Instagram hashtags: how to make them work?
Instagrammers say that you just need to add 30 random hashtags, and your account will explode with followers. But that is not true. The issue is there are several tricks you should keep in mind when applying hashtags for Instagram. The best and easiest practice is using Toolzu – free Hashtag generator powered with AI.
After 3 minutes of reading, you will understand how to mix hashtags that streamline interested people to your account, and how to use Hashtags searcher.
3 cornerstones of hashtagging
#1 Apply only relevant hashtags
Firstly, assure that hashtags you put under your posts correlate with the image and caption. Also, you should avoid broad in meaning hashtags like #people, #me, etc. If you tap on these hashtags, you’ll notice they list millions of publications, most of them are spam. Is this effective in reaching your target audience?
Moreover, Instagram may put you under a shadowban if you use unspecified tags, not improving the search.
Conclusion: only niche and related to your photo hashtags can make your post more discoverable. I’ll explain how to find these tags using keywords in the tutorial below.
# 2 Don’t use the same hashtags
When you’ve found specific and working hashtags, don’t use them every time you post a photo. This strategy won’t work. The point is IG detects you repeat hashtags, and you won’t get to the TOP section. The algorithm may even ban you cause it assumes you put hashtags just to get easy likes.
Also, I recommend that you find exclusive hashtags for each product category or service. I’ll show you how.
Conclusion: mix the hashtags in the set and add new hashtags. You can group hashtags by goods, location, brand image. Find 60-80 hashtags you will rearrange for every new post.
#3 Don’t use too competitive hashtags
By competitive hashtags, I mean the hashtags that list millions of posts. The feed of recent and TOP posts for these hashtags is changing every second. So, it’s hard to remain in the TOP and get explored exceptionally if your posts don’t explode with likes.
Instead of using competitive hashtags, but those with fewer posts. This doesn’t mean you should skip popular hashtags at all. My main hack is the right proportion of hashtags in your set. I’ll explain it in my tutorial.
Conclusion: limit the use of too competitive and overused hashtags to 3-5. Check the hashtag’s statistics in the Toolzu finder to estimate time in the TOP.
Free Hashtags finder – tutorial
Firstly, open this free finder by Toolzu in a new tab and pass the 1-minute registration.
#1 Type your keys
You can use up to 5 keywords and word combinations per search. Moreover, the finder is cross-language so that you can use any language and alphabet. So convenient:
As I mentioned before, I recommend you to commit different search for product categories and content.
Also, you can search by a URL and upload a picture right to the Hashtag generator. This search is powered with AI-scanning and choosing proper hashtags.
#2 Copy hashtags in the right proportion
As you noticed, hashtags are divided by groups according to the difficulty of getting in the TOP. Follow the best proportion of hashtags from various groups:
- High – 2-3 hashtags. To spammy and competitive tags, you need just to diversify your set.
- Medium – 6-10 hashtags. Less spammy hashtags but still not easy to get to the TOP.
- Low – 10-20 hashtags. Niche and specific hashtags connected with your business. They drive target viewers who search by hashtags on IG. Also, they are less competitive.
#3 Save 3-5 sets
Do research for every post you upload and save hashtags groups for every product category. Copy the results in your content plan or spreadsheet to mix the order for every new post.
#4 Estimate the results
View the post’s insights to indicate what hashtags drive more views to your content. Instagram analytics shows how many people reached your post through hashtags. If the combination is right, this metric holds 80% of the general post reach.
My final thought
Don’t get frustrated when the first results from using hashtags were not mind-boggling. It takes time, and you should test several times to determine the best combination. Remember, new hashtags appear every day, and some of the old hashtags get banned so that you need a trusted tool to search. Try Toolzu and boost your post’s reach!