How To Effectively Use Hashtags For Social Media Marketing

Hashtags play a vital role in social media marketing. They can help increase the visibility, engagement, and reach of your posts. Hashtag misuse, however, can also make your content appear spammy. First and foremost, let’s start off by defining what a hashtag is. A hashtag is a unique keyword that is preceded by the “#” symbol used on social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Tiktok) to categorize and organize content. Keep in mind that hashtags will always start with “#”, and they won’t work if you add spaces, punctuation, or symbols. Hashtags are a great way to help other users find your posts more easily. Additionally, they allow you to participate in conversations and trends that are happening around a specific topic.

Incorporating hashtags for businesses can be highly beneficial because it is a great way to promote products, services, and offerings. Hashtags generate more traffic on social media platforms because of their ability to increase the reach and engagement of your content. By including branded and relevant hashtags in your social media posts, you can boost the visibility of your content across a wider audience.

What is a Hashtag in the World of Social Media?

So, now that you know what the definition of a hashtag is and how beneficial they can be, where should you start? A successful hashtag strategy begins with knowing your target audience. The first step to finding the right hashtags for your brand will require you to conduct some research. Gather information about your direct competitors within your brand’s niche. This research will help you identify which keywords they are utilizing and will reveal how your competitors are engaging with your shared target audience. We’ll go over some tips and best practices below on how to effectively use hashtags for social media marketing.

How Do You Use Hashtags Properly?

The key to effectively using hashtags in your social media posts is to select hashtags that are relevant to your brand and overall content. Adding relevant hashtags will facilitate traffic to your content so that you can increase engagement, such as views, likes, and shares. For best results, it is recommended to use a combination of popular and niche hashtags. The use of popular hashtags can increase visibility and reach a larger audience, but it’s important to use niche hashtags as well to reach a specific target audience. By using hashtags that are too broad or overused, you run the risk of your content getting lost with unrelated content. For example, if your business sells custom dog collars, you may want to avoid using popular or overused hashtags such as #dog or #custom. It would be more effective to utilize more niche hashtags like #customcollars or #personalizedcollars.

What are the Key Characteristics of Hashtags?

While incorporating hashtags in your posts, try to keep them short and simple. It is easier for people to search for hashtags when they are short, simple, and easy to remember. Using a hashtag that is too long or complicated to remember is most likely not going to yield the results you are hoping for. Another important aspect of using hashtags effectively in your social media marketing is to use them in moderation. When incorporating hashtags into your posts, remember this saying, sometimes less is more. So the next question is, how many are too many? A good guideline to follow is using between 3-10 hashtags per post. Although, the number of hashtags that can be used really depends on which social media platform you are using. Just be mindful to avoid overusing hashtags since they can decrease engagement and appear spammy.

Trending Hashtags can Help Boost Your Social Media Posts

Another tip to incorporate hashtags into your social media posts is to include any trending hashtags. These are popular keywords or phrases and are the most discussed topics at a given time. You might be wondering how to figure out which hashtags are trending. Well, a good strategy to figure out which hashtags are currently trending is to visit Twitter and Instagram. These platforms have the ability to view trending hashtags, which provides valuable insight into popular conversations happening on social media. It is important to note that you should only add trending hashtags in your posts if the topic specifically relates to your business or specific post. It wouldn’t make sense for your business to chime in on a trending topic that has nothing to do with your business unless you can add valuable input to the conversation. Overall, if the opportunity arises, it can be beneficial to add these hashtags because you can engage in conversation surrounding that topic, thus increasing your brand’s visibility.

What are the Benefits of Using Branded Hashtags?

Another effective way to use hashtags is to come up with your own branded hashtags. This can be a fun way to get creative and create a unique hashtag that is specific to your brand. It is also a fantastic way to promote your business, build brand awareness, and increase engagement. If your business is having a sale or planning on hosting an upcoming event, try to incorporate your unique branded hashtag into your posts. This will allow your followers to stay informed and also provide them the opportunity to share said event or sale to a larger audience. Try to add these hashtags to your posts when opportunities arise because they can help increase the visibility of your content. 

Hashtags are an essential part of social media marketing, but are only effective if used in the correct manner. Choose hashtags that are relevant to your brand, use them in moderation, incorporate trending hashtags, and create your own branded hashtags. By following these guidelines and best practices, you can effectively use hashtags to enrich your social media posts.

Written by Jenna Dinh, Social Media Manager