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SOCIAL SPOTLIGHT
HASHTAG IS NOT A DIRTY WORD By Sarah Garner
How do you stand out in a crowded marketplace let alone a crowded social platform? HASHTAGS are our most undervalued and underrated social criss-crossed (can I get a salt n’ pepper meme here?) tools to date. Check out my FIVE must-haves for hashtag success...
1. YOU HAVE 30 OF THE SUCKERS TO USE, YEP A WHOLE 30 OF THEM. Your team is just as strong as its weakest link - truth is if you have 29 kick-ass hashtags and 1 that is dragging in the mud, chances are your post is likely hidden in-amongst the algorithm-jargon and not on your client’s screens because that single hashtag is letting your team down.
2. SELECT HASHTAGS THAT ARE RELEVANT TO YOUR IDEAL CLIENT.
You need to choose hashtags that YOUR clientele are searching that are relevant to your industry (and no #netflixandchill isn’t one, TRUST ME!). A good clan of hashies (not the potato kind) get your posts in front of your audience and SEEN! HINT - Location! Location! Location! Use your location as the ultimate advantage to finding your ideal clients.
3. NOT TOO BIG, NOT TOO SMALL, JUST RIGHT. Using really broad hashtags (the ones with 1mil +) like #salonlife #blondesofinstagram have millions upon millions of photos tagged to them daily and not to mention you are a red hot target for spammy bot engagement too. On the other hand if you are using really narrow hashtags (these ones are less than 5k) that barely anyone uses, makes it very unlikely for anyone to find you (refer back to fact number 1).
4. SIGN-UP FOR A BUSINESS PROFILE SO YOU CAN SUSS OUT INSIGHTS.
Suss how many people have discovered your post via hashtags on your Insta business profile. If you haven’t signed up for a business profile, I strongly recommend you make the switch STAT! Check this info out by clicking ‘post insights’ and then the ‘discovery’ section.
5. CHANGE UP YOUR GAME PLAN, OFTEN.
Think about using different hashtag sets. It’s all cool to have a killer set of 30 hashtags, but if you have been posting these on every single post every day of your life since you decided that Facebook was no longer cool, it’s extremely likely your target audience isn’t having a bar of it (#sorrynotsorry). Change it up! Have a few sets of hashtags that are individually RELEVANT to each post. Sarah Garner is the Founder and Creative Director at Digital Bloom, an industry-specific branding and marketing boutique dedicated to making your hair, beauty or fashion brand turn heads for all the right reasons. Contact Sarah at hello@digitalbloom.com.au or on 0425 795 636. Beauty Biz Year 12 Issue 4
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