A hashtag or # to you and me is a way of organising a conversation into an order. Hashtags also work as signals for people to discover and follow.
A hashtag (#) is a way to help people who are interested in a certain topic, quickly find content on that specific topic. It consolidates all related information into one thread. Putting a hashtag in front of a word develops it into a clickable link.
It really became famous when twitter started to use it and it helped people categorize conversations. Hashtags let people self-organise online content about topics of global interest and allow people to create instant connections with others e.g #coffee. By clicking on one of the hashtags, you will be brought to a page that is filled with posts using that specific hashtag.
The hashtag has become the most popular and commonly used symbol on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Google+.
You can use hashtags on different social media sites to successfully convert opportunities into cash and new customers. It is one of the most effective selling approaches on Twitter.
Upon creating a hashtag, make sure it is unique and relevant. Also, make sure that it’s easy to remember. Bb’s Coffee & Muffins use it to create brand awareness and to engage with their customers. They run competitions with the unique hashtag #bbscompetition. By adding the ‘competition’ to the end of the ‘bbs’, you’re able to understand that the hashtag has to do with bb’s, but that it also involves a competition.
If there is something relevant happening in the world, try to get your business involved on Twitter. Follow people that follow you to find out what they’re interested in. Listen, measure and engage in conversations. Create a hashtag and connect your brand to the existing buzz.
Beware of using too many hashtags in a tweet/post. Use them appropriately. There’s nothing worse than a tweet/post that’s packed full of hashtags and it may affect your tweet/post being liked or retweeted.
Justin Timberlake & Jimmy Fallon make fun of using too many hashtags
Instagram hashtags differ from Twitter. You could say it is more forgiving for having a fruitful amount of hashtags. As it is more picture focused, it is essential to accompany hashtags that describe your photo.. You can monitor your hashtags so encourage your customers to use ones that you’ve created. Keep in mind that people like to search what’s trending and locations.
Find out what hashtags are trending in your area here.
Do you want to follow hashtags that are related to your industry or product? There are various hashtag tracking tools here.
By Iñaki Castellet Hernández
By Jeff Sheridan
By Matrix Internet