Okay, I'm gonna be really honest with you guys. This video was not part of my content plan. I've kind of thrown it in there purely because there's been so much news and information circulating online recently about hashtags, and the main reason for this is because Instagram has actually come out and shared some conflicting advice about hashtags versus the advice they've shared in the past. That's nudged me to completely change or at least revisit my hashtag strategy. I know how much you guys loved the video where I talked about my hashtag strategy and told you my entire process behind it. So, I felt like it was only right for me to create a new video where I'm sharing my updated strategy and giving you the lowdown of the changes coming to hashtags, what they mean for you, and what you should be doing about it. So that's what today's video is about. If that sounds interesting to you, please carry on watching.
Okay, so the first thing I want to talk about is basically why I feel like you should change your hashtag strategy and why I'm changing my hashtag strategy. The main reason for this, as I mentioned, is because some new updates have come out and some information has been shared from Instagram's Creator's account (I'll put the link in my description in case you don't follow it already). But they basically gave you some tips and tricks regarding hashtags, and it's different from what we've been told before, right?
And there's a siren outside – there's always sirens when I'm filming. I feel like there's never sirens when I'm not, but then again, why would I notice? Anyway, these changes that are coming about, I believe, are coming about for a very specific reason. That reason is search. So if you've not watched this video already, I recommend giving it a watch after this. I basically break down what Instagram search is, what it means for you, and how you can utilize it. It's kind of like a search 101-type video and gives you a really great introduction.
Now the reason why I'm talking about search in a video about hashtags is because Instagram is spending a lot of effort improving their search functionality. And what that means for hashtags is that hashtags are becoming less and less important. Previously, hashtags were one of the main ways that you could get in front of a broader audience. If you used a hashtag, you would hopefully get placed in front of a whole audience of people interested in your types of content. While that still exists, and that's still the function of hashtags, there are now other ways for you to get in front of your audience, and Instagram is trying to make search the best way to get in front of that audience.
Let's talk about what's changing in regards to hashtags and what is staying the same. Okay, so let's start with the changes. I'm laughing because the main change and the biggest change is that Instagram is now recommending that you use between three to five hashtags per post. Now, I don't even know where to start with this. First of all, that's quite an extreme difference to the amount of hashtags they previously said. Prior to this recent announcement, they used to say use between 8 to 15 hashtags. But they said that because they believed that when people used more than 15 hashtags, they started using irrelevant hashtags.
What is staying the same – relevancy is still king. I've been saying this for a while anyway, that using a relevant hashtag is more important than just using a hashtag. You've got to use hashtags relevant to your account. That's actually where my previous video came in when I originally spoke about my hashtag strategy. Because if you did follow those steps, you'll actually have a substantial bank of hashtags super relevant to you and your audience. Even if you're using fewer hashtags in your posts now, you still have a huge bank of hashtags to pick and choose from. So at least that whole video is not to waste, there's still loads of value in it.
If you've gotten this far in the video, then I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that you're pretty serious about Instagram growth. Now, I have some good news and bad news, and I'll start with the bad news first. The bad news is that it's going to be really difficult for you to master Instagram as a platform, grow, and experience all the amazing things you want without fully understanding how it works.
So, what do all these changes and updates mean for you and your hashtag strategy? The first thing it means for you is that you need to start focusing more on search than you are focusing on hashtags. Clearly, search is Instagram's golden child, and hashtags have become Instagram's forgotten sibling. They're clearly focusing on search being the best way for people to find relevant content and for you to get in front of a great audience. So what I want you to do is to start paying attention to the keywords you are using in your captions and the keywords that exist in your bio because that is what's going to help you show up on search.
The second thing which it means for you or the second thing to bear in mind now is that hashtags still have a role, but the role is slightly different from what it used to play. Yes, it can still help you get reach, but more importantly, it helps Instagram index your content, which feeds into my previous point about search. Now, the thing to know here is that in order for Instagram to read your hashtags and use them as a way to index your content, the hashtags need to be in your captions.
So, the golden question: Should you still be using hashtags, and will I still be using hashtags? In short, the answer is yes, I will still be using hashtags, and yes, I think you should still use them too. The main change here is that my relationship with hashtags is going to change. I'm no longer putting so much focus and energy on my hashtags, and I'm going to be a lot more loose with the amount of hashtags I use every post. Previously, I always used between 25 to 30, whereas now, I'm basically going to use however many I want, whenever I want because I know that the key thing I should focus on is my keywords and search.
