All skills

Hashtag Strategy

Use to build a hashtag and discoverability strategy for social posts — the modern (2026) approach, not the outdated "30 hashtags to go viral" playb…

Social media3 min read

By Frank Heijdenrijk, MIT licence. Shared here with credit.

Hashtag Strategy

The most valuable thing this skill does is correct an outdated belief. In 2026, hashtags are not a reach hack — platforms understand content directly (captions, on-screen text, audio, visuals, engagement), so tags now mostly categorize a post and aid search. Instagram even removed hashtag-following (2024) and caps hashtags at 5 (2025), and its own head has said more tags don't mean more reach.

So this skill does two jobs, in order:

  1. The keyword / social-SEO layer first — the real discovery lever. Platforms are search engines now; they index your caption, on-screen text, and spoken audio.
  2. A tight, relevant hashtag set on top — per platform, within caps, niche over generic — plus branded/campaign tags where community applies.

(Full reasoning in references/the-2026-reality.md.)

Free, for your email

Unlock the full skill and get it by email

The rest opens right here, and a copy comes to your inbox too. One email unlocks every guide and every skill. Use your real address.

Unlocks: Step 0 — Read the foundation + the post · Step 1 — Set the keyword / social-SEO layer (the real lever) · Step 2 — Pick a tight, relevant hashtag set per platform · Step 3 — Add branded / campaign tags where they apply · Step 4 — Rotate sets; place; publish · Quality bar — self-check · Edge cases & pushback · Related skills

No spam. Reply "unsubscribe" any time and I delete your address.