It’s crazy to me to think back when my son was little, hashtags weren’t a thing. It was a pound sign. As kids, we knew it as a pound sign and that was it. Now, it’s become a viral sensation, that pound sign aka the famous hashtag.
When I was learning about it, I thought they could be used on any platform, at any time. I found out, upon lots of research that that’s not true. Hashtags have their own strategy, and each social platform adopts them differently. This guide will help you use them strategically throughout the social media business platform of choice. Bear with me, friends, if you want to “cut to the chase” with hashtags, this guide will do it.
Instagram is a unique platform that loves hashtags. One hashtag gives 12.6% more engagement than not using them at all. Therefore, use them on Instagram to gain followers and social love.
Insta-notes
- You can use up to 30 hashtags – Don’t be spammy with this.
- 9 is the magic number – Per data, 9 hashtags are the perfect number for optimal engagement.
How to use Hashtags on Instagram
The love for hashtags can consume you if you let it. Using a hashtag strategy is the key for followers, engagement, and overall lead generation. Use these tips to help you use a hashtag to build your Instagram following.
- After you post on Instagram, make a comment with the hashtag. This makes the post look less spammy and more engaging.
- Use them in your biography too.
- Use a hashtag in Instagram Stories
- Focus on your description to pull the relevant hashtags
- Follow relevant hashtags
Unlike Twitter and Instagram, Facebook is a platform that doesn’t depend on any single hashtag. You may see it throughout Facebook on your feed, but it’s not for engagement and for indexing any content. Profiles on Facebook are private which makes it hard for Facebook to use a hashtag. In June 2013, Facebook attempted to use this strategy but realized it didn’t work.
How to use Hashtags on Facebook
Unfortunately, the hashtag strategy on Facebook is not as relevant as other platforms. if you want to use them try to stick to one to two hashtags per post, but honestly, why waste your time?
Twitter is a social platform where hashtags were born. The first hashtag was posted in 2007. Nowadays, you don’t see many tweets without a hashtag. Actually, tweets with hashtags get double engagement.
How to use Hashtags on Twitter
If you are reading this article it’s probably because you have seen a hashtag before. Many of us have seen some people make up long string words with a pound sign in front of it (#ilikegreatdanessomuch). That is not a good strategy to use because hashtags on Twitter are important for categorization.
- Look for hashtags that you want to be a part of.
- Look at your trending list of hashtags and make a post relevant to it.
- Don’t be vague in your hashtag ( for example #happy )
- Unlike Instagram where we focused more on descriptions, on the Twitter platform you’re going to focus more on the topic.
LinkedIn is much like Facebook for business, in which, a hashtag does not play a key part in the algorithm for engagement. In 2016, LinkedIn tried to make them come alive, but they didn’t flourish. Recently though, LinkedIn has a feature on the left side that has a hashtag to follow.
How to use Hashtags on LinkedIn
Up until recently, I wouldn’t recommend using a hashtag on LinkedIn at all. Now though, I would recommend starting to follow your favorite hashtag and using 1 to 2 in your posts. Make sure the hashtag is relevant to the business.
The biggest mistake business owners make is to not include Pinterest as part of their marketing strategy. Pinterest is used as a search engine for many companies. Recently, Pinterest jumped in on using hashtag strategy in its platform.
How to use a Hashtag on Pinterest
Searching for a recipe is one of the main things I do on Pinterest. I recently tried doing a search for #vegan and couldn’t believe the results. Start using the tips below in your Pinterest strategy and you will notice more engagement and followers.
- Add tags at the end of a post
- Think of what people are searching for as keywords for hashtags
- Don’t add too many (no more than 20)
- Only clickable on the description
- Keyword search, not a hashtag
Types of Hashtags
There are types of hashtags throughout the internet that people use. There are tools that will discuss as well to help you choose relevant hashtags.
These include:
- Content – product/service/area of expertise
Ex: smoothie post #smoothie #fitness #mycompany #vegan
- Trendy – look on Twitter for “trending”
- Brand Specific – #amwritinghealthcare – relates to a specific event or campaign or to enter a contest
General Hashtag Rules to Follow:
- Don’t add too many words to a hashtag (ex: #ilovewritingbecauseitsfun)
- Most people like the hashtag to categories
- Don’t #add a #hashtag to #every #word
- Capitalize your hashtag #FavoritePen
Tools for Hashtag Search
When trying to think of a hashtag, it can be trial and error. Though, these tools can help you find relevant hashtags within your industry. Hashtag Holiday Calendar, Hashtagify.me, Ritetag I hope this resource gave you some sort of insight and hashtag strategies in your upcoming marketing campaign. Have fun with that pound sign, and use it appropriately to gain followers and up your social game.
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