Note: This was featured as part of our Web Wednesday segment on Charleston’s 105.5 The Bridge. You can catch us every Wednesday morning at 8:20 am ET for your dose of social media & digital marketing news. You can listen to the segment below:
Creating a hashtag for your business has several benefits. The reason why they’re so important is because they will create more engagement with customers as well as give you that extra element of boosting your brand online.
Hashtags tend to be great marketing resources for companies. From millennials to baby boomers, they can connect with all demographics and serve as that extra source of engagement you’re looking for.
1. What do people use hashtags for?
People use hashtags for several different things: funny quips, trending topics, movements, and more. But for business, some of the most optimal hashtag uses are for promotions, events, and contests.
Some hashtags can even work as call-to-action phrases, getting users to interact with your brand. Creating a branded hashtag or a hashtag specific to a promotion can get a user to include it in a social media post about your business. This is also a great way to compile user-generated content.
2. What are your hashtag goals?
Before you start using hashtags, think about how you want to use them to optimize engagement with your brand. For example, do you want to increase brand conversations with your business? Or are you working toward making your brand more prominent on a specific social network?
Hashtags can also be used to increase link clicks and mentions on your social media platforms.
3. How do you create a successful hashtag?
- When creating a hashtag, it’s important to make them short and simple. You want to ensure that they’re easy for your clients and consumers to remember.
- Make sure that they’re consistent and don’t deviate from your brand. An example of this would be including your company name in the hashtag.
- Avoid generic hashtags related to your brand so other companies can’t use them.
- Focus on one message or idea for each hashtag. You don’t want them to be arbitrary to your brand. Each hashtag needs to have a purpose.
- Always think of unique hashtags tailored to your brand so clients don’t get confused with the company they’re actually interacting with. (#copyright)
Make sure you consider what platform the hashtag will be used on. The hashtags you use on Instagram will be different from the ones you use on Twitter.
With Twitter, you can use a few generic hashtags, but also include a brand-specific one. It can be as simple as using your company name. For Instagram, hashtags need to be very creative and unique. On Instagram, you can include up to 30 hashtags on each post, and we recommend you take advantage of that to maximize engagement and searches for your company.
If you’re not sure how to fully utilize hashtags on your social media, let us help you! Sign up for a free, no-obligation consultation today or give us a call at (888) 632-4499. We’d love to walk you through it!
