How To Use Hashtags To develop Your Business
Scroll through any social media platform and you’ll likely encounter a sea of hashtags. Hashtags have been a core part of social media since 2007 when blogger and Google developer Chris Messina first proposed the concept. Chris took to Twitter to recommend using the pound symbol and a keyword to assist categorize content. The concept stuck.
Hashtags enable users to quickly search and identify topics and discussions of profit. While hashtags remain an integral part of the internet encounter, they’ve evolved from a basic organizational shortcut to a bonafide social media marketing tool. Today they aid in product finding and helping businesses expand their reach.
How to use hashtags on social media platforms
Hashtags (keywords preceded by the “#” symbol), allow brands to make their content discoverable by topic. Here’s how to use hashtags on five of the biggest social media platforms:
X (Twitter)
X—formerly known as Twitter, and the birthplace of hashtags—can be the trickiest place to use hashtags given the platform’s 280-character limit. This constraint requires careful hashtag usage, with one to two hashtags per post being ideal for engagement. You can place hashtags anywhere in your posts, shares, and comments.
There are a few different approaches for using hashtags on X. One is to make your own branded hashtag and consistently use the same hashtag to categorize your content over period. Another is to debt a trending hashtag to generate buzz and integrate your brand into the exchange.
Apple, for example, used #AppleMusicReplay to announce its personalized 2024 year-in-review music update, inspiring users to distribute their top artists and most-played albums using the hashtag.
One of the most successful branded hashtag campaigns on X was Coca-Cola’s 2015 #ShareACoke campaign, which promoted personalized cans and bottles. The hashtag helped boost the business’s sales by 2% in the US, reversing a decline in product consumption.
You can use LinkedIn hashtags across several of the platform’s features, including business page bios, posts, articles, and comments. The business recommends limiting hashtags to five per LinkedIn post in order to keep posts concentrated.
For the best engagement, LinkedIn suggests using a mix of general or trending hashtags alongside niche hashtags aligned with your business or spectators to broaden your reach. Gucci, for example, uses a mix of multiple hashtags, including celebrity name hashtags and its niche #GucciGift to boost traction for a recent campaign on LinkedIn.
You can use hashtags across all Instagram content, including user bios, Instagram stories, and captions for single-image posts, carousels, and Reels. Instagram posts allow for up to 30 hashtags, but there is such a thing as too many hashtags, which can look spammy to social media users. Ultimately, less is more—Instagram’s @Creators account recommends three to five hashtags per post.
While you can embed hashtags anywhere in a caption, it’s best habit to position them at the complete or add them separately in a comment. Here, Allbirds uses hashtags to promote a Marriott Bonvoy sweepstakes to drive more users to the post.
TikTok
Like Instagram, TikTok hashtags are clickable links used to categorize content and enable users to search posts by hashtag.The platform’s 4,000-character limit per post allows for plenty of experimentation, but it’s best to keep it to five or fewer.
Monitor the Discover page for trending hashtags and look for opportunities to incorporate TikTok trends into your brand posts. For example, FashionNova posts videos showing the same product on different body types with popular hashtags like #ootd and #styleinspo to enhance searchability and engagement.
YouTube
YouTube hashtags are typically placed in a video’s title or description to assist users discover content on particular topics or keywords. Aim for between three to five per video and avoid using more than 15, as YouTube may mark you down for spammy behavior.
Brands like ColourPop use hashtags to promote recent product lines in its Swatch event videos and cosmetic tutorials. Hashtags like #crueltyfree and #chromeshadow assist users easily discover ColourPop content.
How to use hashtags in your social media way
Here are three tips for identifying the correct hashtags to construct brand awareness:
Use a mix of popular and niche hashtags
Trending hashtags can be an straightforward way to expand your reach by placing your brand within established communities. Niche hashtags assist you connect with specific segments of your target spectators.
If you run a direct-to-customer plant business, for example, you might commence by using generalhashtags like #HousePlants, #PottedPlants, and the popular #entrepreneurship tag.
Keep tabs on competitor and trending hashtags
Trends can be fickle, and hashtag trends are no exception. What’s buzzy this month may die on the vine next month. To remain on top of what’s driving engagement in your industry and among your competitors on each platform, use social listening tools like Hootsuite, Brandwater, or Meltwater, which allow you to track trends and competitor act.
Track your hashtag engagement
Check in on your hashtagged posts to view how they’re performing. Analyze click-through rates per social media post to identify the most effective hashtags.
How to use hashtags FAQ
What is the three-hashtag rule?
The three-hashtag rule recommends that brands use three relevant hashtags across three main categories:
What is the purpose of a hashtag?
Hashtags categorize content so posts about specific topics are easier to search on a social platform. They have many purposes from organizing around a specific factor to cultivating communities and audiences around shared interests. For brands, hashtags connect with consumers and expand product visibility to broader audiences.
Are hashtags effective on social media?
When employed correctly and strategically, hashtags can be very effective on social media. While your way will vary depending on your brand and its goals, a successful hashtag way can assist get content in front of recent audiences and even generate viral posts.
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