Hooked on Hashtags 101

Putting the # to use for your business.  If you've ever seen the number symbol (#) in front of a word in a Instagram or Twitter post, you've seen a hashtag.  As a business owner, I'm hooked on them. In fact, I credit their use with helping to boost my website and services.  I don't have a budget for TV or magazine ads so I rely on social media for marketing.  
Think of hashtags as a way to connect social media content to a specific topic, event, theme or conversation.  They also make it easier to discover posts around those specific topics, because hashtags aggregate all social media content with that same hashtag.  They're not just for Twitter anymore, either. Hashtags are effective on other social media platforms too.  Use hashtags to increase your engagement with your followers.  Including hashtags in your posts means taking part in a conversation happening on that social media platform. And most importantly, it makes your posts visible in that conversation.  This can lead to greater engagement, boosting your brand's social media engagement through likes, shares, comments and new followers.  Creating a branded hashtag is an opportunity to build your brand and can be an effective way to promote your business and drive conversation.  Using a hashtag that's connected to an issue beyond your brand is a way to show support for social issues.  On Instagram, longer captions aren't always the most effective. Same with Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn or any other platform - sometimes less is more.  If you're not sure if the hashtags you're hashtags are ok to use, click here to check them and to avoid getting your accounts banned. 
Do you use hashtags to increase the reach of your social media messages?  

#besthashtags #hashtagsforinstagram #tophashtags2021 #usehashtagsforyourbusiness 
​
  "This post includes affiliate links to products I use and recommend, which means I may receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you."

---