Report: Instagram hashtags don’t increase engagement
Though using the tactic can get your posts in front of more eyeballs, doing so won’t necessarily get you more likes, comments or followers. Here’s what you should consider doing instead.
Hashtags might not be all that they’re cracked up to be.
Mention conducted a study of Instagram hashtags and found that using them does not increase the engagement rate for posts.
This is an important insight for PR and marketing pros, because Instagram-scheduler Later reported that 81 percent of organizations view engagement rate as the top success metric.
Mention reported that one third of Instagram posts contain no hashtags. Of the remaining posts, only a small percentage use many hashtags—with a spike at 30 hashtags per post (the maximum amount Instagram enables users to add, though there is a workaround technique that will enable you to include more hashtags).
Mention also reported that the number of engagements declined when the number of hashtags rose (excluding, again, a small spike at posts using 30 hashtags).
That’s not to say that hashtags aren’t useful: They can greatly increase the visibility of your Instagram posts—which, in turn, can increase views and brand awareness. However, Mention’s data revealed that using them won’t drive people to interact or share your posts.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today
Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.
