This past week, the head of Instagram Adam Mosseri set the record straight on some common Instagram myths. The biggest misconception? Hashtags on posts don’t help to increase views on videos.
On his Instagram page, Mosseri said that while hashtags don’t really increase views, “they do help us to understand what a post is about which means it might be more likely to show up in a place like a hashtag page for instance.”
“I wouldn’t try and think of hashtags as a way to try and get more distribution”, he continued.
The end of hashtags?
While it’s unclear if the role of hashtags is different when it comes to regular picture posts, Mosseri’s comments seem to hint that hashtags don’t do much to get more eyes on any Instagram content.
Despite what might be a blow to many people’s and companies’ Instagram strategies, hashtags still serve other purposes for building community, for example.
Events, brand launches, and community groups will often use hashtags to promote or keep tabs on the content being shared by their community. For example, brands often instruct influencers to use a specific hashtag when promoting their products on the platform.
What purposes do hashtags serve on Instagram?
Categorising content
Hashtags allow brands to keep track of different social media campaigns. For example, a brand like Gucci may have a specific hashtag for a bag they’re promoting, and an entirely different one for a collaboration they want to promote. Not only does this allow brands to differentiate their different campaigns, it also allows them to keep tabs on the content that influencers put out with one simple click.
Along with analytics tools, hashtags provide a simple way for brands to segment their content on Instagram.
Building community
Hashtags can also help to bring attention to a specific event and make people feel a part of a community. For example, a fashion brand might create a hashtag for a launch event or brand trip that their influencers can use when posting content from said event/trip.
While this is still a way for brands to categorise their content, it helps them to promote an event or experience as opposed to a single product or collection.
Create a trend
Finally, hashtags on Instagram can help brands to create a trend on the platform. While it’s unlikely that people will go out of their way to “follow” a hashtag on Instagram, posts with a “trending” hashtag might become a sort of status symbol (or virtue signal) on the platform. This works particularly well for charity initiatives or campaigns.
So, despite the comments from the head of Instagram himself, it’s not worth writing off hashtags just yet.
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