Social media marketing is an ever-changing landscape, and it is difficult to always be on point with the latest updates and trends. It is vital to keep on track as your social media pages attract customers and promote your online profile.
One of the least understood tools for Instagram marketing and LinkedIn lead generation is the effective use of hashtags. Read on to find out more about the effective use of this social media marketing tool.
How Many Hashtags Should You Use?
In Instagram marketing, you can use up to 30 hashtags. Any included after that will not feature in any searches. Yes, you can, but you should have a baseline of at least 15–20 hashtags.
What Sort Of Hashtags Should You Use?
Randomly throwing out 30 hashtags is not the way to go. Instead, you should structure your selection of hashtags according to this basic minimum guideline:
- Include 3 — 5 popular hashtags (popular means those with 300 000 to 1 million posts). Exclude any hashtags over the 1 million mark, as these can open you up to unsolicited messages from spambots.
- Add 3 — 5 well-used hashtags (in the range of 80 000 to 300 000 posts)
- Now come up with 3–5 hashtags specific to your offering and are directly related to your product or service, bearing in mind what your customer will be searching for.
- Lastly, include up to 2 hashtags of your branding.
If you are thinking of using a specific hashtag, you can check its popularity ranking by typing it into the search bar. Then click on the # symbol in the tabs at the top to get an overview of the number of times it has been used.
How To Choose Appropriate Hashtags
Frequently companies choose the wrong or overused hashtags for their posts that are not going to get hits. You need to expand your thinking out of the box for lateral connections to your type of business. Think of situations that users would find themselves in that would lead them to need your kind of product or service.
Hashtags on Instagram can be included in the caption or comments ? either will work. Hashtags are often included in the comments to prevent the post from having the appearance of being spam.
Cross-posting to Facebook will result in the same hashtags used on these posts, making your post more searchable. For direct posts on Facebook, you can apply the same formula of hashtags as outlined above.
Personally branded hashtags and niche hashtags followed by your ideal audience are two of the best hashtags to use on LinkedIn, preferably at the bottom of your posts (not in the comments). In addition to your company page, you can add up to 5 hashtags on your personal profile using creator mode.
One or two Twitter hashtags are enough and should be easy to remember and easy to spell (not all in CAPS) for optimum effect. Try sticking to one topic per tweet. The best hashtags will elicit a response, so not necessarily your brand hashtag.
Through Instagram marketing and LinkedIn lead generation, you can successfully drive customers to your website. This is the ultimate goal as your website is one of your most significant business assets. Social media marketing allows you to connect with your customers, generate awareness and increase sales.
If you are searching for a social media marketing agency, contact Concept Designs & Marketing today. We create highly functional and visually appealing social media pages for top class Instagram marketing and LinkedIn lead generation.
