Hashtags have been part of social media for years, but their role has changed quite a bit.
There was a time when adding a long list of hashtags to every post felt like a standard part of social media marketing. Today, hashtags still matter, but they are only one piece of a much larger discoverability strategy.
Platforms now rely heavily on keywords, captions, engagement, user behavior, location, video content, and other signals to determine which posts appear in search results and recommendation feeds. That means hashtags can help people find your content, but they work best when they support content that is already relevant, useful, and easy to understand.
Here is what businesses should know about using hashtags for discoverability today.
What Do Hashtags Actually Do?
At their core, hashtags help categorize content. When you add a hashtag to a post, you give the platform another clue about what the content is about. That can help the post appear in hashtag searches, topic-based feeds, and sometimes broader recommendation systems.
For example, a Boulder real estate agent might use hashtags related to Boulder homes, Colorado real estate, relocation, or specific neighborhoods. A local restaurant might use hashtags tied to its city, cuisine, events, or seasonal promotions.
The key is relevance. A hashtag only helps if it accurately reflects the content people are viewing.
Do Hashtags Still Help People Find Your Content?
Yes, but they are not as powerful on their own as they once were. Social platforms have become much better at understanding the actual content of a post. They can analyze captions, on-screen text, audio, topics, locations, and engagement patterns.
Because of that, discoverability now depends on more than whether you used the right hashtag. A strong post might be discovered because:
- Someone searched for a keyword used in the caption
- The platform recognized the topic of the video
- Users with similar interests engaged with the content
- The post was tagged with a location
- Relevant hashtags helped confirm the subject matter
Hashtags still provide useful context, but they should support your overall content strategy rather than replace one.
Should Businesses Use Broad or Specific Hashtags?
Usually, a combination works best. Broad hashtags can place your content into larger conversations, but they can also be extremely competitive. A hashtag with millions of posts may give your content very little visibility before it is pushed down by newer content.
More specific hashtags can connect you with a smaller but more relevant audience. For example, instead of relying only on:
#RealEstate
you might also use:
#BoulderRealEstate
#MovingToBoulder
#ColoradoHomes
#BoulderLiving
Someone searching a highly specific phrase is often more valuable to a local business than someone casually scrolling through a massive general category.
How Many Hashtags Should You Use?
More is not always better. Adding every hashtag you can think of may make a post look cluttered without improving its reach. A smaller group of highly relevant hashtags is usually more useful than a long list of loosely related ones.
Think about the categories that matter most to your audience:
- Your industry
- Your location
- Your product or service
- The specific topic of the post
- Relevant communities or interests
The goal is to help both the platform and the user understand exactly what the content is about.
Do Hashtags Help With Social Media Search?
They can, especially when paired with strong keyword usage. Social media platforms increasingly function like search engines. People search Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, and other platforms for recommendations, tutorials, products, restaurants, travel ideas, service providers, and answers to everyday questions.
That makes your caption increasingly important. If your post is about social media marketing for small businesses, your caption should naturally include phrases people might search for, such as “social media marketing tips for small businesses.”
Relevant hashtags can then reinforce those keywords. Instead of focusing only on hashtag strategy, businesses should consider social search strategy.
Can Local Hashtags Improve Discoverability?
Absolutely. Local hashtags can be especially valuable for businesses serving a specific geographic area. A Seattle business, for example, might use hashtags connected to:
- Seattle
- The Eastside
- Bellevue
- Redmond
- Pacific Northwest businesses
- Local events or neighborhoods
Location tags and geographic keywords in captions can provide even stronger signals. For local businesses, discoverability is not necessarily about reaching the largest possible audience. It is about reaching the right people in the right place.
Do Branded Hashtags Still Matter?
Branded hashtags can be useful for organizing content around a business, campaign, event, or community. A branded hashtag might include your:
- Business name
- Campaign name
- Event name
- Product line
- Customer community
These hashtags may not generate large amounts of traffic on their own, but they can create a searchable collection of content connected to your brand.
They can also make it easier to find user-generated content from customers who mention or feature your business.
What Matters More Than Hashtags?
Good content. Hashtags cannot make irrelevant or uninteresting content perform well. Platforms pay close attention to signals such as:
- Watch time
- Saves
- Shares
- Comments
- Clicks
- Profile visits
- Repeat engagement
If people find your content useful, entertaining, interesting, or worth sharing, the platform is more likely to show it to additional users. That is why businesses should spend more time creating strong content than searching for the perfect hashtag combination.
How Should Businesses Use Hashtags Today?
Think of hashtags as supporting signals. Start by creating content around topics your audience already cares about. Write captions that clearly explain what the post is about. Use searchable language. Add relevant location information when appropriate. Then include a small group of hashtags that reinforce the topic.
The strongest discoverability strategy combines:
- Helpful, original content
- Clear keywords
- Relevant hashtags
- Consistent posting
- Strong engagement
- Location signals
- Content optimized for social search
Hashtags are still useful. They just work best as part of a broader strategy.
Want More People to Find Your Business Online?
Discoverability is no longer limited to Google. Your customers may find your business through Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, AI search tools, traditional search engines, or a combination of all of them.
A strong digital marketing strategy ensures your content is easy to understand and easy to find across every platform where your audience searches.
We help businesses build content strategies designed for greater visibility, stronger engagement, and long-term growth online. Contact us to learn how we can help more of the right people discover your business.