How to Effectively Use Hashtags on Instagram to Grow Your Business

Everyone wants to know the secret sauce to grow their followers on Instagram. Though there are various strategies one could implement, today we are going to focus on how we may effectively use hashtags on Instagram to grow your followers and engagement (these are your likes, comments, shares, saves).

If you are a local business: Leveraging from a hashtags strategy on Instagram when you’re a local business is key to reach your ideal consumer. If you are a local restaurant - for example - you want to use local hashtags your local customers are using on Instagram. Why is this? Because general hashtags like #foodie will not help you reach them.

Let’s say you want to reach “Annie”. Annie lives in Dallas, is 35 years old and works in Downtown Dallas. She loves to discover new restaurants. She is your ideal customer. To reach Annie you need to put yourself in Annie’s shoes and reach her locally via hashtags she is either using herself or she may be using to find businesses like yours.

Here is an example: #dallasfoodie #dallasfood #dallasfoodblogger #dallassingles #dallastx #dallasfun #dallasmuseumofarts #dallasart #dallasstreetart #uptowndallas #downtowndallas. Using hashtags like #food #foodie #restaurant #newrestaurant #ilovefood #foodlover #foodporn may increase the reach of your post and potentially get some people to engage with it but it likely won’t be Annie. You may be reaching someone in Ohio or New York who is a foodie but if you’re a local business, how would that impact your success? You are looking at getting people to come to your restaurant or maybe order online next time they are hungry and don’t want to move a finger. Same approach would apply to a local sports team if they are promoting a game at home - or to a local school, bar, museum, run club, store, etc.

If you are a national brand or coach: Though local hashtags are good to reach your local customer, the reality is that what you do has no boundaries. This allows you the opportunity to use general hashtags that are tied to the topic you are advocating for. The trick is to use hashtags that are close to your niche vs. hashtags that may be too wide as these may miss the mark.

Let’s say you are a motivational speaker. However, you really focus on women who are starting their own business while also being a mom and maybe having a full-time job. Let’s call this target consumer Betty. Betty has opened her Instagram business account or maybe hasn’t yet. Maybe Betty is looking for inspiration during the 10min she has before the kids wake up or her next meeting starts.

The hashtags to reach Betty would be: #mompreneur #motivationalspeakerforwomen #bossbabe #bossbabes #womenowned #womensmallbusiness #womensmallbusinessowner #womenbusiness #latinaowned #latinaownedbusiness #womenmotivation.

Always keep your target audience in mind and put yourself in their shoes. You want to be strategic and remember that it’s not about growing but about attracting the right audience to get to know you, follow you, and engage with you.

Last but not least: Here is a hashtag tactic that works but requires some effort. Within 10-15min of your post going live on Instagram (remember to try to post every day but quality will always trump quantity) go to the search bar and type in #dallasfoodie (if you are a local restaurant) and like the posts of those who are a match for your business. I say this because sometimes people use hashtags for amplification and not to capture their target audience. Engage for about 20 minutes. Visit their profiles like a few posts (this lets them know you exist) and if possible comment (if it makes sense). Follow this strategy 3 times a day and you’ll start to see people following you. This is an organic effort that works and please whatever you do never buy followers.

Pro-Tip: There are many other tactics that could be implemented but before you do anything, take the time to define your ideal customer. Name them and go after them. This will give you clear direction. Furthermore, develop your social media strategy. Be honest with yourself and answer this question: What do I want to achieve here? Once you have the answer to that, ask yourself why that’s important (your “why”), and proceed to develop a social media strategy that will help achieve your goal (or goals).

Not sure where to start? Set up a complimentary discovery call with us. Together we will shine some light on your social media efforts and agree on next steps. These steps may be tricks you may want to start testing right away or potentially a partnership where The Bloom Agency may help you with your monthly social media needs while you focus on running your business.