Great news! You have a backlog of beautiful, ‘Gram-worthy content to post to your business Instagram page and start tapping into markets markets! But you’re not sure how to use hashtags to get the marketing results you’re expecting.
That’s what we’re here for!
What are hashtags exactly?
Hashtags can get a bit confusing. While they’re essentially just help organize these massive user-upload sites, they’re often used for humor or sassy responses unrelated to trying to build an audience or reach. You can also search for content by hashtag, follow specific hashtags relating to an interest of yours, or include hashtags in your bio as another way to be found.
What hashtags should I use?
These two questions are the building blocks of your potential reach on Instagram. Luckily, there are existing resources to help you determine what hashtags you should use for optimal effectiveness of Instagram. The website hashtagify.com will let you see what hashtags your competitors are using and the size (and amount of competition) for each one.
If there’s a hashtag you really like but you’re worried you’ll be drowned out due to its popularity, consider adding something location-specific to the tag. This way you’ll have less competition for your content to be viewed, but you’ll also be targeting people who are actually in your area (e.g. “#smallbusiness being #smallbusinessatx if you’re in Austin).
According to Social Media Today, 11 hashtags is the ideal number for Instagram (but only one works best for Twitter!).
Should I use the same hashtags?
Don’t always use the same hashtags! While you may have two or three branded hashtags that you always use, make sure you vary well-researched hashtags for each post so you can have as wide of a relevant audience as possible.
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