Strategy
The 2020 Instagram Hashtag Guide—How to Use Them and Get Results
Instagram hashtags can make or break your Instagram
strategy. Use them correctly and you’ll get your posts seen by
more people.
Christina Newberry June 23, 2020
Instagram hashtags can make or break your Instagram strategy. Use
them correctly and you’ll get your posts seen by more people
likely to be interested in your products or brand.
But use the wrong and you can actually do damage, from annoying
potential followers to get penalized by Instagram’s algorithm.
To use hashtags for Instagram effectively, you need to understand
exactly how they work, and put some thought into a strategy.
You’re in the right place to do just that.
Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps a
lifestyle photographer used to grow from 0 to 600,000 followers
on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.
------------------------------------------------------------
Instagram hashtags in 2020
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What are Instagram hashtags?
----------------------------
A hashtag is a combination of letters, numbers, and/or emoji
preceded by the # symbol (e.g., #NoFilter). They are used to
categorize content and make it more discoverable.
Hashtags are clickable. Anyone who clicks on an Instagram hashtag
or conducts an Instagram hashtag search will see a page showing
all the posts tagged with that hashtag.
Why use Instagram hashtags?
---------------------------
Hashtags are an important way to expand your Instagram audience.
When you use a hashtag, your post will appear on the page for
that hashtag. If you use a hashtag on your Story, it could be
included in the relevant hashtag Story, which also appears on the
hashtag page.
People can also choose to follow hashtags, which means they could
see your hashtagged post in their feed even if they don’t follow
you (yet).
Instagram hashtags can be a great way of building community
online so people are motivated to engage with your brand. For
example, as the way people work out suddenly changed in 2020,
Nike Los Angeles ( https://www.instagram.com/nikelosangeles/ )
used the #playinside hashtag to feature local people getting
active in their homes.
View this post on Instagram
( https://www.instagram.com/p/B-FCIu6gKP0/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
Now more than ever, we are one team. Each week, we’re sharing
how Angelenos are staying active in their homes. Show us how you
#playinside for a chance to be featured.
( https://www.instagram.com/p/B-FCIu6gKP0/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
A post shared by #nikela
( https://www.instagram.com/nikelosangeles/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
(@nikelosangeles) on Mar 23, 2020 at 7:23am PDT
Types of popular Instagram hashtags
-----------------------------------
Instagram breaks hashtags down
( https://business.instagram.com/blog/how-to-get-discovered-on-instagram )
into nine distinct types:
* Product or service hashtags: These are basic keywords to
describe your product or service, like #handbag or #divebar
* Niche hashtags: These get a little more specific, showing where
you fit in the context of your industry, like #travelblogger or
#foodblogger
* Industry Instagram community hashtags: Communities exist on
Instagram, and these hashtags help you find and join them. Think
#gardenersofinstagram or #craftersofinstgram
* Special event or seasonal hashtags: These can refer to real
holidays or seasons, like #summerdays, or they can be used for
all those National [Thing] Day holidays, like
#nationalicecreamday or #nationalnailpolishday
View this post on Instagram
( https://www.instagram.com/p/CA3xae_gyg9/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
Celebrating #nationalnailpolishday with my favorite @essie nail
polish in the color Sugar Daddy. #sponsored It’s the perfect
nude-pink! You can get $4 off 2 Essie nail polishes from 5/31-6/6
at @walgreens! Check out the link in my stories for more info.
( https://www.instagram.com/p/CA3xae_gyg9/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
A post shared by Amanda West
( https://www.instagram.com/accordingtomandy/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
(@accordingtomandy) on May 31, 2020 at 4:55pm PDT
* 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, like #vancouvercraftbeer or #londoneats
* Daily hashtags: Every day has plenty of its own hashtags, from
#MondayBlues right through to #SundayFunday. We created a whole
list of daily hashtags
( https://blog.hootsuite.com/daily-hashtags/ ) for you to choose
from if you’re looking for an easy source of hashtags to add to
your posts.
* Relevant phrase hashtags: These hashtags combine elements of
product hashtags, niche hashtags, and community hashtags.
Basically, they’re phrases people use on Instagram to connect to
existing communities in a slightly insider way, like #amwriting
or #shewhowanders
* Acronym hashtags: Perhaps the best-known acronym hashtag is
#TBT for Throwback Thursday. Other popular acronym hashtags
include #OOTD for outfit of the day, #FBF for flashback Friday,
and #YOLO for you only live once.
* Emoji hashtags: These hashtags can include emojis on their own,
like #????, or words or phrases with emojis attached, like
#sunglasses????.
Branded hashtags are another great option for businesses on
Instagram. We’ll get into more details on those later in this
post.
How many hashtags on Instagram to use
-------------------------------------
You can include up to 30
( https://help.instagram.com/351460621611097 ) hashtags on a
regular post, and up to 10 hashtags on a Story. If you try to
include more, your comment or caption won’t post.
