Before we start setting goals for hashtags let's figure out why they exist and why instagram existing.
Instagrams mission is to capture's the world moments - this could be with friends or the world or anything that can be captured on a camera.
Hashtags could refer to something in the pic itself or to a deeper meaning like an inside joke or an abstract term.
Goal
we want to aid the consumers(users who browse) in discovering these moments/photographs through hashtags and also enable the creators to reach a larger audience.
Users can either click on a hashtag and discover content or they can follow a hashtag and keep discovering content related. In addition there are certain hashtags that are topical vs those that are ever green
I want to break the success metrics down into consumers and creator metrics as follows
Creator
- Primary: % of posts created with hashtags vs without
- % of users discovering posts(viewing) via hashtags vs other channels of discovery ( explore etc)
- % of users following account via hashtags
- % of users following hashtags themselves
Consumer
- Primary: % of total posts consumed(viewed) via hastags
- Timespent in hashtag discovery experience
- % of users finding hashtags useful ( liked a post or followed an account or a hashtag via hashtags)
- Top hashtags over different time period (split by topical and ever green)
Summarising the approach
IG's mission
how do hashtags align with the mission
who are the different user cohorts consuming hashtags
What metrics align with the cohorts and what is the primary metric