Use hashtagfox.com today to totally change your reach and impressions by finding only performant hashtags
Until just over a decade ago, the # sign meant a forgotten key on keyboards and old phones. But all this changed in 2007, when Chris Messina proposed using these symbols to classify topics on Twitter and later they expanded to other social networks such as Instagram
Although it may seem incredible, the idea was not well received by the creators of Twitter, who thought that the hashtags were too technical or “nerdy”. However, this did not prevent the use of this resource from becoming popular around the world soon, even reaching other social networks such as Facebook and Instagram.
Today I will talk specifically about how to use hashtags on Instagram so that you get the most out of your strategy within this social network such as Instagram. They function as hyperlinks and their main objective is to categorize the content.
So, for example, if you use the hashtag #Happiness in several publications, whenever you click on this you will see those same publications plus other public accounts that have used the same hashtag. To find the posts with certain hashtags on Instagram, you can also use the magnifying glass at the bottom. There you will see:
Related hashtags: in the case of #Happiness, these are hashtags like #HappyMoments #Smile and #Gratitude
- Featured Posts: These are the nine posts with that hashtag that have had the most interactions. These are especially influencer and brand publications with a large following.
- Most recent: they are the last publications made with that hashtag.
- Typically, hashtags are accompanied by a short message. The hashtags you write can be pretty much anything (although there are a few recommendations I’ll give you later). As you type them, Instagram will suggest other tags based on their popularity. Technically, you can use up to 30 on each Instagram post.
How to use hashtags on Instagram?
Here are some recommendations to keep in mind:
- Focus on the target before defining your hashtags.
- Find out which hashtags are used by your competition, your followers and the influencers of the sector.
- Use keywords.
- Make use of the hashtags search engines to identify the most related to your audience.
- Use popular hashtags, but only if they are related to the content. If not, your followers will be disappointed and stop following you.
- Try to use more specific hashtags.
- Remember that you must not include spaces or special characters. Numbers are allowed.
- Make it short and easy to remember. Avoid tricky words.
- It varies, do not limit yourself to always using the same hashtags, since this way you lose the opportunity to be found through other labels.
- Keep in mind that posts should be public so users can find them more easily.
- Use hashtags in your Instagram stories too so they have a greater reach.
- Remember that it is not necessary to highlight hashtags for them to work. You can place them at the end of the message or wherever you prefer.
- Conduct User Generated Content (UGC) contests through a specific hashtag.
- Post at peak times.
- Check the trending topics and take advantage of them. You must always contextualize the hashtag and the message and, if it were the case, that you detect a hashtag turned into trending and the theme around it is aligned to yours; do not hesitate to take advantage of the moment in your favor.
- Check your “hashtag strategy”. This will help you find new labels and / or check that the ones you use continue to be the most appropriate.
As I already mentioned, Instagram has a limit of 30 hashtags, but it does not mean that this is the optimal amount. Although it is true that using too few hashtags affects the performance of the publication, using too many makes the brand look a bit “desperate”. So use them sparingly. According to Buffer, the optimal amount is 11 hashtags or more, since from this point on posts receive 80% more interaction