Generate Hashtag Strategy

What it does

Uses AI to analyse your top-performing Instagram posts and suggest optimised hashtag sets based on engagement patterns, competitor research, and trending topics, eliminating hashtag research guesswork.

Why I recommend it

Random hashtags get random results. AI analysis of what actually drives your engagement creates data-driven hashtag strategies that consistently improve reach without manual research.

Expected benefits

  • 30-40% higher post reach
  • Data-driven hashtag selection
  • Zero manual hashtag research
  • Consistent hashtag strategy

How it works

Fetch top-performing Instagram posts from last 30 days -> analyse which hashtags correlated with highest engagement -> research competitor hashtags in your niche -> identify trending related hashtags -> AI generates optimised hashtag sets (primary, secondary, niche) -> save as templates for different content types.

Quick start

Manually review your last 20 posts. Note which hashtags appeared on highest-performing posts. Research competitor hashtags. Create 3-5 hashtag sets manually. Test AI generation against your manual sets, refine, then automate.

Level-up version

Generate hashtag sets per content pillar (educational, promotional, behind-scenes). Include mix of high-volume and niche hashtags. Rotate hashtags to avoid Instagram spam detection. Track performance by hashtag set. Update strategy monthly based on results.

Tools you can use

AI: ChatGPT API, Claude API

Instagram: Instagram Graph API for post data

Analytics: Instagram Insights, Iconosquare, Later analytics

Hashtag research: Hashtagify, RiteTag, Display Purposes

Automation: Zapier, Make, n8n

Also works with

Social tools: Hootsuite, Buffer, Sprout Social

Content planning: Planoly, Later for content calendars

Competitor analysis: Phlanx, Social Blade

Technical implementation solution

  • No-code: Manually export Instagram insights -> paste top posts into ChatGPT with hashtag strategy prompt -> receive optimised hashtag sets -> save to content calendar.
  • API-based: Instagram API fetch recent posts with engagement metrics -> identify top performers -> extract hashtags -> competitor account API scrape -> send data to Claude API for analysis -> generate hashtag sets -> save to database -> integrate with scheduling tools.

Where it gets tricky

Avoiding banned or spammy hashtags, balancing broad reach vs targeted engagement, keeping up with hashtag trends and algorithm changes, and preventing hashtag repetition that triggers Instagram suppression.