That said, just because you can use that many hashtags for
Instagram doesn’t mean you should. There’s no right number of
hashtags for every business, or even for every post by the same
business.
The consensus ( https://adespresso.com/blog/instagram-statistics/ ) is that about 11 hashtags is a good number to start with. But
the most common number of hashtags to use on Instagram is between
1 and 3
.
You’ll need to do some testing
( https://blog.hootsuite.com/social-media-ab-testing/ ) to
determine what works best for your particular business.
How to hide hashtags on Instagram
---------------------------------
When you’ve spent time crafting a great Instagram caption
( https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-captions-drive-engagement/ )
, you may not want to end your post with a prominent collection
of hashtags. Fortunately, there are a couple of easy ways to make
your hashtags less visible.
How to hide Instagram hashtags in a comment:
* Write your caption as usual but don’t include any hashtags.
* Once your post is published, simply click the speech bubble
icon under your post to leave a comment.
* Write out or paste the hashtags you want to include in the
comment box and tap Post.
* On mobile, your hashtags won’t be visible unless a user taps
View all comments. However, on desktop, your comment will remain
in the top position, so this trick works better if you’re
targeting a mobile audience.
Screenshot showing how to hide Instagram hashtags in the comment
section
Source: VW on Instagram ( https://www.instagram.com/vw/ )
How to hide Instagram hashtags in the caption:
You can also use hashtags within the caption itself without them
being super-visible.
* At the bottom of your caption, tap Return or Enter. If you
don’t see a Return or Enter button, tap 123 to bring it up.
* Enter a punctuation mark (try a period, bullet, or dash), then
hit Return again.
* Repeat steps 2 to 4 at least three times.
* Instagram hides captions after three lines, so your hashtags
won’t be viewable unless your followers tap … more. Even then,
your hashtags will be visually separated from your caption so
they don’t distract from your copy.
A post shared by Rocky Mountain Soap Company
( https://www.instagram.com/rockymountainsoapco/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
(@rockymountainsoapco) on May 31, 2020 at 5:48pm PDT
How to hide captions on Instagram Stories:
You can hide hashtags on Instagram Stories, too. One option is
simply to minimize the appearance of your hashtags by pinching
and shrinking them to make them quite small. You can also tap the
hashtag sticker to change it from a white background to a
semi-transparent one.
If you want to hide your hashtags entirely, you can paste an
emoji, sticker, or GIF overtop to obscure them.
Screenshot showing how to hide hashtags in Instagram Stories
Source: Christina Newberry ( http://instagram.com/ckjnewberry )
How to find trending hashtags on Instagram
------------------------------------------
Unlike Twitter, Instagram doesn’t publicize a list of trending
hashtags. However, if you search for a hashtag on Instagram,
you’ll see how many posts use that hashtag. You’ll also see a
list of other popular Instagram hashtags using similar words,
with post counts included too.
Screenshot showing how to find and search trending hashtags on
Instagram
Source: Instagram ( https://www.instagram.com/ )
To search for a hashtag on desktop, enter the hashtag including
the # symbol into the search box. On mobile, enter your search
term in the search box, then tap Tags.
If you’re paying attention to your Instagram feed, you’ll learn
to quickly spot trending hashtags as they emerge. Don’t be too
quick to jump on a trend, though. Only post using a trending
hashtag if it really makes sense for your business, and for the
specific content in your post.
How to search multiple hashtags on Instagram
--------------------------------------------
The easiest way to search multiple hashtags on Instagram is to
set up search streams in a social listening tool like Hootsuite
( https://hootsuite.com/ ) to track the hashtags you’re interested
in so you can see all the relevant content on one screen without
having to conduct each one as an individual Instagram hashtag
search.
Screenshot showing how to search for multiple hashtags on
Instagram
Source: Hootsuite ( https://hootsuite.com/ )
Instagram business profiles can conduct up to 30 unique hashtag
searches in any given seven-day period.
Here’s some more information about how to set up search streams
so you can keep track of multiple Instagram hashtags easily on
one dashboard.
We wrote a full post about the benefits of social listening
( https://blog.hootsuite.com/social-listening-business/ ) if you
want to dig deeper into how this works.
Bonus: Download a free checklist that reveals the exact steps a
lifestyle photographer used to grow from 0 to 600,000 followers
on Instagram with no budget and no expensive gear.
Get the free guide right now!
