In social media, hashtags have taken over and proven to be extremely effective in marketing to provide easy and direct access to a business's content. Companies should utilize hashtags to increase their engagement with the rest of the world on social media, as they assist in the promotion of these companies and their products.
The three main social media platforms where hashtags are #vital are Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok- let's dive deeper into how hashtags on each platform can increase conversions and impressions.
In its early days, Twitter was successful in demonstrating how posts with hashtags receive two times more engagement than posts that don’t (Duran, 2017). To this day, the more hashtags you use on Twitter help increase brand visibility and create more chances for engagement.
Latching on to trending topics with the use of hashtags is a great way to increase interest in or generate conversations about your brand on Twitter. Using applicable hashtags, such as ones that directly relate to your brand or product, will boost interactions with people on the app who follow or like the hashtags. One thing to keep in mind on the platform, however, is that you will need to limit the hashtags you use. The more you use, the further you might get away from your true target audience and the less likely people are to interact with your content because it can come across as disingenuous and spam-like.
When it comes to hashtags on Instagram, on the other hand, the more is definitely the merrier! Instagram allows its users to post up to 30 hashtags on one post. Regardless of Instagram’s capabilities and room for longer captions, it is not recommended to use all potential 30 hashtags. Taking time to research the trending hashtags on Instagram will only benefit a business's success on the platform.
A few tips to grow your business on Instagram is to provide your audience with a variety of different hashtags that still pertain to what you want to convey with your post. A massive tip to elevate yourself on Instagram is to integrate your business into the hashtag! This is a great way to illustrate creativity, while also promoting yourself to the public. Useful hashtags to keep in your back pocket include hashtags relating to your brand name or identity, industry terms, or upcoming holidays.
TikTok, the most popular social media app as of late, has around 67% of its users claiming that the app made them buy something they didn’t even need (TikTok, 2022, as cited in Elliott, 2022). TikTok videos provide a fantastic outlet for businesses to introduce their product or service in a short amount of time. These videos don’t necessarily have to be talking about your product, as there is a range of “sounds” you can use to go along with the theme of your product or company.
An essential piece of gaining views and interest on products is to research what’s trending in your specific field. From there, it will become far easier to lead the rest of the TikTok Community straight to your page. When someone clicks on a hashtag attached to the caption of a post, the number of videos under this specific hashtag will be shown and can range from two videos to a billion videos. This is where your creativity and research come into play. Integrating your business’ product and interests into the hashtags on the post, along with a couple of trending hashtags will open up a world of possibilities to land your company on the “For You Page.” This also will allow you to remain authentic to what your company stands for. The hashtags you create about your business will give viewers a chance to see and potentially follow them, boosting the attention your account gets!
While hashtags help boost your views on a post, understanding the algorithms for these specific apps is also a key player in building your platform on social media. It is important to note that the algorithms for different social media have one thing in common: specific posts will appear under their explore pages that pertain to what they’re most likely to continue looking at, prolonging their time spent on the app.
Twitter wants its users to see the content they’re interested in without having to go looking for it- which is where utilizing hashtags on your tweets comes into play as a successful marketing tactic.
Instagram’s algorithm is notoriously complex but it is, “based on specific signals [that] prioritizes the best posts [and] push[es] the most relevant ones toward the top[,] giving them the most visibility, while other content ends up being placed further down” (Saraco, 2022). In simple terms, to prioritize your content either on the Explore page, Reels, or your Homepage, be sure to use strategic hashtags.
Lastly, TikTok’s algorithms are truly specific “For You”. Based on previous interactions, TikTok’s “For You Page” is specifically set for people to see and interact with other videos from their past likes on videos. To increase views on a post, (yep, you guessed it) use hashtags! This is a fantastic way to put yourself on the road to being connected to a new user, seeing as the “For You Page” is based on interactions the viewer makes during their time on the app.
If you’re looking to grow your social media, BlueTickSocial is here to help you. Stuck on ideas for hashtags? That’s what we’re here for! #FollowUs on social media for more tips on hashtag use or schedule a consultation to learn more about how BlueTickSocial can help you reach your social media goals.
Sources:
Finding the best TikTok #hashtags to promote your business.
How to use Twitter for business
How to effectively use hashtags to grow your business following
How to use hashtags to promote your small business on Instagram and TikTok.
Understanding the Twitter Algorithm: An Essential Guide.
How the TikTok algorithm works in 2021
How the Instagram algorithm works in 2022
What’s Next: The unstoppable power of #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt
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