Hashtag Hacks to Get More Engagement
Have you been posting 30 or more hashtags on every platform and not seeing an increase in engagement? It’s because every platform is different and uses hashtags a little differently, and there are several ways to “decode” hashtags to make them start working for you!
There IS an Ideal Number of Hashtags
Each social media platform has a sweet spot for the ideal number of hashtags you should be posting. Let’s break them down below:
Instagram Hashtags
30. Yes, all 30. Most marketers will tell you more than 10. Use 20-30 to get the most engagement. We aren’t talking about reach here, we are talking about engagement per 1,000 followers.
What this means is the more hashtags you use, the more likely your current audience will see and engage with your content in their feed.
Facebook Hashtags
1-2. How, right? Instagram is so different than Facebook in regards to functionality. You only need 2 REALLY relevant hashtags for your content to get interactions. Facebook uses the hashtags as conversation tags, for people to search things that are trending “in real time”. Don’t hashtag aimlessly on Facebook.
Example: I would use the hashtag “#savingmoneywithboostedposts” to bring attention to a conversation about boosted posts on Facebook.
Twitter Hashtags
1-2 hashtags is best practice for Twitter, per Twitter. Hashtags on Twitter are used to index topics, and it allows people to easily see trending hashtags on Twitter.
You can simply click on hashtags on Twitter and find other relevant posts related to that hashtag.
LinkedIn Hashtags
LinkedIn is one of my favorite, under-utilized platforms for content. Such a small percentage of users are posting content on LinkedIn.
They suggest you use 3 hashtags in your LinkedIn posts. This is enough for people to see topics based on their interests.
Always place your hashtags at the end of your content on LinkedIn. When deciding what hashtags to use, work backwards. Ask yourself how to get your audience to follow your hashtags, then curate content for that hashtag based on what you think would interest your audience.
Relevant Hashtags Matter
Do keyword research and find hashtags for your account, your business, your target audience, your region, and your mood. Niche/Targeted hashtags are perfect for growing your follower count. Your posts will become more searchable and more RELEVANT.
EXAMPLES OF RELEVANT HASHTAGS
Let’s take the social media marketing industry:
- Target customer hashtags: #smallbusiness, #entrepreneur, #womenhelpingwomen, #entrepreneurship, #buildingasmallbusiness
- Industry hashtags: #marketing101, #smallbusinessmarketing, #hashtagideas, #marketingtipsforyou, #websitedesigners, #makingbusinessbetter
- Business Hashtags: #wecanhelp, #reachouttoday, #letsmakeawebsite, #addiggraphmarketingcompany
- Regional Hashtags: #marketinghoustontexas, #texassmallbusiness, #shoplocal, #texasgrowncompany, #collegestationbusiness
- Mood Hashtags: #MarketingMood, #GreatIdeaMood, #ItsAMood, #MoodMonday, #NewCustomerMonday, #TechTuesday, #MakingMarketingGreatAgain
Use a combination of popular and niche hashtags with lower counts to make sure you are getting the best attention for your content!
Add Hashtags to Your Stories, Too!
A great hashtag hack, and almost always forgotten one, is to add hashtags to your stories. This may land you a spot on the “explore” page of Instagram where people aimlessly look for new content to follow!
You can add hashtags to your story by using the hashtag sticker on Instagram or by typing them in with the text tool. Either way works!
Follow Your Favorites
You can follow hashtags and accounts on Instagram.
First, as a business, you can encourage your customers to follow your business-generated hashtags to see more of your content.
Second, you can use this tool for market research on your competitors.
Following hashtags starts bringing accounts that you may not be following into your feed.
It is not used commonly for business purposes, but is a great way to expand your knowledge and follower count!