Let’s Talk Instagram Hashtags

One of the best ways to grow your Instagram reach is to get good at

strategically using hashtags. They allow people to find related posts and

pictures, come across fresh new content and connect with their favorite

topics and brands.

A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by the # symbol.

#InstagramHashtags is an example of a hashtag you could use. It is usually

part of the description or comment on an Instagram picture. Hashtags

become clickable links. Click on one, and you will start to see all sorts of

image posts pop up that share this particular tag.

Hashtags make you and your Instagram feed more “findable.” That, in

turn, will help grow your reach, your audience, and the traffic back to

your website. Interestingly, posts that include hashtags do better when it

comes to user engagement. In other words, you can expect to see more

likes and comments on your posts if you are using relevant hashtags.

Not only will you engage your target audience more, the chances of your

content being seen by people outside of your current circle of influence

go up, and that’s a very good thing. This applies in particular when you

can find a way to incorporate popular community hashtags.

The two most common types of hashtags are community tags, and brand

takes. Brand tags are those you make up to represent yourself, your

company, your products and your brand. Community tags, on the other

hand, come about organically. Someone starts to use a tag like

#ILoveMyDog, and it is picked up and used by more and more people

within that community or niche.

Finding a way to incorporate niche specific hashtags into your Instagram

posts on a regular basis is one of the most productive ways to grow your

reach and attract more followers who are part of your target audience.

The key to making hashtags work for you is to be specific. A tag like #love

my be used a lot, but the chances of someone who is interested in what

you have to offer finding you through a general tag like this are slim to

none. You’ll get much better results with tags that are geared towards

what you do and what you have to offer. If you are selling French Press

coffee makers, for example, you’ll do much better with tags like

#frenchpressed, or #NotWithoutMyFrenchPress than general #coffee tags.

While you can certainly use more general tags from time to time, make it

a point to include at least one niche specific tag per post. Think quality

over quantity with your hashtag strategy.