Hashtags are more than just #fun and #exciting words to get more #traction on your #social #media posts, they can be #pivotal to gaining #organic #traction for your #company #online!
Okay, enough of that.
In reality, hashtags can be tricky from platform to platform on social media if you don’t know which hashtags to use or how many. We’ll teach you the basics of hashtagging and how to maximize the exposure you’re getting on posts!
What Does a Hashtag Do for My Business?
The simple answer is that hashtags can help increase your brand’s social media reach and engagement. But they can be used in good ways and bad ways. There’s more to a hashtag on a post than throwing up a #ThrowbackThursday post every Thursday.
Using hashtags effectively can increase reach and engagement, broaden your audience and make any social media manager the happiest person in the company. Let’s be real, if they’re not happy, nobody is happy. Some Instagram users even claim to have increased their brand’s visibility by 4,473% by using hashtags a certain way!
Hashtag Best Practices
So how does one use hashtags better on their posts to get more viewers? Here are some things to remember when hashtagging:
Change strategies as you change platforms
The different social media platforms have various algorithms, so your strategy has to change. For example, the ideal number of hashtags to use on a Twitter post is 1-2. However, on Instagram, it is best to leave hashtags out of your actual caption on a post, but if you feel you must put some in, it’s best to not exceed 5.
Use hashtag groups when you can
Instagram allows up to 30 hashtags to be used in any post or comment, which can be incredibly overwhelming and tiring to type out as consistently as your post schedule. However, now there are hashtag groups which allows you to save and automatically populate all of your hashtags in one group (yay). Here’s a great step-by-step guide to using hashtag groups! While other platforms may not have this feature built in, there are apps to help with this process. You can save the hashtags in your notes section on a computer, phone or smart device!
Pay attention to competition and influencers in the same/similar field
It is never a bad idea to check out what the competition is doing or to keep an eye on influencers who are in the same area of business as you are. It is a great way to see what is working and what isn’t, and once you start to have an idea of your social media, you’ll start to see WHY something is or isn’t working.
Check what’s trending
The trending topics change faster than the average human changes their socks. It is important to know what’s trending and try to utilize those hashtags in your posts. The best way to use this information is to use one trending hashtag or one that is widely used and one that is a mid-level of usage as two of your hashtags. Posts can get buried quickly if you use too many trending hashtags.
How Do I Know If It’s Working?
Most social media platforms will come with some sort of insights to help track your hashtag clicks or how many people have viewed your posts. This information should definitely be tracked, especially as the social media strategy changes for your brand and the platforms change their algorithms. You should start to notice a difference in views on posts once hashtags start to be implemented or fine-tuned!
Join ShearShare
Download our app to join ShearShare as a Host or Pro. Check our blog for resources, updates, and news relevant to the beauty and barbering industry. And be sure to follow ShearShare on all social media platforms to join our #ShearShareCommunity!
