The Instagram hashtag debate is a hot topic.
For businesses looking to grow their Instagram views, finding the right number of hashtags can quickly turn into a headache.
Should you only use a few super niche hashtags, or should you use 30 hashtags? Do hashtags even work anymore?
There’s a reason why people always seem to be talking about hashtags. The rules are always changing, and they changed again in 2022.
Let’s dive in and find out how many hashtags on Instagram are optimal for your business.
Experiment with How Many Hashtags on Instagram You Use
Currently, you can put a maximum of 30 hashtags per Instagram post.
But is it really optimal to increase my follower count? Some experts will say yes, and others will suggest using fewer hashtags for better results. So which one to choose?
Our first tip is to experiment with yourself. Determine which hashtag group performs best by creating several different groups.
3-5 Hashtags Per Post (Instagram’s Recommendation)
It may come as a surprise, but Instagram suggests using between 3 and 5 hashtags. The reason behind this low number is to use more relevant and better-quality hashtags to avoid spam. In other words: less is more.
Try this strategy and create the first group of 3-5 hashtags you will use for posts that you will publish on Monday, for example.
5-15 Hashtags Per Post
Then create a second group containing between 5 and 15 hashtags. You will use this group for Tuesday’s posts so that you can compare the results with your first group on Monday.
The Maximum: 30 Hashtags Per Post
Finally, create a final hashtag group with 30 hashtags that will be used for Wednesday’s posts. Then on Thursday, repeat the experiment using the first group, Friday, the second group, and so on.
You will be able to compare the various outcomes and determine the optimal number of hashtags to use by using this rotation system over the course of a month.
Types of Instagram Hashtags for Business
Each business has its own characteristics according to its sector but also according to its service or product. Hashtags can be categorized into various groups, even if selecting the appropriate hashtags is dependent on your activity.
Let’s take a closer look at the various kinds of hashtags you should use now that you know better how to find the number of hashtags:
- Product or service hashtags
- Industry hashtags that describe your niche
- Community-focused hashtags to bring your community together
- Descriptive hashtags which describe the content of your actual post
- Location hashtags
How to Conduct Instagram Hashtag Research
Now let’s look at how to find relevant hashtags for each of your posts. Here are three different strategies you can use:
Use Instagram Hashtag Generators
A number of online hashtag generators can make it simple for you to locate hashtags that are associated with your industry or niche.
The tool will provide you with a list of hashtags that you can use in your posts by simply typing in relevant words.
Use Instagram Explore
For your Instagram hashtag strategy, the Explore page is a great source of inspiration.
Check out the “Top” results and search for keywords that are associated with your brand or content for the best results.
Take note of the various hashtags used in these posts to see if they might work for your content. It is evident that these posts are performing well with the Instagram algorithm.
Search for Hashtags on Instagram
You can search for hashtags that are related to a phrase, which is a feature of Instagram that is very helpful. You can view a list of related hashtags by switching to the Tags tab at the top of the Instagram search box after entering a phrase or word.
Instagram will display the number of posts just below the hashtag when performing the same search. You can use this to determine which hashtags are trending and use them to increase follower engagement.
Also, keep in mind that the volume of posts per hashtag is a very important metric.
Your post will probably be lost in the crowd if a hashtag has already been used on millions of posts.
How to Hide Your Hashtag List
Your post is ready to be published, but there is one more thing missing. If you have to add 20 or 30 hashtags to your post, it may decrease the readability and get your follower confused.
What are the best ways to hide your hashtags? Should they be hidden in the comments or the captions? Let’s take a look at some of the options available to you:
In Your Caption
To make the caption less busy when hiding hashtags, you can add an ellipsis (a series of dots) or symbols (~) after it so that they’re hidden beneath the “More” button for your followers.
Keep in mind not to include any extra spaces at the end of your sentences or after each Instagram dot. If you do, it will cancel out the line break and ruin the effect.
In A Comment
Tucking hashtags into the first comment is the cleanest way to hide them on Instagram. Simply include the hashtags in a comment after your post has gone live with your list prepared.
Key Takeaways
Hashtags are still very useful in increasing your number of views per Instagram post. Finding the right number will require some practice and especially a good knowledge of how Instagram works.
- Measure, experiment, and try. This is the most accurate method for determining the optimal number of hashtags for your posts.
- Make use of a variety of hashtag categories like industry, product or service, brand, etc. The more varied your hashtags are, the better your results will be.
- Search for the most trending hashtags using all the tools at your disposal.
- Don’t forget to hide your hashtags and make your posts easy to read and clean.
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Denisa Lamaj
