It seems like hashtags came out of nowhere. They are virtually impossible to ignore now, and no business should ignore them. If they are used right, they can help grow a business. The trick is learning how to use hashtags for your company’s benefit.
Precise Hashtags
A good way to create effective hashtags is to be as precise as you can. If the goal is to reach a specific audience, then the less vague your hashtags are, the higher the chance of reaching the targeted audience.
For example, if the hashtag you want to use is associated with a basketball game, then make sure you mention the teams playing; you may even want to mention the names of players in the game.
Follow the Crowd
When it comes to hashtags, it’s wise to follow the crowd. You want to look at your competitors or maybe your followers to find out what hashtags are used the most amongst these groups.
Copy that, which should ensure that your posts reach the right people. Social media platforms make it easy for you to research hashtags to find the most useful ones. It’s part of the reason Instagram for small businesses works along with other platforms.
Branded Hashtags
It’s a good idea to start using branded hashtags. This may not churn out great results at the beginning, but it’s a wise thing to do nonetheless. There are a few reasons for this. For one, it makes it easier to track how your posts are doing.
Second, it makes it possible for folks to tag your business as they get to know you and fall in love with your business. Your patience with this should be rewarded at some point. Use hashtags with your company’s name and slogan whenever you feel it’s appropriate.
Jump On the Trends
You should consider joining the trending hashtags somehow. Now, it’s important that you wait until something that connects to your business pops up. If you don’t do this, then you won’t reach an audience that cares about your site or post.
You could try to figure out a way to make your site or post relate to trends, but trying to force this connection might seem obvious, and online users can see this. You may have to be patient, but at least you’ll be reaching users who might want to read what you’ve got to offer. This can increase your chances of boosting business traffic.
Join the Conversation
Social media platforms allow folks to talk to one another. One way this happens is through trending hashtags but not always. Sometimes, it happens on a smaller scale. You can use that to your advantage.
For example, you can comment on a local football game. This way you’ll reach folks near your place of business, and you’ll appear to care about what happens in your community. People like local businesses that care and want to support them, so that’s a good thing.
Try Contests and Giveaways
People love to win and compete. You can just create a contest or giveaway. If you opt for giveaways, it’s wise to do several small ones rather than one big one.
Smaller giveaways give your brand more awareness. If you want to do a contest, then make sure the prize is a good one that’ll get folks motivated, or find a way to make it fun for online users.
Build a Community
A great way to use hashtags is to create a community around one. The problem is that this is pretty challenging to get right. You don’t only have to come up with an original hashtag, you also have to link it to something folks would be interested in.
Still, if you get this right, you’ll connect your business to a community of people who think alike and share your company’s values. You might even get customers for life, which is something all up-and-coming businesses want.
Now, you have all the things a business can do to effectively use hashtags. It takes some time to adapt to these and use them to your advantage, but it’s worth the effort.
