How often do you use hashtags? Not often enough? Too often? The hashtag is actually one of the most popular means of categorizing what you post on social media. Hashtags are what makes your social media posting available in a wide range to those who have an interest in your business. It makes you discoverable beyond your followers. The hashtag has been established before recent times; they’re not a new addition to social media or online communication. In fact, in 2010, the word was added to the Oxford dictionary. Hashtags began as a way to connect social media users with more of the information they wished to see and help discover new users that they may not have found before. Guidelines for the optimal hashtag usage have evolved with the popularity of hashtag usage. Social media platforms have been monitoring the way hashtags are being used, and in response, they have strategic algorithms geared toward hashtag usage that define how to use them, how often, how to tie them to you brand, and more. Our team knows the latest algorithm and social media changes that happen, so below are three tips on utilizing hashtags to the fullest of their potential.
Tie Your Hashtag to Your Brand – Be Specific!
Do you have a branded tagline? Make it a hashtag to create a new area for your business to be discovered. Instagram is especially a great tool to utilize here. Now, with Instagram’s hashtag browsing and following, you can choose which hashtags you want to follow and get the newest posts that have to do with that hashtag every day. Post your branded hashtags enough, and your followers could catch on and start using it as well. Thus, you’re creating an entirely separate feed in addition to your personal page filled with images that have never been seen before! Of course, it’s very important to be unique with your branded hashtags. With Instagram’s newest algorithm update, they ask for “more unique and specific hashtags” for optimum exposure. For example, if you have a tennis company that has a unique, branded tagline, it’s best to use that for a hashtag rather than #tennis, #tenniscourts, etc.
Don’t Overdo Your Hashtags.
In previous years, it was better to use as many hashtags as possible (in moderation, of course) to get your content noticed across multiple levels. With the newest updates, it’s now optimal to use about 2-3 unique, branded and non-branded hashtags. This ultimately means to choose wisely. Of course, include your branded hashtags, after all, those are about as unique as it gets (if they’re not, it might be time to come up with some new taglines or modify your brand. Check out our blog about branding here). Outside of your branded hashtags, it’s great to use hashtags that are very specific and engaging to your picture, not your overall brand. While the more generic hashtags show a larger following initially, overall, the use of these will not get your content pushed through to a wider audience due to the Instagram algorithm.
Use Hashtags Where Relevant – Hint… it’s not on Facebook.
Today, hashtags are slowly becoming more and more irrelevant on Facebook. In a recent study conducted by The Post Planner, posts on Facebook that had 0-2 hashtags on Facebook received 5x more interactions than those with 10 or more hashtags. That being said, we would recommend avoiding the use or drastic use of hashtags on Facebook, particularly unbranded hashtags. On Twitter, the birthplace of the social media hashtag usage, hashtags are still very relevant, as Twitter still uses their hashtags to filter information from all users. On Twitter, users are limited with their character use, so it’s advisable to follow the same rules as Instagram with using very branded and relevant hashtags to increase exposure overall for your business’ content.
Have you been utilizing your hashtags effectively? Do you have a solid brand to highlight with your hashtags? Branding defines your overall presence on social media. Hashtags are not what defines your brand, but rather a vehicle to use to spread your brand. Hashtag usage begins and ends with your brand identity, so nailing down your brand’s voice is essential to making your social media brand get noticed and shared across all levels of social media. Our team is experienced in both branding and social media management and can help you develop a plan to make your content go further in your social media exposure. Give us a call today to get started on your strategic, targeted social media plan. Developing your new, branded hashtags will allow your business to get noticed!
