7 SEO Mistakes to Avoid on Instagram

Instagram is one of the five most popular social media sites globally, with over a billion monthly average users.

By combining visual media and written content, IG offers users multiple ways of reaching others. As a result, the platform provides a golden opportunity for businesses, brands, and individuals to connect with customers and followers.

Of course, it’s not just a matter of taking pictures and writing captions. You must optimize your Instagram account for SEO much as you would a website. Unfortunately, there are a lot of potential SEO mistakes you can make.

Keep reading for seven fundamental Instagram SEO errors to avoid.

1. Inconsistency

One of the first rules that bloggers learn is to remain consistent. If you start out posting once a day, you must stick with that schedule. The same holds true on Instagram.

If you haven’t started your Instagram account yet, give some serious thought to how often you can realistically generate content. Some businesses and brands have photo-friendly products that lend themselves to posting daily or multiple times a day.

For most businesses and brands, that’s a bridge too far. Set a more achievable goal if you don’t think you can find an engaging picture to take every day. Aim for posting twice a week.

2. Poorly Chosen Hashtags

You see it all the time on Instagram. People see what hashtags are trending and slap them onto their most recent post.

If you’re wondering what kills Instagram reach, that’s a prime suspect. When people search on those hashtags and come across your post, they’re disappointed. They may even report your post.

That’s an excellent way for your posts to get shown to fewer people or even get your account closed.

It’s much better to choose hashtags that actually apply to your posts. It means the right people will see and probably like your post. The more love your posts get, the more reach you will achieve.

If you weren’t sure, yes, hashtags improve SEO.

3. Lousy Username

For individuals, you want a username as close to your real name as possible. With people like singers, artists, writers, and influencers, you and your name typically are your brand. Take a look at Beyonce’s Instagram account for an example of someone who extends their brands effectively.

A username that isn’t very close to your actual name will make it very difficult for people and search engines to find you.

For businesses and brands, the same logic applies. If you run a restaurant, you want that business name in the username. It’s one of the only ways people will find your account.

4. No Keywords

Keywords aren’t the be-all and end-all online that they once were, but you overlook them at your peril. They still serve a function. Plus, search engines do take them into account.

For example, let’s say that you run a cooking website that focuses on Southwestern-inspired grilling. Minimally, you need terms like grilling and Southwestern in your bio.

Beyond that, though, those keywords should also show up in your captions. You don’t necessarily need them in every caption, but they should show up on the regular.

Don’t be afraid to mix things up a little with secondary keywords that closely align with those primary keywords.

For bonus points, you can use keywords as hashtags from time to time to draw in some extra attention.

5. Ignoring Alt Text

Accessibility is a big deal in the tech world right now. As computer technology becomes ever-more integral to everyday tasks, it also becomes a more significant challenge for people with disabilities. It’s a particular challenge for anyone with a visual impairment.

Enter alt text, which lets you give a textual description of whatever is in an image. A correctly set up computer can read that text aloud, so the user knows what’s on the screen.

Instagram lets you enter alt text for the images you post. Have you asked yourself, “How can I optimize my SEO on Instagram?” This is one of the easier ways you can do it.

That alt text becomes part of the information a search engine looks at when crawling sites. If you include relevant and appropriate keywords, your posts can appear in search engine results.

6. Ignoring the IGTV Option

Video content is a big deal because it routinely sees high levels of engagement. But, just as importantly, it’s the kind of content that search engines look for.

For a long time, YouTube and your own website were the only places to publish video content on. IGTV changed all of that.

You can upload videos ranging from one minute to one hour on Instagram. That means you can upload everything from a short teaser ad to a weekly TV drama episode—if you have the chops to create something like that.

Not only does this give an excellent chance of getting branded content in front of the right eyes, but you can also do it inside of an existing account.

7. Coherence

It might seem minor, but you should make an effort to give your Instagram account a coherent look and feel.

That means images should adopt things like similar lighting and camera work. In addition, videos should look and feel like the same person created them.

You should keep written content consistent regarding where you add hashtags and how many you use. These small efforts at maintaining coherence can help boost engagement, which helps your SEO efforts.

Are you not feeling great about your SEO knowledge? Dig deep into these tips for some more advice.

Avoiding SEO Mistakes

You’re bound to make SEO mistakes along the way. Everyone does! But you can also implement strategies to minimize their effects.

Do a little planning around how you will run your Instagram account. Think about things like the overall look you want and how you’ll get it. Plan how often you’ll post.

Do some preliminary research and settle on the keywords that apply best to your business or brand. While you’re posting, don’t overdo or misuse hashtags just for attention.

Are you looking for more SEO insights? Check out the other digital marketing posts in our Technology section.