Many people don't like hashtags on Instagram. They either do not know how to use them for their business, or simply think that they do not work.
Why are hashtags so important on Instagram? The reality is that they are the secret ingredient to success. Instagram has very limited search capabilities as a platform, and one of the best ways to find and draw more attention to your content is to use hashtags. They allow you to appear in various searches for your target audience and help more people find your content.
There are three places where you can use hashtags in Instagram content:
• Instagram posts
• Instagram stories
• IGTV
But there are some restrictions on the number of hashtags you can use:
• In an Instagram post, you can use up to 30 hashtags in the title or comments to get their ranking for search. Any hashtags beyond 30 will not appear in the search.
• For Instagram stories, you can use up to three hashtags. You can use one sticker with a hashtag or put three hashtags in a text box.
• For IGTV, you can use up to 30 hashtags in the description of your video.
Read more:
Instagram promotion tools that have become obsolete
Hashtag Search Results
Now that you know that you can use Instagram hashtags and want to place them in all of your content, it's worth noting that there is no guarantee that you will actually appear in any specific hashtag search. All results for hashtags are sorted by algorithm.
To view the hashtag search results, click on the search icon (magnifying glass) and enter the hashtag that you want to find in the search bar. Then click on the Tags tab to view the hashtag associated with the word or phrase.
In the search results you will see two tabs: one for the most effective and popular posts and one for the latest posts.
Everything on the “Top” tab is algorithmically sorted depending on the type of content you interact with. If you really like puppies, you are more likely to see content with puppies in the search results.
The Instagram algorithm knows what you are looking for and sorts the search results according to your behavior. As a result, if you and your friend are looking for the same hashtag, you will see different results because they are sorted for each of them.
If you switch to the Recent tab in the hashtag search results, this content will be sorted in chronological order, and the last published post is at the top of the results feed. Algorithmic sorting is still associated with this list of results, and there is no guarantee that your content will be displayed with every hashtag or even any of those hashtags that you specifically use.
But there is always a chance that you will appear in the search results and find more people. Therefore, use hashtags and give more people the opportunity to see your content!
Now that you understand the basics of how hashtags work on Instagram, let's dig deeper into how to strategically use them in your content in various areas of Instagram.
How to use hashtags in Instagram posts
Your Instagram posts are your best opportunity to appear in search results for various hashtags. But not every hashtag will work the same.
Unfortunately, many people are doing what can be called the tactics of "throw spaghetti into the wall and hope that they stick."
How many hashtags should you use? Where should you use them? Which ones should you use?
How many Instagram hashtags should you use in the news feed?
You can use up to 30 hashtags and everything else that will not be displayed in the search. But should you use all 30?
We recommend that you use at least 15–20 and go to 30 when you learn to do it right.
Combine different hashtags from different popularity categories. To find out how popular the hashtag is, go to Instagram search and enter the hashtag in the tag search bar. A populated hashtag list will tell you how many messages are associated with each of these hashtags.
Top-secret hashtag recipe for maximum exposure:
• Choose three to five popular hashtags. Popular hashtags contain between 300,000 and 1 million messages for a specific hashtag. All that exceeds 1 million, as a rule, does not matter to you, because it is so rich in content that the only thing you will attract is spam bots.
• Choose from three to five moderately popular hashtags. These are hashtags that fall in the range of 80,000 to 300,000.
• Choose three to five niche-specific hashtags. They are focused exclusively on your industry, on what you are doing, on the solution that you offer, and on what your client is looking for.
• Include one or two of your signature hashtags.
If you follow this formula, you will already have up to 12-15 hashtags.
Conclusion
Instagram hashtags work as long as your content is interesting. Check it first on your subscribers. If there will be a small response from them, then it is unlikely that one can hope that non-subscribers will perceive the content with a bang. Go for it! And Futureinapps will take care of your promotion on any social networks!