( https://hootsuite.com/resources/blog/instagram-followers-checklist )
----------------------
Top instagram hashtags
----------------------
As of June 1, 2020, these are the top 25
( https://top-hashtags.com/instagram/ ) hashtags on Instagram:
* #love (1.824B posts)
* #instagood (1.143B posts)
* #fashion (807.1M posts)
* #photooftheday (792.4M posts)
* #beautiful (657.4M posts)
* #art (643.6M posts)
* #happy (576.9M posts)
* #photography (575.9M posts)
* #picoftheday (569.4M posts)
* #cute (564.9M posts)
* #follow (557.8M posts)
* #tbt (534.5M posts)
* #followme (526.4M posts)
* #nature (520.7M posts)
* #like4like (515.0M posts)
* #travel (494.6M posts)
* #instagram (475.6M posts)
* #repost (469.1M posts)
* #style (469.0M posts)
* #summer (452.4M posts)
* #instadaily (439.5M posts)
* #selfie (421.8M posts)
* #me (420.0M posts)
* #friends (395.8M posts)
* #fitness (393.8M posts)
Keep in mind that the most popular Instagram hashtags are not
necessarily the most effective.
A large number of posts may mean lots of people follow that
hashtag, but it also means there’s a ton of content on it and
your posts might get lost. Instagram suggests
( https://business.instagram.com/blog/how-to-get-discovered-on-instagram )
using a combination of popular and niche hashtags to reach
different audiences, from broad to specific.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Instagram hashtag search: How to find the best hashtags for
Instagram for YOUR brand
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Check out the competition
-------------------------
You don’t necessarily want to model your competition’s strategy
too closely, but taking a look at the hashtags they use can give
you some good clues about what’s working for others in your
industry.
Maybe you’ll discover new hashtags to add to your repertoire. Or
you could decide you don’t want to compete for the same eyeballs,
in which case you can search for alternative hashtags to use.
See what hashtags your audience is already using
------------------------------------------------
After all, if your audience is already using a certain hashtag,
then other people just like them are probably using it too.
Finding these existing Instagram communities is a great way to
expand your audience and reach the people who are most likely to
be interested in your business.
Keep an eye on your top followers and see what hashtags they’re
using. Instagram’s search tool can give you some additional
information about which hashtags the people you follow care
about. When you conduct an Instagram hashtag search, the search
tool will show you if anyone you follow also follows that
hashtag. (Note that this only works on mobile, not on desktop.)
Screenshot showing related hashtags for a particular hashtag
search
Source: Instagram ( https://www.instagram.com/ )
Use Instagram’s Related Hashtags feature
----------------------------------------
On any hashtag page, right above the “Top†and “Recent†tabs,
you’ll find a list of related hashtags that you can scroll
through by swiping left.
Instagram related hashtag feature
Source: Instagram
( https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/knittingaddict/ )
This is a great way to find relevant hashtags that might be a bit
more niche than the big keyword-based hashtags you originally
searched for. That means a more targeted audience with less
content to compete with. These can be some of the best hashtags
for Instagram brands wanting to connect with passionate
communities.
Create a branded hashtag
------------------------
The best hashtag for your brand may be one you create yourself. A
branded hashtag is simply a tag that you create to promote your
own brand or campaign.
You can then let your audience know about your hashtag by
including it in your Instagram bio and highlighting it in your
captions and Instagram Stories. You could also consider running a
contest ( https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-contest/ )with a
branded hashtag to popularize the hashtag while also collecting
user-generated content
Lululemon's branded hashtag in the Instagram bio section
Source: Lululemon on Instagram
( https://www.instagram.com/lululemon/?hl=en )
Make sure to follow your branded hashtag, both within the
Instagram app and using a stream in your social media dashboard,
so you can monitor how it’s being used. Look for opportunities to
reshare great content or connect with influential members of your
audience.
To follow a hashtag within Instagram, simply tap it, then tap the
blue Follow button on the hashtag page.
Follow Instagram hashtag button
Source: Instagram
( https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/getinmybelly/ )
--------------------------------------------------
How to use hashtags on Instagram—7 tips and tricks
--------------------------------------------------
1. Use Insights to see which tags work best
-------------------------------------------
If you’ve made the switch to an Instagram business profile
( https://blog.hootsuite.com/how-to-use-instagram-for-business/ ),
you have access to post insights that tell you how many
impressions you received from hashtags.
* Select the post you want data on and tap View Insights below
the post on the left.
* Swipe up to see all the insights for that post, including the
number of impressions from hashtags.
This data helps you figure out which hashtags are most effective
for improving reach.
2. Include hashtags on Instagram Stories
----------------------------------------
Hashtag pages have an Instagram Story icon in the top left
corner. Click on it and you’ll see a collection of Stories posts
tagged with the hashtag from people with public profiles.
Instagram hashtags that appear on Stories
Source: Instagram
( https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/artofinstagram/ )
There are two ways to add hashtags to your Stories. The first
method is to use the hashtag sticker.
Hashtag stickers on Instagram Stories
Source: Instagram ( https://www.instagram.com/ )
Or you can simply use the text tool and the # symbol to type out
the hashtag the same way you would on a photo or video post.
