Getting Started with Branded Hashtags
Hashtags are everywhere, from social media posts to display advertisements. We even see hashtags outside of the digital world, like on billboards and plastered on the side of public transport. But have you ever thought of creating your own branded hashtag?
Instead of using generic hashtags, it could be beneficial for you to create and promote your own branded hashtag to feature on your social media posts and marketing campaigns. The digital world is so crowded that perhaps creating your own branded hashtag could help you break through the noise and separate your company from your competitors.
To learn more about the hashtag marketing, visit our previous blog post – How to Use Hashtag Marketing.
The Benefits of Creating a Branded Hashtag
- – To increase traffic, clicks and engagement on social media
- – To increase brand awareness and customer conversations
- – To be prominent on social media
- – To increase your mentions and make your brand more discoverable
- – To keep up with the latest marketing trends
- – To promote brand advocate endorsements
But figuring out how to create a clever hashtag that’s snappy and branded can be a challenge. To help you brainstorm ideas, think about …
How to Create a Branded Hashtag
- 1. Build upon ideas in the early stages of brain storming
- 2. Remember why you’re creating your hashtag
- 3. Bear in mind your target audience
- 4. Keep it short, don’t over complicate it (think #ShareaCoke and #VictoriaLIVE
Once you’ve got a solid list of contenders, ensure the hashtag is one that you can own. Do some research on social media and check no one else is using your potential hashtags to avoid any clashes. Remember, your hashtag needs to be relevant to your brand and you need to be able to track and monitor its success to see if it’s working for you.
If there’s a couple on-off posts that have previously used one of your potential hashtags, then that’s nothing to worry about. But you’ll have to go back to the drawing board if your branded hashtag has already been associated with a previous campaign.
When To Use Your Branded Hashtag
People use their own hashtag for varying reasons, some popular uses include:
- – Promotions
- – CTAs, call-to-action
- – Targeting an audience
- – New launches
- – Events
- – Competitions
- – Career or business opportunities
- – Cross-platform discussions
- – To encourage consumer interaction