Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, with over 1 billion monthly active users. As a business owner, using Instagram hashtags can help you reach your target audience, increase your brand visibility, and drive traffic to your website. In this blog article, we’ll explore how to use Instagram hashtags for your business, including the best practices and strategies to get the most out of your Instagram marketing efforts.
As an Instagram user, you’re probably aware of hashtags. These are keywords or phrases that are preceded by the pound sign (#) and are used to categorize content on Instagram. They allow users to find and follow content related to specific topics or interests.
Your Instagram marketing plan may succeed or fail based on your hashtags. If you use them properly, more individuals who could be interested in your items or business will notice your posts. However, if you employ the wrong approach, you risk offending potential followers and being penalised by Instagram’s algorithm. But hashtags can also be a powerful tool for businesses to increase their reach and engagement on the platform. In this article, we’ll take a look at how to use Instagram hashtags for your business.
What are Instagram Hashtags?
Instagram hashtags are keywords or phrases preceded by the “#” symbol that categorize your posts on the platform. When users click on a hashtag, they are taken to a page that shows all the posts that have used the same hashtag. Instagram allows users to use up to 30 hashtags per post, so it’s essential to use them strategically to increase your reach.
Why Use Hashtags on Instagram?
Using hashtags on Instagram can be incredibly beneficial for businesses for the following reasons:
1. Increase Your Reach
Using relevant hashtags can help you reach a wider audience beyond your followers. When users search for a particular hashtag, they can discover your post, even if they don’t follow you. This can increase your post’s visibility and attract new followers to your account.
2. Boost Engagement
Using hashtags can increase engagement on your posts. When users click on a hashtag and land on a hashtag page, they are more likely to engage with your post if it’s relevant and engaging.
3. Build Brand Awareness
Using branded hashtags can help you build brand awareness and create a community around your brand. Branded hashtags can encourage user-generated content and make it easier for users to find and share your posts.
How to Use Instagram Hashtags for Your Business
Hashtags are words or phrases preceded by the # symbol that are used to categorize content on Instagram. When you add a hashtag to your Instagram post, it becomes searchable by other users who are interested in that particular topic. For example, if you use the hashtag #fashion, your post will appear in the search results for anyone who searches for that hashtag. Here are some tips on how to use Instagram hashtags for your business:
1. Research Relevant Hashtags
Researching relevant hashtags is the first step in using hashtags effectively on Instagram. You can use tools like Hashtagify, Ritetag, or All Hashtag to discover new hashtags or Instagram’s native search to find relevant hashtags in your industry. Make sure to use a mix of broad and specific hashtags to reach a wider audience. Start by researching hashtags that are relevant to your industry, niche, or target audience. For example, if you own a restaurant, you may want to use hashtags like #foodie, #foodporn, #yum, #delicious, #foodphotography, etc. These hashtags will attract people who are interested in food and may be potential customers for your restaurant.
2. Research Popular Hashtags
Another important aspect of using hashtags on Instagram is knowing which ones are popular and trending. By using popular hashtags, you can increase your reach and get your content in front of a larger audience.
You can use tools like Hashtagify or RiteTag to find popular hashtags in your industry. These tools can help you discover the most used hashtags and even suggest some relevant hashtags that you may not have thought of. You could think that discovering relevant hashtags is a complex and uninviting activity that could ruin the fun of using Instagram. A lot of softwares is available to help you with the task.
A. Hashtagify
To look into hashtag popularity, trends, and correlations, utilise Hashtagify. When a proposed hashtag is entered, Hashtagify gathers all relevant information from Twitter and Instagram. It gives you a thorough report about the hashtag’s users. It will recommend prominent influencers who use the hashtag and how their fans interact with it. Additionally, it suggests other pertinent hashtags that influencers use.
B. Create hashtags for Instagram
The Influencer Marketing Hub’s simple-to-use Instagram Hashtag Generator employs AI picture recognition technology to find popular and trending hashtags on Instagram: The program generates the most well-liked specialised hashtags for your Instagram post when you upload your photo. The finest hashtags can then be chosen, copied in bulk, and pasted in your Instagram photo caption. It functions as a Pinterest, too.
C. Ritetag
Ritetag offers you a tonne of hashtag recommendations for whatever subject you choose. Ritetag allows you to select a starting hashtag and then provides a list of additional hashtags that match. Ritetag can be used to stay current on hashtag trends.
Ritetag provides a Chrome extension that proposes appropriate hashtags for your postings. It makes it simple to compare by grouping suggested hashtags by topic. Ritetag can be used to find hashtags in a cluster that resembles a cloud.
It colour-codes hashtags so you can determine if a specific hashtag is best used to get followers right now, if it is better utilised over the long run, or if it is so well-liked that your postings will vanish too quickly.
