Hashtags are everywhere these days, particularly on Instagram. And being a marketer, you cannot ignore them. You need to know how to strategically implement these tagged topics. When done right, hashtags can expand your content reach, amplify your brand, target your market, get your content found, improve your SEO, and many more.
Why You Should Market on Instagram
Sure, experts recommend that you should handle a social media profiles from the various platforms available today, but why should you prioritize Instagram? The answer is this: A new report found that 71% of the world’s largest brands have adopted this platform, rivaling the brand adoption of Pinterest and Google+ and making it the fastest growing social network worldwide.
Nate Smitha, a marketing analyst with Simply Measured, discussed the findings in this report:
“This was a comprehensive view of activity that tracked brands across all social channels and put in context with their other social media activity. Instagram is a channel we’ve been tracking for some time. It’s an excellent channel for brands to repurpose their marketing content. Brand adoption has increased significantly, which has made it a great place for consumers to connect with those brands”.
What are the Hashtags on Instagram?
Most of you should know what a hashtag is by now. But for those who are just starting out, here is a quick and clear definition of what they are from Social Media Today:
“Hashtags are a word, or group of words after the # sign (like #hashtag, #buylocal, #marketing or anything else). If you’re more technically inclined, you might know them as a metadata tag. For marketers – you’ll know them as a way to engage your brand with your market”.
Using Hashtags to Market on Instagram
Generally, there are two uses for hashtags on Instagram. One, they are used to crowdsource fan made content. And, two, they extend the reach of your own contact. Nitrogram gives us tips on how to do this.
- Don’t choose a hashtag that’s too broad
- Choose a specific yet recognizable hashtag
- Adapt your SEO keywords to the Instagram culture
- Newsjacking on Instagram
- Have fun with Instagram’s themes and memes
- Don’t use banned hashtags
By utilizing the use of hashtags on Instagram, and integrating the above tip to your daily sharing of activates, you can very well improve the experience of your followers when it comes to interactive campaigns while benefiting your account’s discoverability.