The emphasis on health and fitness has become a mega-trend on Instagram. Whether its dedicated fitness junkies showing their progress or teenagers posing for “gym-selfies” this popular social media platform is full of motivational posts of people striving to fulfill their fitness goals. Fitness fads, transformation videos, meal prep and workout plans dominate a huge portion of content on Instagram. It is a great place to document your fitness journey, gain inspiration, share tips and, most importantly, marketing! With over 111 million active users on Instagram, you can imagine how many people your fitness marketing will reach.
For most personal trainers, Instagram has become not only their fitness diary but a way to connect with the community and reach out to a bigger customer base. Without the right hashtags, however, your Instagram account will dormant.
Hashtags allow your posts to be seen by a wider audience who might not already be connected to you. They allow you to categorise your posts on Instagram under a particular heading so that when people are searching for a specific category – such as #fitness – and your posts are also categorised under #fitness, you’ll get a whole new audience.
As a trainer, you want your images, information, services – or whatever you may feel pertinent in marketing yourself – to be viewed by likeminded individuals. Using the correct hashtags puts you that much closer to your goal.
Using the right hashtags
Investigate what your competitors or other brands in the fitness space are using. Narrow down which hashtags fit best with your target audience. You can even come up with your own unique hashtags to share on all your posts, and encourage your clients to use it too. Or, use hashtags that are commonly used in your community. This can be a great way to build your brand and attract the right kind of followers.
Be specific
The more specific your hashtags are, the more targeted your audience will be that will see your posts. In addition, there won’t be much competition for specific hashtags as not many people use them. This means that there will be a better chance of your social media post getting seen as there isn’t a lot of competition.
Stay relevant
Ensure your tags are relevant to the post. For instance, if you are posting about a workout session focused on legs, hashtag the body part being worked out (this being the legs).
Hashtag the names of movement being performed, like #squats #legextensions #legcurls.
Use broad terms, phrases and ideas that relate to fitness and exercise, like #exercisemotivation #fitnessmotivation#diet #mealplans #personaltraining #grouptraining
Pace yourself
Do not post too many hashtags. This can also attract the wrong kind of followers. In addition, if you have too many hashtags attached to your post, people will get the impression that you don’t know what your target area is. Try to use, at the most, five hashtags.
Some popular hashtags
#Fitspo #Fitfam #GirlsWhoLift #GymLife #Legday #NoPainNoGain #FitLife #GetStrong #Workout #MondayMiles #ChestDay #SeenOnMyRun #TrainHard #Gains #Strengthtraining #Physiquefreak #Fitness #Bodybuilding #Yoga #CrossFit #FitFluential #Fitnessfriday #Flexfriday #Sundayrunday #Instarunners #Gym #Movenourishbelieve #Squats
Obviously, the same applies to other social network sites, as hashtags have become a common way of finding things in, what can be, the confusion that is social media. The most important things to remember, when you are using hashtags as a personal trainer, is not to stray too far from hashtags relating to fitness. Its all about attracting the right followers and making it easy for people to understand and find you. If you use hashtags correctly, it can be a very valuable marketing tool. But if you use them incorrectly, they can drive away a large portion of your client base.
So remember to hashtag wisely!
Contact Trifocus Fitness Academy
Social media is a superb way for personal trainers and other fitness professionals to market themselves. If you want to get more in-depth knowledge about how to go about marketing your fitness business on social media, Trifocus Fitness Academy’s Social Media Management for Fitness Professionals is for you! For more information, follow this link.