3. Avoid banned hashtags and spammy hashtags
--------------------------------------------
When inappropriate content becomes associated with a hashtag,
Instagram might ban that hashtag.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t use it at all. Instead, it means
that if you click on the tag, you will only see top posts. You
won’t see recent posts, and there won’t be any Stories associated
with the hashtag.
Here’s what it looks like when you run into a banned hashtag:
Banned hashtags on Instagram
Source: Instagram ( https://www.instagram.com/?hl=en )
The only way to know if a hashtag is banned is to check it before
you use it. This is a good practice to put in place every time
you add a new hashtag to your repertoire. Using banned hashtags
can cause a drop in engagement, as your use of legitimate
hashtags might also become less effective because you could be
dropped in the algorithm
( https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-algorithm/ ).
Even if they’re not banned, you should avoid hashtags that
shamelessly solicit likes and followers. Examples include
#followme, #like4like, #follow4follow, #tagsforlikes, and so on.
Using these will attract bots, spammers, and others users who
have no intention of engaging with you in any meaningful way.
They also show your followers that your brand is okay with
engaging in spammy behaviour. And that’s not a good look.
4. Understand how hashtag pages work
------------------------------------
Hashtag pages are a great way to expose your content to a new
audience, especially if you can get featured in the Top section.
Hashtag pages show off all the content associated with a specific
hashtag. If someone searches for a post and yours is the most
recent with that hashtag, it will be the first thing they see in
the Recent section.
Of course, it’s much easier to stay at the top of the Recent
section for a less-popular or really niche hashtag.
Keep in mind that the Recent section is sorted based on when each
post was originally shared. If you add hashtags later, either
through a comment or by editing the caption, this won’t bump your
post up for recency.
5. Don’t use irrelevant or repetitive hashtags
----------------------------------------------
It might be tempting to simply copy and paste the same long list
of hashtags on every post, but don’t do it. Instagram’s community
guidelines ( https://help.instagram.com/477434105621119/ )
clearly state that “posting repetitive comments or content†is
not okay. If you use the same hashtags for every post, your
content will be penalized by the algorithm.
When you create a post, only use hashtags that make sense. If you
tag a post with #wanderlust, for example, your content must be
something globetrotters will want to comment on, like, and share.
It’s not about getting seen by a lot of people, it’s about
getting seen by the right people. That’s how hashtags lead to
higher engagement and more followers. Pick and choose the right
keywords for each post individually.
6. Make sure that hashtag means what you think it means
-------------------------------------------------------
Hashtags are often a string of words stuck together. That can
create some problems when it’s not clear where one word ends and
the next begins.
One of the worst examples of this was the #susanalbumparty fiasco
from way back in 2012. It was a launch celebration hashtag for
Susan Boyle’s new album. But read it slowly and you might pick up
some words in the middle that clearly make the hashtag a bit…
problematic.
Amazon played with this kind of hashtag mistake to promote Top
Gear. This was done on purpose, but it would be an easy mistake
to combine a possessive “s†and the word “hit†by accident.
A post shared by Mathew chronic
( https://www.instagram.com/clarkson_and_memes/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading )
(@clarkson_and_memes) on Dec 6, 2019 at 8:53am PST
Brands sometimes also are too keen to hop onto a trending hashtag
without fully understanding the context. When the context is
challenging, this can create a PR disaster
And sometimes a brand just doesn’t check to see if a hashtag is
already in use before creating a whole campaign. Burger King was
guilty of this back in 2013, when they used the hashtag #WTFF to
mean hat The French Fry.
7. Save hashtags for future use
-------------------------------
If you often use the same hashtags, you can save them in a note
to reduce time typing them in over and over.
Wait, didn’t we just tell you not to use the same hashtags on
every post? It’s true—you should not overuse the same set of
hashtags. That said, it is still really useful to have a list of
hashtags relevant to the various kinds of content you post. You
could even create separate lists of hashtags relevant to the
different types of posts you create.
Just create a list of hashtags in your notes app, ready to add to
your posts.
You can then pick and choose a few hashtags to use each time,
rather than having to remember the hashtags or search for new
ones for each post. This also gives you the time to check out
what kind of content is already being posted for these hashtags,
so you don’t make one of the mistakes mentioned above.
Just remember that every one of the Instagram hashtags you use on
a post must fit with the content and should not be too
repetitive. 🖤 copy and paste your whole saved list onto every
post.
Manage your entire Instagram presence and save time with
Hootsuite. Schedule posts, find the best hashtags, easily engage
the audience, measure performance, and more. Try it free today.
--------------------------------
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By Christina Newberry
Christina Newberry is an award-winning writer and editor whose
greatest passions include food, travel, urban gardening, and the
Oxford comma—not necessarily in that order.
Twitter
Follow ( https://twitter.com/ckjnewberry )
----------------
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🖤2020
