Instagram SEO is so overlooked, and underrated, but it's so important in increasing your reach and chances of being discovered on Instagram.

SEO has always been the primary method of being found via search engines, but it's not just for Google and Bing anymore. Social SEO is a thing and it's becoming more prevalent and important every day. Instagram has always had SEO functionality, but more recently, they've opened it up to more areas of the app, making it a powerful way to increase your discoverability.

Here are the main spaces on Instagram where you can improve your SEO.

Prefer video? Watch the video that inspired this blog post below:

Captions

Instagram has now allowed search to include keywords that appear in captions. So, make sure all of your captions are keyword dense, meaning you use the words in your caption that your audience would use to find your niche, industry, or topic. This ensures that your posts and account are being found. Watch this video to learn more about how to write great captions.

Profile Name

The place in your profile for your name (in bold) is the OG SEO space on Instagram. Make sure you're using that space for your name and the most common word people would use to find you. For example, we're “Social Media w/ High Season Co.” Watch this video to learn about how to create the perfect Instagram bio. Watch this video to learn more about how to create the perfect Instagram bio.

Hashtags

Hashtags are the other OG space on Instagram for search and discovery. Create banks of up to 30 hashtags with descriptive words that people actually use for search. Try to stick to 50k to 500k uses to maximize your chances of being found.

Alt Text

The arguably least used section of Instagram SEO is the alt text, which is something search has used forever. Alt text is a descriptive sentence used to describe an image so that it comes up in search, and Instagram has the same function. Hit Advanced Options before you post and write exactly what's in the image or video.

Topics

The newest way to get SEO love on Instagram is via Topics. The list is currently quite limited, but for those whose niches appear, make sure you're checking the boxes of every post to give your content a better chance of being found.

So, there you have it! Don't overlook Instagram SEO as it's a powerful tool to increase your discoverability. Start optimizing your captions, profile name, hashtags, alt text and topics, and watch your reach and engagement soar. 

Struggling with getting discovered on Instagram? Book a consultation for tailored guidance.