Are you looking to take your marketing efforts to the next level?
Hashtag marketing is an effective way to increase engagement, reach your target audience, and boost brand awareness.
In this article, we will cover everything you need to know about this type of marketing: what it is, how it works, its types, pros and cons, how to get it right, and some examples.
Before wrapping up, we will put things into perspective by using the example of Facebook.
If you are wondering how you can use Facebook hashtags and get the best out of hashtag marketing as well, keep reading this article!
Read more: 4 Facebook Trends All Online Entrepreneurs Should Know
What Is Hashtag Marketing?
Hashtag marketing is a form of social media marketing that involves using hashtags to promote a brand, product, or service on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and others.
Marketing professionals hope to boost brand recognition and reach a wider audience by incorporating key hashtags in posts.
Did you know that 35% of TikTokers participate in hashtag challenges?
It has three main objectives:
- Interacting With Consumers
- Raising Brand Awareness
- Promoting User-Generated
If you market your product while keeping these three goals in mind, your marketing strategy will give you the results you want.
Types Of Hashtags
Here are some types of hashtags and some very basic examples of social media hashtags for business to use for marketing purposes:
1. Industry-Specific Hashtags:
These are hashtags that are related to a particular industry or niche. For example, #travel, #fitness, #fashion, etc.
2. Brand-Specific Hashtags:
These are hashtags that are related to a specific brand. These hashtags are used to promote and categorize content related to that brand. For example, #Nike, #Starbucks, #McDonalds, etc.
3. Campaign-Specific Hashtags:
Campaign-specific hashtags are hashtags that are created specifically for a marketing campaign. These hashtags are used to promote and track the success of a specific campaign. For example, #ShareACoke.
4. Event-Specific Hashtags:
Hashtags that are related to a specific event are called event-specific hashtags. For example, #SuperBowl, #WorldCup, #Oscars, etc.
5. Location-Based Hashtags:
Hashtags that are linked to a particular location and used to categorize and discover content related to that location. For example, #NYC, #LA, #London, etc.
6. Product-Specific Hashtags:
These hashtags help customers discover information about a particular product and connect with others who have an interest in the product. For example, #iPhone, #MacBook, etc.
7. Promotional Hashtags:
Hashtags created specifically for a promotional event or offer to increase awareness and engagement for the promotion. For example, #Sale, #Discount, #LimitedTimeOffer, etc.
8. User-Generated Hashtags:
These hashtags are created after a business/individual encouraged their followers to create and use hashtags related to their brand, such as #FanOf[BrandName].
By using a combination of these types of hashtags in your social media posts, you can increase the reach and engagement of your content, and ultimately drive more traffic to your business.
Fun fact: #COVID19 is the most widely used hashtag on Twitter.
Read more: The Market Research Process: A Step-By-Step Guide
Pros And Cons
Marketing using hashtags is a powerful strategy for brands looking to reach a larger audience, engage with customers, and increase brand awareness on social media.
By examining the pros and cons, we can gain a better understanding of the subject and make informed decisions while making marketing strategies.
Let’s take a look at the pros and cons now.
Pros:
1. Increased Reach:
Hashtags can help expand the reach of a post and make it more discoverable to a bigger audience.
2. Improved Engagement:
Hashtags can encourage more user interaction and engagement, such as likes, comments, and shares.
On Instagram, one hashtag can increase interaction by 29%.
3. Better Brand Awareness:
Hashtags can help increase brand awareness and make it easier for people to find and learn about a brand.
4. User-Generated Content:
Hashtags can encourage customers to create and share their content related to a brand, providing additional exposure and social proof.
5. Targeted Advertising:
Hashtags can be used in advertising to target specific audience segments and reach people who are interested in a particular topic or trend.
6. Analytics:
Hashtags can provide valuable data and insights on audience behavior, engagement, and reach, allowing marketers to make informed decisions about their social media strategy.
Cons:
1. Competition:
There may be a large amount of competition for popular hashtags, making it harder for a brand's post to be seen.
2. Relevance:
Choosing irrelevant hashtags can decrease the effectiveness of this specific type of marketing and damage a brand's reputation.
3. Spam:
Overuse of hashtags, or using them inappropriately, can be seen as spammy and decrease engagement.
4. Lack of Control:
Brands have limited control over how their hashtags are used and the content associated with them.
5. Timing:
Timing is important, if a brand is not using hashtags at the right time, they may miss out on potential engagement and reach.
Read more: 9 Social Media Marketing Tactics To Boost Your Online Presence
5 Popular Hashtag Marketing Examples
Read on to find out how some of the biggest brands manage to leverage the power of hashtags in their marketing strategy and how you can do it too!
Here are a few hashtag marketing examples in action:
1. Nike #JustDoIt:
Nike has used the hashtag #JustDoIt to promote their brand and products, encouraging customers to share their own experiences and content related to the brand.
2. Coca-Cola #ShareACoke:
Coca-Cola used the hashtag #ShareACoke to encourage customers to share photos of themselves enjoying a drink and spread the brand message.
