Instagram hashtags are still an effective way to get more eyes (and engagement!) on your Instagram posts in 2021.
A post with at least one Instagram hashtag averages 12.6% more engagement than posts without a hashtag. So it really is worth creating a hashtag strategy for your brand if you want to grow you account!
The Ultimate Guide to Instagram Hashtags in 2020 will help you understand everything you need to know about using Instagram hashtags to get more followers, improve your posts engagement rates and build a community around your business.
Ready to learn how to use Instagram hashtags strategically and what steps you need to take to implement an effective hashtag strategy? We bet you are!
#1: Why You Should Use Instagram Hashtags
Instagram has gone through a lot of changes in the past year, including new features, tools, and a whole new video channel.
But one thing has remained constant throughout: the importance of Instagram hashtags.
Using relevant, targeted hashtags on your posts and stories is still one of the best ways to get discovered by new audiences on Instagram. And this can translate into more engagement, more followers, and more customers for your business.
But how do Instagram hashtags work?
Like on Twitter and other social media platforms, Instagram hashtags work by organizing and categorizing photo and video content.
Every post you create can be accompanied by an Instagram caption and a few hashtags (up to 30), and these hashtags help in the process of content discovery.
For example, a food blogger might post a picture of a gorgeous smoothie bowl, and then use the hashtags #superfoods, #cleaneating, and #vegansofig when it is uploaded to Instagram.
By using these three hashtags, the image is cataloged so other Instagram users who enjoy healthy foods can easily find it.
So while a relatively simple concept, hashtags can really get your posts off the ground and into the hands of the right audience.
And the good news is that Instagram is continuously making improvements on how and where we can use hashtags in our posts and stories.
In the last year alone, Instagram has released a ton of new hashtag features, including new capabilities and even better tracking. Here are some of the highlights:
1. Track Your Instagram Hashtag Success with Post Insights
If you were looking for a reason to make the move to an Instagram business profile, this is it! With Instagram Insights, Instagram added the ability to analyze how effective your hashtags are in getting more views (or impressions) on your posts! Which is a great indicator of whether or not you have chosen the right hashtags for your strategy.
To access this data, just open a post and tap the View Insights text below it.
Swipe up and you will find a full page of data for that post, including profile visits, follows, reach, and breakdown of how and where your post was discovered.
Pay special attention to the "From Hashtag" metric under impressions. This number tells you how many people discovered your post through the hashtags you used.
2. You Can Now Follow Hashtags on Instagram
In a big update from 2018, Instagram added the ability to follow hashtags, meaning you can now stay up-to-date on various topics (or communities) by following a hashtag related to your interests.
Following a hashtag works just like following a user profile. When you find a hashtag you would like to follow you simply open the hashtag page and tap on the follow button.
For brands and businesses, this opens up a great opportunity to regularly appear in a follower's feed. For example, if you have a branded hashtag for your business, you can invite your followers to also follow your unique hashtag.
This means that your content could appear twice in a follower's feed once as they follow your profile, and once again as they follow the hashtag. It doubles your chances of engagement!
3. Add Clickable Hashtags to Your Instagram Bio
Thanks to another recent update, you can now add clickable hashtags (and usernames) to your Instagram bio, making it a lot easier to build an Instagram bio that converts to website visits!
What is so great about this feature is that it makes your bio even more functional and you can use hashtags for everything from promoting your Instagram community to highlighting your branded content and announcing your Instagram campaigns.
All you have to do is include a hashtag before any word in your bio and it will automatically become a clickable link that leads visitors to that hashtag.
5. Add Instagram Hashtags to Your Instagram Stories
This one isn't quite as new as the others, but Instagram recently added the ability to add hashtags to your Instagram Stories, giving users yet another way to get their content discovered.
If you want to include hashtags in your Instagram Stories, you can either type your hashtags out with the text tool (you can include up to 10 in your stories):
Or you can use the hashtag sticker to add a single hashtag of your choice.
What is so great about this feature is that, like regular posts, when you add a hashtag to an Instagram story, it becomes searchable on the Search & Explore page. Meaning that anyone who searches for that hashtag in Instagram will be able to see your story!
#2: The Different Types of Instagram Hashtags
Instagram hashtags come in all shapes and sizes — and understanding the different types of hashtags and their corresponding audiences is key to developing an effective Instagram hashtag strategy:
1. Branded Hashtags
A branded hashtag is a hashtag that is unique to your company when using Instagram for business. It can be as simple as your company name, tagline, or the name of one of your products or campaigns. Or it can be a hashtag that has nothing to do with your brand name, but has everything to do with your brand identity!
