Lever of visibility, tool of distraction or instrument of mobilization, the hashtag concept has become a whole symbol for the Instagram social network. To better understand its use, even optimize it and increase its followers , it is necessary to know the essentials. Role, importance, mode of use, we then tell you everything about hashtags.
Instagram hashtag: definition of an unalterable concept
A hashtag, also called a word click in French, is defined as a keyword or a key phrase preceded by the mysterious symbol # .
Their role: to categorize content on social networks. In other words, “attaching” a hashtag to a publication consists of indexing it. It is therefore a digital beacon designed to allow Internet users to quickly reach a brand, an ideology, a social movement, a source of information.
Hashtag on Instagram: importance
Using a hashtag makes it possible to discover content to a target audience. In other words, hashtags behave like keys that allow you to reach a community likely to be interested in a product or project. That said, knowing how to use keywords is therefore a way to increase your visibility on Instagram and therefore your followers.
Also, Instagram users can find hashtag-specific content in their newsfeed. All you need to do is that your publications are associated with the hashtags that they follow on the social network.
Additionally, the extent of user interaction with an Instagram hashtag can also help the hashtag's organic visibility . Indeed, Instagram's algorithms increase the probability of a post with high interaction appearing on users' accounts.
In a more indirect way, hashtags also help to garner a significant engagement rate. Similarly, they are a way to get new subscribers.
Better understand hashtags
The universe of hashtags is governed by a relatively subtle classification code. Understanding how it works then makes it possible to combine very prolific hashtags. So, it is possible to categorize hashtags according to certain criteria which are:
- the use that will be made of it;
- the intent sought;
- the target audience .
As a guideline, branded hashtags usually refer to the brands or likenesses of large companies. They are associated with well-crafted marketing strategies on the social network. It is also possible to discover location, niche or community-specific hashtags on Instagram.
Instagram hashtag: how-to guide
The first trick is to use your bio to include a hashtag. Similarly, the description of publications also called posts also remains a channel in which it is possible to integrate a hashtag. Finally, the Stories and the description of the so-called IGTV videos are also visual elements with which click words are associated.
Also, adding a hashtag to an Instagram post can be done using two techniques. The first is to associate it as a comment . The second is the integration of the hashtag in the description part.
Finally, to know if the social network Instagram treats a click word as a real hashtag, you must check if it is underlined. This characteristic then makes it possible to differentiate messages in the form of raw texts from real hashtags.
How to follow Instagram hashtags?
After performing a hashtag search, Instagram's algorithms offer users the results in two sections. The first section identifies popular results associated with the search. The second section offers recent publications .
Recent posts are the same regardless of the user . They are displayed in chronological order from the most recent to the oldest posts. Popular publications, on the other hand, will be adapted to the preferences of the subscriber . In addition, the Stories associated with the searched hashtag can also appear a little higher on the social network.
Obviously, it is therefore possible to follow a hashtag in order to receive posts associated with the followed hashtag. This then poses the problem of optimizing hashtags to get the most out of them.
Which hashtag to choose for a successful strategy?
Branded hashtags have already proven their effectiveness for those who want to take off in visibility. The first strategy will therefore consist in using it. The same goes for campaign, slogan or product hashtags. Thus, users who enter a keyword identical to the brand can easily subscribe.
Also, effective hashtags often refer to a theme that the target audience cares about. Similarly, it is possible to look at the side of the competition or influencers. This technique makes it possible to identify the hashtags that are all the rage with users. In addition, doing Instagram searches on a popular hashtag related to your niche is also beneficial. Indeed, it allows to discover the relevant click words. It is also a way to gauge the popularity of a hashtag and understand its content.
What strategy adopted to optimize its Instagram hashtags?
For each section, the social network imposes a limit on the number of hashtags. In the bio section, 150 characters are allowed even if the number of hashtags is not limited there. For posts as for IGTV , at most 30 hashtags are authorized against 10 for stories . An error message is displayed in case Instagram sees an attempt to exceed the limits. To optimize its use, it is therefore preferable to stay below the recommended limit.
When it comes to the ideal number to use for posts, opinions differ. However, a maximum of hashtags is recommended for a growing Instagram account. But accumulating click words is not the solution to hope to gain visibility. Therefore, it is recommended to research , identify and make good use of the most relevant of them.
In addition, the quality of the content is also an essential criterion for optimizing the use of hashtags. It is therefore useless to offer content that is attractive without offering content of the same quality. Beyond the relevance of hashtags; these must also be of interest to the target audience . A mismatch between the target audience and the choice of hashtags therefore guarantees that you will not be able to implement an effective strategy.
Hashtags therefore occupy a prominent place on Instagram. It is therefore possible to use it wisely to increase visibility and popularity on the social network.
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