Where does the hashtag come from? A brief historical outline
The history of the hashtag begins in 2007, when Chris Messina, product developer for Google and Uber, expressed the idea of using the double cross symbol (hash sign on the keyboard) for related topics on Twitter. The idea was well received, but the hashtag did not experience its breakthrough until 2009, when Twitter integrated hashtags into the search function. The increasing popularity of the hashtag function led to Instagram integrating the hashtag function right at the launch of its social media platform in 2010. A good three years later in 2013, Facebook also decided to use the hashtag to structure its content. Today, hashtags are an integral part of almost every post on Instagram or Twitter and are an effective means of generating reach.
What can hashtags do and how can they be used? (Functions and areas of application)
The basic principle of the hashtag is to link content in the form of topics, events, motifs or conversations of all kinds that can be found on social media. They also facilitate the creation of communities, as the hashtag bundles content and thus provides easy access to topic-related content. For companies and influencers, hashtags primarily offer the opportunity to increase engagement on their posts in order to promote reach.
Integration of followers
As mentioned at the beginning, hashtags bundle content on social media. By integrating a hashtag into a post, your own content can be made visible in a topic area. This can lead to communication between different users who use the same hashtag, e.g. using the comment function under a post. In addition to the comment function, users can also become active in the form of likes and sharing content. This allows content to be disseminated effectively, which can have a positive effect on the acquisition of new followers and on a company’s engagement rate.
Brand hashtags to strengthen the brand
Companies can use hashtags to strengthen their own brand with a so-called ‘branding hashtag’ and make it more visible. In addition, companies can also create hashtags for special promotions or campaigns such as competitions that are linked to the name of the brand.
Participation in socio-political topics
Hashtags can be used to express participation in current ethical/moral or global political issues, for example. Companies can use this variant to increase their reach and strengthen their own image on social media.
What needs to be considered when using hashtags on Instagram?
The right choice of hashtag can increase the engagement of a post and thus increase its reach. However, the basic prerequisite is the evaluation of the Instagram algorithm, which determines how qualitative and relevant a post is. The algorithm favours posts that have interesting text and a small number of carefully selected hashtags. It can therefore be said that the number of hashtags should not be greater than the text, as this could otherwise have negative consequences for the categorisation of the post.
The maximum number of hashtags on Instagram is 30, but it is recommended that you only use a maximum of 10-12 hashtags. Even if the idea of ‘the more hashtags, the more reach’ sounds tempting, it should be borne in mind that the match between image and hashtag is more important than the popularity of popular hashtags. It therefore makes little sense to post a picture of a car with the hashtag ‘#fashion’. In addition, Instagram’s algorithm is designed in such a way that images with unrelated hashtags are censored.
What types of hashtags are there?
Branded hashtags:
This form of hashtag is particularly interesting for brands and companies. Branded hashtags relate directly to the brand and are used to identify a company/brand in social media. A branded hashtag can be, for example, the name of a company, a slogan or the name of a campaign. In contrast to other hashtags, branded hashtags are more durable as they are clearly labelled and therefore unique.
Community hashtags:
Community hashtags are suitable for niche topics and are designed to address a specific target group/community.
Trending hashtags:
This refers to all hashtags that are currently being used frequently. These include current topics in world politics or the latest lifestyle trends. These hashtags are often associated with a current hype.
Local hashtags:
Local hashtags are mainly used to determine the geographical location.
How can hashtags be used strategically?
Before a post with a picture is published, you should consider in advance which hashtags should be used. In order not to lose the overview among the many hashtags, the division into three hashtag groups has proven itself in practice.
Hashtags group A (1-3 hashtags)
This group primarily contains the branding hashtags of your own brand or company. The hashtags in this category should be established in every post. In addition, the branding hashtags should also be stored in your own Instagram bio. This allows the community to create self-generated content that can then be shared on Instagram, which can lead to greater reach and awareness.
Hashtag group B and C: (2-4 hashtags each)
In groups B and C, the thematic hashtags that match the content of a post are used. These hashtags are also used by other users and are therefore ideal for addressing specific target groups.
The hashtags in groups B and C differ in the number of posts that can already be found using this hashtag. If you enter a hashtag in the Instagram search bar, another window appears in which the hashtags are divided into the categories ‘Popular’ and ‘Current’. The ‘Popular’ section displays the top posts that have generated a high engagement rate in a short period of time.
The ‘Current’ section refers to the most recently published posts with the hashtag entered. It can be said that it is not advisable to select hashtags with posts in the millions, as it is almost impossible to get the top post. The recommendation is therefore
Group B: Hashtags with 1,000 – 10,000 posts
Group C: Hashtags with 10,000 – 100,000 posts
To summarise, it can be said that the combination of different hashtags is an indicator of the success of a post. Furthermore, with the consistent use of hashtags, the company or brand can gradually achieve greater reach and thus a higher level of awareness on Instagram.
How does a hashtag analysis work and which tools are suitable for this?
In order to address a specific target group with hashtags, it can be helpful to first analyse the topics and posts of the target group to find out what interests they have. You can also determine which hashtags are already in use for the Instagram profile and how much engagement they generate. In doing so, more attention should be paid to hashtags that generate a high engagement rate. To find out which hashtags are particularly influential or popular, there are several tools that can be used for hashtag analysis. Here are a few examples:
RiteTag
The hashtag analysis tool ‘RiteTag’ combines the search function for popular hashtags and the monitoring of hashtags or even hashtag groups. This makes it possible to analyse entire lists of popular hashtags. RiteTag also lists alternative hashtag options that are often related to the hashtag originally entered in the search function. For an overview, the hashtag analysis tool illustrates and categorises in different colours which hashtags currently have good visibility, for example, or which currently have little chance of success due to low reach and usage.
The hashtag analysis tool ‘RiteTag’ combines the search function for popular hashtags and the monitoring of hashtags or even hashtag groups. This makes it possible to analyse entire lists of popular hashtags. RiteTag also lists alternative hashtag options that are often related to the hashtag originally entered in the search function. For an overview, the hashtag analysis tool illustrates and categorises in different colours which hashtags currently have good visibility, for example, or which currently have little chance of success due to low reach and usage.
#fashion
To summarise, it can be said that useful information can be gleaned from the report to discover trending hashtags or emerging hypes.
RiteTag browser extensions
Another interesting feature of RiteTag are the browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox and Safari as well as the iOS and Android app. Here it is possible to have hashtags suggested for uploaded images or texts.
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LikeOMeter
According to its own information, the ‘LikeOMeter’ tool is an influencer database that makes it possible to discover various influencers from different categories.
Even though LikeOMeter is primarily designed for influencers and their followers, there are still useful functions, such as the hashtag search function.
Using the ‘Hashtags’ tab on the official LikeOMeter website, it is possible to display hashtags that are related to the hashtag originally searched for. This is particularly useful if you want to get a quick overview of related hashtags. The service is also free and does not set a limit for further search queries.
One negative aspect, however, is that no exact figures are displayed regarding the popularity of the individual hashtags.
Conclusion
In conclusion, hashtags can still offer real added value for companies, influencers and private individuals in 2022. For companies in particular, the strategic use of hashtags can make or break their success on social media platforms. It is very important that content such as videos or images are in line with the selected hashtags, as Instagram’s constantly evolving algorithm rewards and prioritises corresponding posts. Tools such as RiteTag or Likometer can be used to recognise trends or suitable hashtags at an early stage.
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