3. Starbucks #RedCupContest:
Starbucks used the hashtag #RedCupContest to promote their annual holiday cup release and encourage customers to share photos of themselves with their cups for a chance to win prizes.
4. McDonald's #McDStories:
McDonald's used the hashtag #McDStories to encourage customers to share their personal experiences and memories associated with the brand.
5. H&M #HMxME:
H&M used the hashtag #HMxME to encourage customers to share photos of themselves wearing H&M clothing and participate in brand-led fashion challenges.
These are just a few examples of how brands have used social media hashtags for business to get to the next level of marketing.
How Does Hashtag Engagement Work?
This type of marketing works by incorporating relevant hashtags into a brand's social media posts.
A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by the "#" symbol that is used to categorize and organize content on social media platforms.
When a user clicks on a hashtag, they are taken to a feed of all the other posts that contain the same hashtag.
Here's how this type of marketing works:
- The first step is to research and identify relevant hashtags that are being used by the target audience.
- The next step is to create a branded hashtag, which is a unique hashtag that represents a brand or campaign.
- Incorporate relevant hashtags into social media posts, along with the brand's own branded hashtag.
- Engage with users who are using the hashtags by responding to comments, liking and sharing posts, and reposting content created by users.
- Finally, track and analyze the performance of the hashtags, such as reach, engagement, and conversions, to make informed decisions about future campaigns and strategies.
Read more: The Top Social Media Platforms In Pakistan For Product Promotion In 2023
How To Get Hashtag Marketing Right?
You might think that we have covered all the tips in the above section but the two tips below are the ones that can impact how well your marketing strategy performs.
Here are two important tips to help you get this type of marketing right:
- Use a combination of popular hashtags, less popular niche hashtags, and your own branded hashtags.
- Avoid overloading your posts with too many hashtags as this can be distracting and reduce engagement.
According to the Social Baker study, utilizing 10 or more hashtags can actually lower engagement by 68.2%.
By following all of these tips, you will be able to fulfill your goals of efficiently raising brand awareness, reaching a wider audience, and encouraging user participation on social media platforms.
Putting Things In Perspective: Facebook Hashtag Marketing
We’ll use the example of reselling on Markaz to make things a little easier to understand as it is linked to Facebook in several ways to help the social commerce brand reach a wider audience and promote its products or services.
A Little About Markaz
Markaz is a social commerce platform that provides a zero-investment business opportunity to everyone who is looking to make money as a reseller.
Whether as a full-time or a part-time opportunity, Markaz has allowed many individuals to earn money irrespective of their backgrounds.
They can simply use Facebook as a platform to connect with customers and showcase their offerings, as well as sell products directly through the social media site using its built-in shopping feature.
Additionally, the platform covers almost all of the country, providing resellers with a wide market to reach and high-quality products from supplies all over the country.
Another advantage of using Markaz is that it handles all aspects of the sales process, from drop shipping to delivery.
This means that resellers don't have to worry about sourcing products or dealing with customer service issues. The platform also provides training and support to help resellers succeed.
How To Incorporate This Type Of Marketing For Reselling
Here are some steps on how you can incorporate this form of marketing on Facebook while reselling for Markaz:
Step #1:
Start by researching relevant Facebook hashtags related to the products you are reselling. Look for hashtags that are being used by other businesses and individuals in your niche and use them in your posts.
Step #2:
Consider creating unique hashtags for your business to differentiate yourself from competitors. For example, you can create a hashtag such as #ShopWithUs for all your posts related to reselling products.
Step #3:
Keep an eye on trending hashtags related to your niche and use them in your posts to reach a wider audience.
Step #4:
Find pages on Facebook that are similar to your business and engage with them by using their hashtags in your posts. This will help increase your visibility to their followers.
Step #5:
Offer incentives for your followers to use your unique hashtags when sharing your products on their pages. This can help increase your reach and bring new customers to your page.
Step #6:
Regularly analyze the performance of your hashtags to see which ones are driving the most engagement and reach. Use this information to make informed decisions about which hashtags to use in future posts.
Conclusion
Marketing using hashtags is a powerful tool for building brand awareness and reaching your target audience.
To get the most out of this particular kind of marketing, it's important to understand how it works, choose the right hashtags, and implement them consistently in your social media strategy.
By effectively using hashtags, businesses can increase their visibility on social media, drive traffic to their content, and ultimately boost their brand awareness and sales.
With a thoughtful strategy in place, this special type of marketing can help you reach new heights of success!
If you don’t have a business then you might want to consider reaching these heights with Markaz by becoming a reseller.
FAQs
Do hashtags attract followers?
It's more important to be seen by the appropriate individuals than it is to be seen by a large number of people. This is how hashtags increase engagement and attract more followers.
Why are hashtags effective?
By using hashtags in your posts, you can join a discussion already taking place on that social networking site. In addition, it makes your posts prominent in that conversation, which is crucial. Greater interaction may result from this, increasing your brand's social media activity.
Do hashtags increase sales?
The proper hashtag selection will enhance brand awareness and revenue for your business. You want to build a brand image, lure them with prizes and special seasonal deals, and captivate them with engaging new hashtags.
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