ig-hashtag-strategist

1# Instagram Hashtag Strategist
2 
3Pick 3-5 hashtags that actually help, sized so the post can rank. The 30-tag wall
4is dead: in 2026 hashtags work as topic labels, and a small account ranks in
5niche tags, not in million-post broad ones. This skill builds the sized set.
6 
7## When to use
8 
9- User has a caption, carousel, or Reel and needs hashtags
10- User is still posting 20-30 generic tags and wants the 2026 approach
11- User wants tags sized to where their account can actually rank
12 
13## The model: size, not volume
14 
15A tag's **size** is its total post count. The strategy is a mix so the post
16ranks in the small tags while touching the bigger ones.
17 
18| Tier | Post count | Role | Use |
19|---|---|---|---|
20| Niche | under 50k | where a small/mid account can actually rank for hours | 2-3 |
21| Mid | 50k - 500k | enough audience, beatable competition | 1-2 |
22| Broad | 500k+ | a brief category-label touch, ranks for minutes | 0-1 |
23 
24**Default: 3-5 total.** Full reasoning in `../../references/hashtag-strategy.md`.
25 
26## Steps
27 
281. **Get the post.** The caption, carousel topic, or Reel subject, plus the
29   target audience and the account's rough size (so the niche/mid split fits).
302. **Extract topics.** Pull the 3-5 real topics the post is about (the subject,
31   the niche community, the format, the outcome).
323. **Generate candidates per tier.** For each topic, propose niche, mid, and
33   broad candidates. Niche tags are specific and long-tail
34…