#WhatsAHashtag. If the previous phrase seems foreign to you then you are in the right place. That was an example of a hashtag. A hashtag is a phrase or word which starts with the hash symbol (#). You may have seen these on different social media platforms. They help the people to be featured in searches for those hashtags. Hashtags can help a business to expand their content’s reach and visibility, strengthen their brand, increase their SEO and more. Let’s take a look at how to use the power of hashtags.
1. Choose a hashtag
The first step is to choose a hashtag for your business. There are a variety of hashtags you could use for your brand but the most common are:
Branded hashtag
These are hashtags with your company name or slogan. When choosing a hashtag you need to make sure it is easy for your customers to type. You can search for hashtags with your company’s name and derivatives of it to see what your customers may already be using. It may be prudent to use a hashtag that is already familiar with your customer. An example of a brand hashtag is #NSBC
Event hashtags
If you are having a special event it is a good idea to create a hashtag around the event to create a buzz. This hashtag normally has a limited time frame that it operates in. If you use the hashtag for annual events it is important to add a year to the hashtag. Another hashtag to consider is holidays. If there are important holidays which are in line with your brand’s vision and values you should add them to your content. These can also be fun holidays like International Cat Day. But it is important that they will resonate with and are relevant to your consumers. Examples of an event hashtags are #Christmas2020 or #Internationalcatday
Content hashtags
These hashtags focus on what the content of your post is about. These hashtags can be product, lifestyle or location hashtags. Product hashtags focus on the products you sell. Lifestyle focuses on the hobbies and lifestyle of your niche customers, and location hashtags focus on the place where your business operates out of.
2. Add hashtags to your posts
Hashtags are common on Twitter and Instagram but there is a growing trend to use them on YouTube and Facebook. It is important to not overrun your social media post with hashtags as this may come across as salesy and spammy.
Here are the ideal amounts of hashtags to use per platform:
- Twitter: 1-2 hashtags
- Instagram: 5-10 hashtags
- YouTube: 2-3 hashtags
- Facebook:1-2 hashtags
- LinkedIn: 1-2 hashtags
3. Monitor the hashtags
When you start using hashtags it is important to monitor how they are used and what traction you are getting with the hashtags. You can also check out the hashtags that are your brand’s name or community name and if you see some images you like; you could ask the owner of the content for permission to use the user-generated content on your website.
Hashtags can be very lucrative in spreading the word about your brand or events associated with your brand. Therefore go out there and hashtag your brand.
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