If you've been on social media you've seen them. They are known as the pound key or number sign. In the social sphere, they are hashtags.
Hashtags categorize content and group similar posts together. For instance if you post a pic of your dinner and tag it #food, your tacos and salsa will show up in a feed with other food images from people around the world.
But why should you hashtag when posting on social media? Here's five reasons your brand should start hitting the pound key.
1. Get your posts noticed - Your posts will show up in the specified feeds you hashtag. The more you tag, the more people you can possibly reach.
2. Reach your ideal audience - Who do you want to see and experience your brand? Add a hashtag to be noticed. For example, if you are a wedding photographer looking for engaged couples, you may want to use #weddingphotography #weddingplanning #weddingphotographer #engaged.
3. You can ride popular hashtags to gain exposure - What makes a hashtag popular? It comes down to how many people are using that tag. You can be strategic with your hashtags by riding popular ones that fit with your brand. If you are a travel destination, you could ride the #TravelTuesday tag. If you are a gym or personal trainer, try #wellnesswednesday or #fitfriday to reach your desired audience. Are you a restaurant owner? Try #foodstragram, #foodie or #foodporn.
4. Keep track of your own content - You should have a specific hashtag for your brand. Tag every post with that hashtag and you can easily access all your posts in one feed.
5. Get people to talk about YOU and discover User Generated Content (UGC) - With your personal hashtag showing up on your posts, your community will know to hashtag your brand when they are posting about you on social. You basically have your consumers talking about you for free! The posts will show up in your personal hashtag feed and you can use them to tell and solidify your brand story. Pretty cool!
So what are you waiting for? Start #hashtagging to get noticed, build your audience and capture UGC.