.
Hide Instagram hashtags in captions:
- At the caption’s bottom, click on Enter or Return. If it is not there, type 123 to bring it up.
- Type a punctuation mark like period, bullet and tap Return again.
- Do this 3-4 times.
- Instagram hides captions after three lines and your hashtag will become invisible till followers tap.
Find best hashtags for your brand on Instagram
You can just upload a picture and get free suggestions for hashtags from Instagram hashtag generators. But, they may not be very effective. Some of the tips to get Instagram hashtags to drive engagement are:
- Check out your competitors
- See the hashtags your audience is using from before
- Create a banded hashtag on your own to promote your brand
Here are some tips and tricks to use hashtags on Instagram
- Use insights to see what tags are good for you
- Select the post you want to check data on and tap View Insights below it.
- Swipe up to see the insights including hashtag impressions.
1. Include hashtags on your stories
Hashtag pages have stories on the top left corner. Tap on it to see stories tagged with the hashtag. You can either use a sticker or text tool to type the hashtag.
2. Do not use banned or spammy hashtags
Using banned hashtags can decrease your engagement. So, use only legit hashtags. Avoid using hashtags which solicit likes such as #tagforlikes etc. This will attract spammers and bots and show your followers that your account is engaged in spammy behavior.
3. Find out how hashtag pages function
Hashtag pages can expose your content to your non-followers. They will show of all the content linked with a particular hashtag.
If a post is searched with a hashtag and yours is the latest one, it will appear in the Recent section and you will get more exposure.
4. Do not use repetitive or unrelated hashtags
It may appear easy to copy-paste the same set of hashtags on every post, but it is not advisable to do it. Repetitive or irrelevant hashtags can make your content penalized by algorithm. Always use hashtags that make sense. Use the right keywords for every post individually.
5. Ensure that hashtags means exactly what you think it should mean
Hashtags are a series of work stuck together which can create problems when it is unclear when one end ends and another starts. Sometimes companies hop on a trending hashtag without understanding the context completely. It is important to ensure that your audience deciphers the right meaning of the hashtag.
6. Save it for the future
If you use the same hashtags more often, you can save them in a wordpad to lower your typing work. But, remember you shouldn’t use the same set of hashtags on every post. However, you can always use relevant hashtags on different content you post. Hashtags will help you to increase Instagram followers.
Just make a list of hashtags in your notes and use them when you are posting on Instagram. However, make sure the hashtags fit with the content and don’t appear too repetitive.
Find the best hashtags to engage your audience and use them strategically to increase your following.
