The Power of the Hashtag (P.S. It’s Amazing)

Most of you have probably heard of what a hashtag is. You know it’s this “#”. Also known as the “pound key”, this little symbol is one of the most powerful tools in the social media landscape. I still don’t see enough people utilizing it correctly.

Some of you might be thinking “I’ve never used it before, why should I start now?” Let me break it down for you:

The hashtag is most prominent on Twitter and Instagram. These 2 platforms have the most power for hashtags. Instagram very well may be the best place for the hashtag as of right now.

The hashtag lets you connect with people who are posting similar content as you are, or are interested in the content that you have to offer. The Super Bowl was this past Sunday (it was a sad day for me if you catch my drift). To no one’s surprise, it was the number one trend on Twitter. Imagine if you were a sporting goods store with the Super Bowl champion shirts in stock at the conclusion of the game. This would be a perfect time to create a quality post, something like “Not sure where to get your Super Bowl champion shirts? We’ve got you covered (literally) ;) #SuperBowl.” This post could work on both Twitter and Instagram. Except for Instagram you would have to include a picture (perhaps the Super Bowl Champion shirt?). With that one tweet or Instagram post, you have the potential to reach a massive audience all looking for a chance to get their hands on a Super Bowl champion shirt. Pretty neat huh?

Hashtags are an incredible way to connect with your audience. See what hashtags are trending on Twitter and/or Instagram. Then try to connect your brand to that hashtag. Relating to your audience is one of the best things that you can do as a business or brand.

I typed in #nikeairmax on Instagram. It compiled a list of 3,922,614 posts with that hashtag. If you’re a shoe store, wouldn’t this be a perfect opportunity to come in with a comment or a post with this hashtag?

By comment, I mean commenting on someone else’s post with that “nikeairmax” hashtag. Find someone out of the 3,922,614 people that are looking for Nike…