Using Hashtags Effectively
Published June 29, 2018
What is the point in people adding all of those # (hashtags) all over their posts on social media? Hashtags are essentially linking tools, they link people together with common interests and help link similar posts together. They can be extremely useful for businesses if used correctly and if you know what their capabilities are for your brand.
How does a hashtag work?
Hashtags work to connect or link all of the content with that particular hashtag in them. Depending on people’s privacy settings, you could click #sunset on various social media platforms and you would see the results of users posts that include #sunset in them.
Why do people’s privacy settings matter?
If a Facebook user has their profile set to private then their posts with any hashtags you are searching will not appear. Only people with public profiles or people you are friends with will appear in that search.
How can I utilize hashtags in my company’s posts on social medias?
Create one of your own to link your posts and to expand your brand! If we created #BusinessExample and included that in every post you posted about one of your products or services then someone seeing content that was shared by one of their friends would simply have to click that # to be connected to all of your content on that product or service instantly. They are also used to connect people talking about an event. Large political debates, sporting events, music festivals, and many more events have their own unique hashtag. Many companies use them to keep track of all the online chatter and to grow that chatter on specific events or campaigns.
How do I create a # for my brand?
Do a brainstorming session and keep in mind the formatting. Many companies have gotten into hot water by not proof reading the #s and their # turns out to have an unintended meaning. Some general rules to follow would be keep it short and simple. Long hashtags are hard to type and remember for most people so you open yourself up to having spelling errors. It is accepted and encouraged to change capitalization mid #. #CarShow could be read as cars how if there was no capitalization change.
Do I want to use a preexisting # or create my own?
If your goal for the post is to get in front of the most people possible with similar interests then find a preexisting # that is most used related to the content in the post. If you are trying to do a unique campaign you will have to think of one rarely if ever used to help you follow it.
