In this digital world, we are all familiar with the hashtag. Whether it is being used in a caption under a post, a slogan for a promotional campaign, or even as a tagline for a brand. Hashtags have been around since their Twitter debut in 2007, as a tool to group tweets based on specific topics. Today, that definition has exploded, and hashtags are now an irreplaceable marketing tool, used universally to increase engagement, reach new audiences, and ultimately, “beat the system” in a digital world hyper-focused on paid advertising.
Despite their normalized use, there are many dos and don'ts when it comes to hashtagging, especially on Instagram. The platform has placed many regulations on hashtagging that users might be unaware of, and without the right knowledge on the subject, your Instagram page may be in jeopardy. So what do you need to successfully use hashtags on Instagram?
Certain Hashtags Are Banned
Due to an increase in bots and spam accounts, Instagram has taken the initiative to ban certain hashtags from their platform. This means that if you use a banned hashtag, not only will your post fail to show up under that hashtag, it may also be flagged as spam. If you continue to use banned hashtags on your posts, the result could end in an Instagram shadowban (more on that below) or even the permanent deletion of your account. In order to avoid using banned hashtags, do your research ahead of time. There are many sources that explicitly list which hashtags are not allowed to be used, some bans are temporary, but most are permanently banned.
Duplicate Hashtags Can Lead to Account Deletion
Similarly to using banned hashtags, an account that repeatedly uses the same hashtags can also see consequences. Accounts that repeatedly publish duplicate content and hashtags are flagged as fake accounts, which could result in a permanent ban from the platform.
Instagram Shadow Bans Accounts
Account deletion may seem like the worst case scenario, but shadow banning is far from ideal. A shadow ban refers to Instagram limiting the visibility of your account, preventing your content from being discovered by people who do not follow you. In the case of a shadow ban, organic growth is nearly impossible to achieve.
How to Know if Your Account Has Been Shadowbanned?
One huge giveaway, is that your engagement has decreased immensely. This means your posts receive way less likes, comments, and impressions than before. To see if your account is banned, click on a hashtag you recently used and navigate to the ‘recent posts’ section. If your account is shadowbanned your post will no longer show up under that hashtag. Some other reasons Instagram shadowbans accounts include:
- using bots to increase followers,
- liking too many posts at one time, and
- following/unfollowing a suspicious amount of people in one sitting.
Hashtags, despite their simplicity, can be much more complex than you may realize. So in order to protect your account and increase visibility, do your research, avoid using banned hashtags, mix up the hashtags you use for every posting, and check periodically to make sure your account is not shadowbanned.
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