If you regularly use Twitter, you'd see most tweets use a hashtag. It could be a key phrase or a word, which may appear random to you initially, but it isn't. The hashtag is at the heart of Twitter's unique social media ecosystem, a feature that revolutionized online conversations and conversions. Over the years, as the number of Twitter users rose, there was a monumental increase in the use of hashtags, too.
But are you unaware of the correct use of hashtags or their potential? Do you not know how to find what's trending? Are hashtags really beneficial?
Let's find out all these answers in this article and how to employ hashtags on Twitter correctly.
What is a Hashtag?
Introduced in 2007, the hashtag, denoted by the "#" symbol and followed by a word or phrase, is a powerful tool that categorizes content, making it easily discoverable and fostering community engagement.
For brands, understanding the intricacies of hashtag usage on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook is beneficial and essential for amplifying their digital presence and connecting with their audience. It helps to organize content, churn out your unique trends, and reach a wider audience using the appropriate and trending hashtags.
Benefits of Using Hashtags
Utilizing hashtags on Twitter is a strategy brands cannot overlook. These simple yet powerful tools offer a multitude of benefits, crucial for amplifying a brand's presence in the digital realm. Here are some of the benefits:
1. Increased Reach and Visibility
Hashtags serve as a gateway to a broader audience. When a brand includes a hashtag in a tweet, it is no longer confined to just its followers; it becomes accessible to anyone searching for that hashtag. This extended reach is invaluable for brand visibility, particularly for smaller or emerging businesses seeking to establish their digital footprint. Tweets with hashtags can see an average increase in engagement by up to 50% for brands, according to Twitter's internal data.
2. Audience Engagement
Hashtags invite interaction. They encourage users to engage in conversations, fostering a sense of community around shared interests or topics. For brands, this means an opportunity to interact with both current and potential customers directly, understand their preferences, and receive real-time engagement.
If you check the platform daily, you will find regular trending day-wise hashtags such as #MondayMotivation, #TuesdayThoughts, #WednesdayWisdom, etc.
3. Content Categorisation and Searchability
Hashtags effectively categorize content, making it easier for users to find information relevant to their interests. For businesses, using specific and targeted hashtags means their content is more likely to appear in the search results of potential customers looking for related topics.
4. Event and Campaign Promotion
Hashtags are integral in promoting events and campaigns. A unique and memorable hashtag can significantly boost the visibility of promotional activities, create buzz, and track user engagement and sentiment. This is particularly useful for measuring the impact of marketing campaigns and events.
5. Trend Participation and Relevance
Using trending hashtags allows brands to stay relevant and participate in everyday conversations. It demonstrates a brand's awareness of current affairs and provides an opportunity to showcase its personality and values in a public forum.
So, when used effectively, this strategic tool enhances a brand's influence and engagement on Twitter. By understanding and leveraging the power of hashtags, brands can tap into new audiences, foster community engagement, and stay ahead in the ever-evolving digital marketing landscape.
Best Practices for Choosing and Using Hashtags
While we understand the significance of hashtags, we must learn how to use them effectively and productively.
- Relevance and Context: Always select hashtags that align closely with your tweet's content. Misleading or irrelevant hashtags can frustrate users and damage your brand's reputation.
- Research and Trends: Keep abreast of trending and industry-specific hashtags. Nowadays, several social media management tools help you identify popular and emerging hashtags in your sector.
Highperformr is one such platform with incredible AI tools and an integrated feature of adding hashtags. For example, if you use the AI X (Twitter) bio generator, you can choose what type of hashtags you want to use, and it shares a couple of relevant tags for your profile. - Branding With Hashtags: Creating unique branded hashtags for marketing campaigns or events can cultivate a sense of community and enhance brand recall.
- Simplicity and Memorable: A suitable hashtag should be concise, easy to spell, and memorable. Complex or lengthy hashtags are less likely to be adopted by the Twitter community.
- Limit Hashtag Usage: While hashtags are crucial, overusing them can lead to declining engagement. Stick to one or two relevant hashtags per tweet to avoid overwhelming your audience.
Examples of Effective Hashtag Usage
Hashtags can create awareness, induce brand recall, and promote your services further. Here are a few examples of how popular organizations have used hashtags successfully and continue to do so.
The #IceBucketChallenge by the ALS Association is a prime example of a hashtag driving a global movement, leading to unprecedented engagement and charitable donations. The virality of the challenge resulted in an increase in annual funding for ALS research worldwide by 187%.
Hashtags like #GRAMMYs and #SuperBowl have become almost synonymous with these events, allowing brands to engage with a broader audience interested in these high-profile occasions.
Apple's use of #ShotOniPhone showcases user-generated content, effectively leveraging the hashtag to promote its product while engaging with its audience.
Tools for Hashtag Research and Tracking
Highperformr
You can rely on social media management software if you need help with social media management, creating posts, scheduling them, and later tracking their performance. An all-integrated service like Highperformr is beneficial with its array of AI tools.
You can craft Twitter bios, generate viral posts, and accentuate them with the right hashtags — all in a few clicks. When you give commands to these tools for the tone and keywords of your tweets, select the option of inserting hashtags. Then, all the relevant hashtags will be shown to you.
Twitter Analytics
Twitter Analytics offers an extensive range of metrics to help you better understand your account's performance and audience behavior. These provide insights into the performance of your hashtags, helping you comprehend engagement metrics and audience reach.
Hashtagify
Hashtagify is a comprehensive tool designed for hashtag research and tracking on Twitter. It's known for its user-friendly interface and the ability to provide in-depth insights into hashtag trends and popularity. It offers real-time tracking of trending hashtags, enabling users to stay updated with current topics.
It also helps identify influential Twitter users associated with specific hashtags, which is useful for marketing and outreach strategies. You can get insights into various popular hashtags, from their top languages to spelling variations.
TweetBinder
TweetBinder is a specialized tool for Twitter analytics, focusing on hashtag tracking and campaign analysis. It's favored for its detailed and customizable reports. You can create a hashtag for your campaigns and track its performance. Their tracking tools allow the creation of historical reports or live Twitter analytics.
It helps to create more socially engaged events that can result in more conversations around your brand. It is ideal for analyzing the effectiveness of Twitter campaigns, offering insights into audience behavior and engagement patterns.
Brand24
Brand24 is a more holistic social media monitoring tool, extending beyond Twitter to cover various platforms. It's known for its real-time monitoring and alert system. It can track hashtags across multiple social media platforms, including Twitter. You can get insights into how often a hashtag is mentioned and the sentiment behind these mentions. There is an option to receive alerts for specified keywords or hashtags, making it easier to respond quickly to trends or crises.
Conclusion
Hashtags are more than just a trend; they are a fundamental aspect of Twitter's language and a critical tool for digital marketing. They offer a unique opportunity for brands to increase their visibility, engage in real-time conversations, and build a community around their messaging.
By leveraging hashtags thoughtfully and strategically, brands can significantly amplify their impact on Twitter, connecting with their prospective audience on a much larger scale.