D. Iconosquare
Iconosquare offers a complete suite of Facebook and Instagram analytics solutions. It provides you with a lot of information regarding your internet following.
It keeps track of a hashtag’s development across posts, videos, and images. It can display the hashtagged posts with the most significant influence. Even the locations where your hashtags are being used in posts are visualised. It enables you to maintain a record of the interaction with the hashtags you use.
3. Use Branded Hashtags
Creating a branded hashtag can help you build brand awareness, increase engagement, and encourage user-generated content. Your branded hashtag should be unique, memorable, and relevant to your brand. Use your branded hashtag in your Instagram bio, on your website, and in your marketing campaigns to encourage your followers to use it.
Make sure to utilise your list of branded hashtags in all relevant posts as you’ve finished creating it. A call to action for using the hashtags is frequently included in the Instagram bio, along with the most generic branded hashtags.
A version of your branded hashtag probably already exists if you’ve been managing a brand presence on Instagram for some time, whether or not you came up with it. Branded hashtags frequently include the company name, a catchphrase, or are connected to a brand community. The first option is the one that most likely already applies to your brand. You must design and make use of the latter two.
Branded hashtags are a great way to create brand awareness and encourage user-generated content. You can create a hashtag that is unique to your brand and encourage your followers to use it when they post about your products or services.
For example, Nike’s #justdoit and Coca-Cola’s #shareacoke are both great examples of branded hashtags that have been successful on Instagram.
4. Using Hashtags in Your Instagram Posts
When you add hashtags to your Instagram posts, make sure they are relevant and specific to the content of your post. Don’t use too many hashtags or use irrelevant hashtags, as this can make your posts appear spammy and reduce engagement. The ideal number of hashtags to use per post is between 5 and 10.
5. Using Hashtags in Instagram Stories
You can also use hashtags in your Instagram Stories. Instagram stories have become an incredibly popular feature on the platform, and they also offer a great opportunity to use hashtags. When you add a hashtag to your story, it will be visible in the Instagram story search, making it easier for people to discover your content.
Instagram Stories can be an excellent method to communicate with your followers (or the followers of your influencers) on Instagram. To assist people find your tales, you should include hashtags in them.
Your Stories will appear in pertinent hashtag searches since they are searchable, just like any other Instagram hashtag.
You can add hashtags to your story by using the hashtag sticker or by typing the hashtag directly into the text box. It’s important to remember to keep the hashtag text small and legible, so it doesn’t take away from your content.
6. Don’t Overdo It
While hashtags are a powerful tool for reaching a wider audience on Instagram, it’s important not to overdo it. Using too many hashtags can make your post look spammy and can even result.
7. Use Location-Based Hashtags
Location-based hashtags are hashtags that are specific to a particular location. They can be the name of a city, neighborhood, or landmark. Using location-based hashtags can help you reach a local audience and increase your visibility in that area. People use social media for purposes other than just communicating with pals. They also want ideas for shopping. 67% of users claimed that TikTok “motivated them to shop even when they weren’t looking to do so,” according to TikTok. The phrase “same goes for Instagram” even has its hashtag.
For example, if you’re a coffee shop in New York City, you could use the hashtag #nyccoffee or #coffeeinnewyork to target users who are looking for coffee in the city.
8. Put hashtags in your biography
Instagram recently added the ability to insert clickable hashtags in your profile. It is an excellent chance to design a unique hashtag for your company and connect it from your bio to all the posts that use it.
Additionally, it implies that you might click on hashtags associated with your company. For example, if you work in tourism, you may include clickable hashtags in your bio that are specific to your location or region.
It could be beneficial for influencer marketers, who might use their profiles to link to specific hashtags for their customers.
9. Put hashtags in your opening comment
A caption that contains too many hashtags looks cluttered and takes up too much space. If you want to use more hashtags, move them to comment and keep the caption short. You may schedule the first remark with your Instagram post and caption using Sprout’s Compose tool.
10. Observe hashtags
Instagram allows users to subscribe to hashtag search results. When you do this, all of the other posts from the accounts you follow will also show up in your feed along with these posts. This strategy will help you keep track of hashtags related to your field or neighbourhood. However, because it cannot ensure that every post will appear in your feed, it should not be used as a substitute for branded hashtags.
11. To facilitate access, keep hashtag lists
Divide your hashtags into thematic groups rather than using the same set for all posts. For instance, your postings on education can use different hashtags than posts about new products. Keep other lists on hand for the various types of content themes that you post rather than creating a new list for every position.
According to a study by Facebook, “54% of those polled indicate they made a purchase, either immediately or after seeing a good or service on Instagram.” You can target clients in a specific location using regional and neighbourhood hashtags. Doing this may increase foot traffic to your establishment and foster a sense of community.