The Whys and Hows of Hashtags

If you’re not currently using hashtags on Instagram or your other social posts, either because you’re unsure how to use them or don’t understand the need for them, then this is the article for you. Hashtags on various platforms can have a substantial impact on your social channels, if used correctly, taking the nature of each channel into account. We explain how to use a hashtag for more followers and the benefits they can bring so that you feel confident and productive when putting material out on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

For those of you who are complete beginners (no judgement – we all have to start somewhere), using a hashtag on social posts is really simple, all you do is add a ‘#’ sign before the start of a word, phrase, or slogan, without adding in any punctuation or spaces within the words. Each platform has its own rules when it comes to the number of words you should hashtag, which we will discuss later on, and it’s essential to stick to those rules to avoid your posts looking like spam.

Try to avoid #hash #tagging #every #single #word #too … It’s not a good look, can really turn users off, and doesn’t actually achieve the goal of hashtagging. The final rule of thumb is to ensure that the hashtags you use are related to the post in question. This avoids your account being overlooked by users, due to its lack of authenticity and means it will show up in the right places.

There are multiple benefits to using hashtags, each different for separate platforms, but generally speaking hashtags are excellent for promotion, customer search, and gaining followers. Remember that any hashtag on a public account can be seen by anyone who uses that search, making your reach further than you could ever imagine.

If you are covering an event or promoting an upcoming launch, for example, using a specific hashtag related to that event can help users to find all the posts relating to that particular event. This can help you create and spread awareness before the event, cover the event while it’s happening and then keep those who attended engaged afterwards. All this through the power of one specific hashtag.

Hashtags also help you to establish brand identity and can help open you up to a potential customer base you never even knew existed but is actively searching for the things you are posting about.

If customers are searching for things they want and need, and see your company’s posts repeatedly coming through, they’re likely to follow you. Once you gain followers through hashtags, it’s easy to see ways in which you can gain more followers by researching who these new followers are following and taking inspiration from them. This can then allow you to adopt new hashtags to reach more followers with the same interests.

As most Facebook profiles are private, hashtags sadly don’t tend to reach as far on Facebook as they do on Twitter and Instagram. However, hashtag use on Facebook still plays an important role as company pages are public, and particularly when it comes to multiple platform promotion. Using Facebook as a platform to promote a campaign or competition running on a different channel can increase brand awareness.

As general practice goes, 1-2 hashtags on Facebook should be used, and although posts may not travel as far, hashtags on this channel are essential as followers of specific hashtags can be targeted in Facebook ads, making them necessary for a paid Facebook advertisement.

Twitter was the platform where the hashtag trend originally came from, making it a powerful tool. Hashtags can be used to search for specific topics of conversation and encouraging people to join in, even when they don’t follow each other. Just as on Facebook, 1-2 hashtags should be used on Twitter, to ensure that tweets are relevant and specific.

Hashtags on Twitter can be a great way to establish your customer base and what they want – a precious insight for your business. It’s also an excellent way to keep an eye on competitors and to see what is said about their products and business.

Using hashtags on Instagram was never so important, as users can now follow hashtags and use them on Instagram stories too. The best Instagram hashtags for likes, comments and follows are best found by researching competitors to get started, however, remember to keep it authentic if you want to convert these followers into customers eventually.

When it comes to the number of hashtags you should use, Instagram is the exception to the rule. You can use up to 30 hashtags and there’s debate over which number of hashtags sees the most engagement. Some say it’s 10-15 but it’s worth experimenting on your own account. The increased number of hashtags means you can have a lot more exposure from one post than on any other platform.

If you require more advice regarding social media metrics or company guides to social media, then please keep reading our blog for more expert tips on navigating your way through social media and the digital marketing world.