2. Community Hashtags
Community hashtags, like branded hashtags, are hashtags that connect like-minded users around a specific subject. But unlike branded hashtags, community hashtags don't need to be directly related to a business. They can be broader and much less focused.
The best way to find these community-oriented hashtags is by looking to see which hashtags your audience, or favorite accounts, are already using.
If you are thinking about creating your own community hashtag, remember that the narrower the scope of the hashtag, the more engaged the users tend to be! Don't be afraid to find a niche interest or topic that you would like to build an Instagram community around.
3. Campaign Hashtags
While branded and community hashtags are meant to last, campaign hashtags are usually shorter-term and run for just a few days, a season or a year. They are also perfect for use inside stories or Instagram live.
The reason campaign hashtags have a shorter longevity is because they are tied to specific campaigns, like a new product launch or partnership. As a result, businesses will heavily promote a campaign hashtag to get as much activity as possible, and then stop promoting it once the campaign is over.
#3: How to Find the Best Instagram Hashtags for Your Account
When used correctly, Instagram hashtags can help you grow your reach, get more engagement, and attract more followers.
While the most popular hashtags on Instagram have been used millions of times, that doesn't mean you are going to get a ton of likes and comments simply by adding #love, #happy, or #dog to your posts.
Instead of using the most popular Instagram hashtags, it is better to find and use hashtags that are smaller, more niche, and have a truly engaged audience that is relevant to your industry.
But in order to be successful with hashtags, you need to be strategic about what hashtags you use and when you use them.
So, how can you find these cool, creative, and community-oriented hashtags?
The best way is to look and see what Instagram hashtags your audience, competitors, and industry leaders are already using.
We have noticed that the more niche the topic, the more conversations users are having around it, so it pays off to really hone in on a topic or theme. And you would be surprised by how niche hashtags can get!
For example, let's say you are posting a photo of a French Bulldog. Instead of just tagging #dogstagram (over 15 million posts), you could also tag #frenchie (over 5 million posts) and #squishyfacecrew (over 1.3 million posts) to reach a more targeted audience of people who really love French Bulldogs. This is the best way to get a lot of targeted engagement on your posts!
#4: Best Practices for Instagram Hashtags in 2019
Instagram hashtags can be a powerful tool for discovery when used properly, but they can also look spammy and hurt your account when used incorrectly.
Here are some rules to follow to get more from your Instagram hashtags in 2021:
When Should You Use Instagram Hashtags?
The short answer? As often as possible! Whenever you share content on Instagram, whether it is a post or Instagram story, if your goal is to get it seen by as many people as possible, you need to be using Instagram hashtags.
That being said, there might be occasions where using hashtags is not necessary! Like if you are sharing a personal anecdote or story.
This is more often the case with Instagram Stories than with regular posts (because they tend to be more casual in general), but it varies from case to case. At the end of the day, it is best to weigh the tone or topic of your post, along with what you are hoping to achieve, and then decide if it makes sense to use hashtags.
How Many Hashtags Should You Use?
Unfortunately, there is no hard-and-fast rule when it comes to deciding how many hashtags you should use. While some experts like Alex Tooby recommend using the maximum number of hashtags allowed, because it gives you more opportunities to be discovered, others recommend using just 5-10.
We have seen all sorts of strategies and ideas on how many hashtags make the difference, but at the end of the day, it's really up to you. If you can find 30 super-relevant hashtags to add to each post, then you should definitely go for it.
However, if you do not feel comfortable using that many, feel free to opt for less. It is always okay to experiment with the number of hashtags you use on a post in the search to finding your hashtag sweet spot.
What Hashtags Should You Use?
The most important thing to keep in mind when deciding what hashtags to use is that you are being intentional, you are using hashtags that your target audience is actually searching for and following!
It is important to switch up your Instagram hashtags in every post to avoid being spammy. It is also a good idea to avoid gimmicky hashtags such as #likeforlike, and hashtags that have been used over 1M times. While these hashtags might get you a few extra likes, they are not going to help you grow a highly engaged, targeted following.
Instead, try looking for ultra-niche community hashtags that are specifically relevant to the content you post. It is not a bad idea to use Saved Captions to build multiple hashtag lists that are organized by theme or category.
For example, if you are a business that targets small business owners in the fashion industry, you may have multiple hashtags that you use on different topics.
Some may be specifically for small businesses, while others might be about fashion and ecommerce. The key is to collect and categorize them so that when they are used in a post, you can easily tell which pulls in the most engagement on your post.
And don't forget to use your branded hashtag whenever it makes sense! The first step to getting other users to share your branded hashtag is to use it yourself.
Using Instagram hashtags strategically is a great way to connect with customers, find content created about you by your followers, and build long-term relationships with influential partners!