How to Use Hashtags on Social Media to Market Your Product

Do you remember when you used your first hashtag? For me, as a Gen Zer (or “Zoomer” as I much prefer it), hashtags were always part of my life on social media. In fact, I don’t remember a time where hashtags weren’t a thing. (Don’t lose all faith in me, though – I still know the term “pound sign”, despite probably being the last of the younger generation to know this.)

Anyway, if you aren’t on the hashtag train yet, you’re essentially missing out on free social media reach. So join me as I talk about why you need some hashtags in your life.

What is a hashtag?

Let’s start with some fun history. The hashtag was actually first used by Twitter user Chris Messina. Back in 2007, Chris offered the idea of using the pound sign as a way to group people/places/things together. Little did Chris know this simple tweet shook how we search phrases on social media forever. Now, Merriam-Webster defines hashtag as “a word or phrase preceded by the symbol # that classifies or categorizes the accompanying text (such as a tweet)”. Pretty cool how one tweet changed the entirety of the social media landscape, right?

While hashtags can be used on Facebook, I believe they are more useful for your Instagram (and even Twitter) strategies. Let’s talk about why.

Why should I use hashtags?

Well, first and foremost, hashtags are an easy way to show your post to more people. Jewelry industry people, ESPECIALLY bridal/engagement businesses: I’m talking to you. Brides look to social media for inspiration about their weddings, which include their dream ring. With the modern bride emerging, I’ve found that #alternativebride is an effective hashtag to add to modern bridal designs, rings set with salt and pepper diamonds, etc. And that’s just one example. Don’t you want your posts to reach more people?

Stuller’s hashtag performance, gathered by Later You can also use hashtags to conduct content research. For example, if you search “stackable rings” in the Instagram search, you can find top performing posts with that hashtag all in one place. This can inspire you to post things that are more similar to what you see under that tag, as those posts are likely performing very well.

Another good use of hashtags is for branding purposes. Urge your customers to use a branded hashtag for your business. For instance, Stuller’s branded hashtag is #HowIStuller, 302 Fine Jewelry’s hashtag is #302onYou, and ever&ever’s hashtag is #EverAndEverBride. Branded hashtags generate a buzz in your local community. Think about it: if one of your customers posts a BEAUTIFUL pair of earrings made by you and hashtags it, their friends may be more likely to see your other work from that hashtag, or even follow you!

Which hashtags should I use?

Typically, hashtags should be relevant to the content you’re posting. However, some hashtags are more popular than others. Instagram only allows up to 30 hashtags on one post, but I’m going to give you some resources that give you popular hashtags when your search one topic.

All-Hashtag

This site is extremely easy to use. All you have to do is enter a phrase (ex. “earrings”) and they give you 30 relevant, popular hashtags you can use on a photo of your earrings. Later

Later is a scheduling platform (that I recommend you all get on) that has free and cheap monthly subscriptions. With Later, you can use their “suggested hashtag” feature which acts pretty similarly to all-hashtag.com, except you can use this function WHILE scheduling your posts! Disclaimer: the hashtags are a bit different due to the differing algorithms both sites are using.

I cannot recommend Later enough, and their hashtag tool is just a bonus! And there you have it! Are you ready to start using hashtags? Let me know in the comments below.

Interested in more tips on how to shine on social media? Check out these posts that will help you on your journey to becoming a social media guru in no time.

2020 Social Media Strategy in Three Easy Steps

Utilize Scheduling to Amp Up Your Social Media Strategy

Things You Need to Know: Social Media Dictionary 3 Summer Social Media Suggestions to Improve Your Strategy

Hello sweet, sweet summertime.

Well, if by sweet you mean slooooow, then we’re on the same page. Summertime in the jewelry industry is infamous for its seasonal slowdown. So, if your spring cleaning didn’t happen because you were buried in Mother’s Day business— it’ll happen this summer. And what about the inventory that hasn’t had any attention in years? Time to melt them down! You know what else you are going to do this summer? You are going to spend some downtime stepping up your social game. And I’m going to tell you how!

Here are my summer social media suggestions to turn your downtime into social showtime.

1. Take Inventory on Your Audience

What’s the key to getting your audience to engage with your content on social media? Understanding who your audience is in the first place. Think about it. How can you create posts that your audience will like if you don’t even know who they are? That’s why the first, and most important, social task you should complete this summer is to conduct an audience inventory.

An audience inventory (see examples below) is simply a quick exercise to help you understand your audience relative to each platform. You will use the different insights available within your active social spaces to get the following information:

Total Follower Count Gender Breakdown Age Distribution Location Concentration Most Active Day/Time

Gather this information for each platform and use it to learn more about your audience. Having a clearer picture of who you’re talking to will help you create more engaging content! Facebook-Social-Audience-Infographic.jpeg Instagram-Social-Audience-Infographic.jpeg 2. Perform Hashtag Research

This summer social media suggestion is for all the Instagrammers! By now, I think we’re all pretty familiar with the concept of hashtags. We know how they work AND how important they are for discoverability and engagement. What you may not know, however, is which ones freaking work! Take some time this summer to do some hashtag research and make that 30-per-post hashtag limit count.

NOTE: If you were like, “Wait, girl, I know nothing about Instagram,” check out this Instagram For Beginners blog post.

How to Conduct Hashtag Research for Instagram

To conduct hashtag research, start by simply checking out how your current hashtags are contributing to your posts’ success. Do this by clicking View Insights when looking at a particular post. Next, look for the following two metrics: % of accounts reached that weren’t following you AND impressions from hashtags. Both of these are under the Discovery section of your account. This will help you understand how users discovered your Instagram post! If either of these numbers is higher than that of your other posts, this is an indicator that your hashtag game was on point for that post. Try using similar combinations in future posts and see if you achieve the same results!

If you want to take it a step further, there are tools like SmartHash that allow you to search for hashtags (ranked by highest performing), get new suggestions based on hashtags you already know are popular, and even split-test different sets of hashtags on your posts!

Check out the following video to learn more about hashtag research. 3. Build Your Community

Our first two summer social media suggestions were designed to help get more people to discover your accounts on social media. This next step is all about you discovering others on social media, which is just as important— especially on Instagram!

Engagement goes two ways, and the algorithms know that. In fact, many platforms prioritize showing your content to users who like and comment on your posts regularly AND those you proactively engage with. Spend some downtime this summer liking and commenting on your customers’ (and prospective target audience) posts from your business account. This will signal to the algorithm that two-way communication is happening. This will ultimately start showing your content to those users more often.

And there you have it! These are my summer social media suggestions. Follow this three-step guide to step up your social game this summer. I will openly admit that each of these recommendations requires a bit of your time. BUT, if you’re serious about improving your social strategy, doing the heavy lifting over the next few months is totally worth it. Get it out of the way to set yourself up for social success for the rest of the year!