The Instagram algorithm is ever evolving, so it's more important than ever to use every available tool to promote your content. Hashtags remain one of the best ways to reach new people and they're free to use! The right hashtags can put your content in front of your target audience, even if they've never interacted with you on Instagram before.
What is a Hashtag?
Let's start with the basics - what is a hashtag anyway? A hashtag is a way to connect your social media content with a specific topic. Keeping this basic definition in mind will guide you as you select the 30 hashtags you use on your post.
Hashtags tend to fall into three main overarching categories: community hashtags, branded hashtags and campaign hashtags. For this post, we're going to focus on community hashtags, which are the most powerful way to reach new people on Instagram.
Using Community Hashtags to Expand Your Reach on Instagram
Community hashtags bring likeminded users together. They can link your content to a specific location, identify your service or product, indicate your niche and connect you with the Instagram community for your industry. We recommend using a combination of these kinds of community hashtags on each post to magnify your chances of being seen on the app.
If you want to take full advantage of the 30 hashtags you use on your post, it's best to identify hashtags that are smaller and have an engaged audience. Typically, the more niche a hashtag, the more authentic conversation is happening around it.
How to Identify the Best Hashtags for Your Posts
Finding the right hashtags for your content does take time and effort, but you'll quickly see the results! At Mayne Marketing, we recommend building a hashtag bank you can pull from for each post, so you never run out of hashtags that are working for you. Our social managers start new accounts with 90 researched hashtags and add 30 new hashtags each month to keep your reach ever expanding.
Here are a few ways we find the best hashtags for our clients:
Research Competitors
Research Industry Leaders
Find Related Hashtags
Use the Hashtag Tool in Tailwind
Use our affiliate link to sign up for Tailwind and automate your social media marketing!
Before you add a hashtag to your post, be sure to check if it has been banned for inappropriate content. You can do this by typing the hashtag into your search bar. If it is banned, you'll see this message pop up.
Using Your Hashtag Bank
After you've put in the initial time investment to create your hashtag bank, using it effectively is simple! Our formula? We recommend pulling 15-20 hashtags from your hashtag bank and supplementing these with post-specific hashtags until you reach 30. This strategy keeps your posts at the top of your industry specific hashtags and gives you a chance to reach new people as well!
Following these simple tips will make you a #socialmediamarketingpro in no time. If you have more questions about how we use hashtags or if you're interested in our social media management packages, send us a note! We always love to hear from you.
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