What Are #HashtagClouds and How Can They Work for You?

#Hashtags took over the early 2010s, but their purpose for professionals became higher in relevance in the significant usage of #hashtagclouds — a group of relevant or strategic hashtags which can greatly increase your current and future exposure on Instagram. Since Instagram turned into one of the most popular marketing platform today, businesses large and small carefully craft a specific, targeted group of hashtags to garner more interaction. Understanding the intricacies of clouds and creating a viable set of hashtags gives many agencies a competitive social edge. So, what’s their purpose and how can #hashtagclouds could help you expand your reach socially?

What Are Hashtag Clouds?

Instagram hashtag clouds are a different way to label and categorize your reels, posts, and stories. This method of organization helps Instagram better serve your posts to relevant audiences that are more likely to interact with posts through commenting or sharing, based on their algorithm. In their most simple function, the hashtags you use help make up the search results on the Instagram Explore page, which are different for every user and are based on what the user is interacting with.

How Do Businesses Use Clouds?

From local businesses to giant media corporations, many are implementing the usage of hashtags into their social media as a way to drive engagement. Businesses typically use anywhere from three to five targeted hashtags such as location-based (#Youngstown), branded (#McConnellMarketing), and descriptive (#WeeklyGroceryStoreAd) These help narrowly define the target market and ensure posts are showing up. Cloud sets can be as custom-tailored to posts as your time and budget allocate for creation.

How Do Hashtag Clouds Affect Reach?

McDonald’s hashtags clouds have a proven track record of success with a recent study comparing the number of hashtags used per post with average reach rates of over 18 million Instagram feed posts in late 2021. In the study, reach rate increases by 11% (from 24% to 35%) as the number of hashtags grows from one to 30. Start with a small number of targeted hashtags and slowly increase the number over time.

Interested in testing #hashtagclouds out, but don’t know where to start? Contact us today to set up a consultation with one of our content specialists!

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