How to Create a Hashtag Strategy That Works

By Bobbi Wharran | bobbi@pancakedigitalsolutions.com

Hashtags play an important part in every good Instagram strategy. In fact, posts with hashtags get 70% more likes than posts with no hashtags.

And while there’s nothing wrong with using a few fun & popular hashtags simply for context – #throwbackthursday or #tacotuesday for example – there’s a lot more strategy involved if you’re serious about growing your business with Instagram.

So, if you’ve been wondering how to create a hashtag strategy that actually works, then this blog post is for you!

What Hashtags Should You Use?

Loading your post up with general hashtags like #love, #beautiful, or #happy that have millions of users might seem like a smart thing to do, I mean, they’re popular, right? But it’s actually one of the worst things that you can do and it will probably result in little to no engagement.

Why? Because when there are so many images being posted at the same time using the same hashtags (there are over 111 million Instagram users!) your post is likely going to get lost in the mix.

So how do you find hashtags that will get you seen?

Research. Research. Research.

It can be a time-consuming task but researching hashtags before you start posting can make a big difference when it comes to building your business on Instagram.

The more relevant and focused the hashtag, the more engagement it will generate. And as you know, the more engagement you can get, the easier it is to make the connections needed to build the know, like, and trust factor.

Doing research ahead of time will also help eliminate the use of general, widely used hashtags when you’re in a hurry.

So what should you research?

Your topic – Research current trends and find popular keywords being used. Then take those keywords and enter them into the search bar on Instagram and see what hashtags come up. Try different variations of the keywords to find hashtags that are still popular but have a smaller number of users.
Your Audience – What hashtags are your audience using when on Instagram?
Influencers in Your Niche – What hashtags are they using for similar content?

How Many Hashtags Should You Use?

This question is one of the most frequently asked questions when it comes to creating a hashtag strategy. And truthfully, there isn’t one right answer.

A quick Google search will show you that every expert seems to have a different answer and all of those answers are based on what works best for their audience.

The best way to determine how many hashtags you should use is to test it. Try using a different number of hashtags and keep track of your engagement rate. After doing this for a while you should be able to determine your ‘sweet spot’.

On the Table

Taking the time to do hashtag research and using hashtags strategically will result in much better reach and engagement. Which is, after all, the name of the game when it comes to building a business on Instagram.

Here are more resources to help you grow your business on social media:

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