Beginners Guide To Hashtags
Beginners Guide To Hashtags
If you are just getting started with Instagram, or feel you still have so much to learn to develop your business using this platform, then you may have heard about ‘hashtags’ before! But it can feel like a whole other world and just another thing to learn. But it is so important to use hashtags, and by being more strategic with them you can really benefit and grow your reach, audience and therefore your business using them on social media, especially Instagram.
So what are ‘Hashtags’ actually all about?
A hashtag on Instagram, visually seen as # is a word or phrase which comprises of letters, numbers, and/or emojis.
A hashtag is a way to essentially tag your post to a certain ‘hashtag’, so for example people searching for #floristlondon (as an example), your post or reel then has the chance to be discovered within this hashtag. People use hashtags all the time to search for things, imagine it as a search engine - like google! Ultimately they help Instagram users discover new content and accounts to follow.
Hashtags are endless, there are so many, some can be very general, i.e. ‘florist’ and some can be more niche for example ‘#weddingflorist’ or ‘#floristlondon’
But it is worth remembering the more general the hashtag and the less niche, the more people will be posting with it, which means your content can quickly disappear.
If you search for any type of hashtag you will see two options: 'top’ and ‘recent’ the top posts are the ones with the most engagement and likes, usually the most relevant to that hashtag. And the ‘recent’ are the most recent posts. If you can get your posts in the top feature then more people will see it!
How to use Hashtags?
Now we know what a hashtag is and how they work, then we should now look at how to use them and put it into practise!
For every post you create you can use 30 hashtags, and I recommend using all 30. You have the option to either include the hashtags at the bottom of your caption, or in the first comment, if you don't want them visible on your post.
Now, where to find the right 30 hashtags?!
Here are my top tips:
Think like your target audience, what will they be searching for?
Check out the top posts in your industry, and your competitors to strategically pick out the best and most relevant hashtags to you and your business.
Use more niche and relevant hashtags, with fewer followers to have a greater chance of your content actually being seen. A mixture of sizes is also great! For example, you could use ten between 5,000 and 20,000, ten between 25,000 and 100,000 and some larger ones too.
Use a mix of hashtag types, for example:
Product or service hashtags: Such as ‘flowers’ or ‘florist’
Niche hashtags: These get a little more specific, for example ‘weddingflorist’ or ‘weddingfloristlondon’.
Industry Instagram community hashtags: Communities exist on Instagram, and these hashtags help you find and join them. Think #flowerpower or #flowerlover
Special event or seasonal hashtags: #summerday or #nationalflowerday
Location hashtags: Even if you geo-tag your Instagram post, it can still be a good idea to include a hashtag that refers to your location, for example #floristlondon or #londonflorist
Finally, now you understand hashtags and you have spent time strategically finding the best ones, don't forget to save them to save yourself heaps of time!
You could even create separate hashtag ‘sets’ relevant to the different types of posts you create, for you to switch up. Something as simple as your notes app or a google doc is perfect.
