When the Twitter launched in 2016 it was a very simple service. You couldn’t re-tweet or reply to other users’ tweets, and hashtags didn’t exist. The interesting thing is that the users themselves invented all these aspects, Twitter only picked them up as official features.
Hashtags are widely used throughout the social media today. They were created in order to separate the topics and allow various discussions within the media. Every user can look up what interests them by searching for the specific hashtag.
The first ever hashtag is believed to belong to Chris Messina. When this social technology expert posted the tweet in 2007, it looked like this: “how do you feel about using # (pound) for groups. As in #barcamp [msg]?” The idea was to simplify the group discussions about Barcamp a technology gathering activity. Messina got the idea from IRC where hashtags were commonly used for communication.
The story further says that Twitter founder Evan Williams wasn’t much of a believer in hashtag idea at the beginning. Today, they are everywhere around us. Their purpose has changed over time and they turned into more than just discussion separators.
Organisations, companies and individuals use them on daily basis to promote their stories, products and services. They are now one of the most important tools of the social media marketing, helping millions of people to reach their goals.
Effectiveness Of Hashtags In Social Media Marketing
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Introducing New Product
When launching a new product on the market, companies have to create a functional marketing campaign. This means that it’s trendy and easily remembered by the audience in order to pique their interest.
Here, companies can have more benefits by sharing the campaign hashtag. This will inspire followers to use the hashtags when posting images and videos of themselves using the product. Additionally, it offers a more centred and controlled marketing strategy for the product launch.
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Increase Brand Visibility
If you want to get more followers and shares, then you have to use industry-specific hashtags. Specifically, the industry you belong to. For example, if you make jewellery, you should use hashtags like #earrings, #bracelets, #jewellery and others related to your type of business activity.
By doing so you will increase your brand visibility and gain more audience. This is especially a good method for new companies and small businesses to position themselves on the market. The more followers you have, the greater is an opportunity to convert them to customers.
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Use Niche Hashtags
Niche hashtags are convenient and very useful marketing features that will help you promote yourself. By specifying your activity, you will target certain audience and therefore build a potential customer base.
For example, if you give French lessons, you can use hashtags like #frenchlessons, #privatefrenchlessons or #frenchforbeginners, to name a few. This will help people find what they’re looking for and be beneficial for you too because it will decrease your marketing expenses and shorten the trouble.
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Employ Location Hashtags
Location matters to your future customers. Whether it’s about the town name, district or even country, you should include it in your hashtags. The research suggests that location hashtags bring more engagement from the audience.
Of course, location hashtags can be part of almost every post you make. If you have any promotional activities at your store or organizing an event, it is a perfect time to use these hashtags. It will make potential customers more aware of your whereabouts as well as your activities.
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Two Are Enough
You probably noticed some users using a block of hashtags in their posts. However, this is not something that will have any effect on the number of followers or reach the target audience. The best marketing campaigns are those that stay focused and concentrated on the certain topic.
Instead of using too many hashtags and dispersing the message to those outside your circle of interest, choose two. They may seem like a small effort to reach the target audience, but if you plan them correctly, they will hit the mark.
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Always use the same Hashtags on all Platforms
No matter if you invented a hashtag or it’s one already out there on social media, you have to stay consistent across all the platforms. Your potential customers use different social platforms, so you have to keep up with them. This will not only help you get to your audience but also help you measure the success of your campaign.
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Be Creative On Social Media
Instead of using the available hashtags, come up with your own. It will bring you a clean slate and help you reach specific profile of users. Moreover, you will start a trend and social media users love those. Think about the catchiness and significance of your hashtag and how it fits into your overall marketing campaign.
Alternatively, consider using SEO reseller services to boost your online presence with appropriate and highly functional hashtags. If you don’t have the capacity to dedicate to your social media campaign then it’s better to hire experts. That way, you will avoid making common mistakes which can cost you Google rankings and audience.
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Mistakes To Avoid
Hashtags are one of the tools of marketing and you expect them to bring you certain results. However, if that is not the case, then you are not doing it right. The most frequent mistakes when it comes to hashtags are adding # before and after the phrase, i.e. keyword.
Separating keywords with numbers or space and using punctuation are also the mistakes users tend to make. Of course, there are those who pair up words that simply don’t work well together or use hashtags to promote negative values. A lot can depend on the hashtag you choose so you have to be careful and think it through.
In The End :
It’s all about interacting with the audience in today’s marketing world and hashtags will help you with that greatly. But, just like with every communication, you have to choose your words wisely in order to have positive results. In time, you will be able to recognize the effective hashtag and use it in your social media marketing campaign with positive success.
