Introduction

Hashtags are more strategic than they seem to be. They are a crucial part of almost every social platform and have a lot to offer. One Instagram hashtag can generate nearly 13% more engagement on average.

Using just any hashtag isn't going to get you all their benefits. Hashtags need to be relevant to your brand and your targeted audience. Figuring out the right hashtags can be tricky. We've put together the complete guide for you to find the perfect hashtags that will help your posts stand out in the sea of identical content.

The Efficiency of Eleven

Instagram allows you to use up to 30 hashtags on your post. Just because you're allowed to do that doesn't mean you should. Several case studies show that 11 is the ideal number of hashtags per post on Instagram.

Posts having more than 11 hashtags tend to have lesser engagement and reach. Although 11 hashtags are effective, don't hesitate to test out using lesser hashtags. They could drive more likes and growth for your page as Instagram can be unpredictable.

Include Popular Hashtags

Many people have the idea that including popular or overused hashtags is unnecessary. It's a good idea to have a balance of both popular and unique hashtags under your posts.

Up and coming media company CABLGRAM seems to have their hashtag game figured out. Keeping a list of popular hashtags that fall under your niche will help avoid repeating the same hashtags. Here is a list of the 100 most popular hashtags to help you started.

Targeted Hashtags

Think of these hashtags as keywords. These hashtags are included in your post to reach your targeted audience. If you're unsure about how to figure out your target audience, try checking out our blog. Targeted hashtags make your content visible to probable followers. These people won't just view, and like your post; they are potential customers. It's crucial that you have a variety of targeted hashtags to cover as much as possible.

Sustainable clothing brand Dacca uses targeted hashtags that align with their niche. The brand follows an alternative approach to fashion and that resonates in their hashtags.

Be Wary of Repetition

The reason hashtags are so vital in marketing is that they make you visible and reach millions of users around the world. Public Instagram posts with hashtags show up when people look up that particular hashtag. They are used to discover content, and the right hashtags can put you in view of your target audience.

Instagram hashtags are overly cluttered, making content hard to find. The best strategy would be to figure out as many hashtags applicable to your niche as possible and alternate among them. Diversify your hashtags and cover as many bases as you can. Avoiding repetition can give you the best chance of increasing your reach.

Hashtag Tools

Using wrong hashtags can do you a lot of harm, like get shadowbanned, for instance. A shadowban is when users experience a significant drop in engagement on their posts. Their posts are only visible to people who already follow them regardless of being a public account. Their posts won't show under hashtags they mentioned. So it's incredibly important to use the right hashtags. If you are hesitant to come up with your own hashtags, here's a list of 10 hashtag tools that will help you out!

• Hashtagify
• SkedSocial
• Display Purposes
• Hashtag Expert
• All Hashtag
• Seekmetrics
• AutoHash
• RiteTag
• Photerloo
• Ingramer

Create Your Own

One of the boldest ways to stand out with hashtags is by creating your own. It could be your brand name or a tagline, anything that is unique to your brand. When people post content featuring you, aside from tagging you they can use your brand's hashtag. This makes your brand easier to find to your target audience.

Moreover, when you use your brand's hashtag along with your other hashtags, the algorithm associates them as similar. So when someone looks up similar hashtags, the chances of your brand popping up increases. People can even follow hashtags on Instagram, so it's more the reason to have a brand hashtag.

Shingara Production takes a bold approach and uses their Brand Hashtag on its own. Their customers also replicate this hashtag when posting about their products.

Summing it Up

Hashtags are a great way to maximize brand awareness, attract new audiences and improve your engagement rate. People tend to think hashtags aren't that relevant in Instagram's algorithm anymore but that isn’t true. By using the right approach, you can utilize this powerful tool to make every post stand out and reach the most people possible.

Curious to know how influencers are changing the tech trends? Check out this piece.