4 minute read
To Hastag or not to Hastag, by Eimer Duffy
Eimer Duffy is a Social Media Consultant and Trainer at FIT Social Media. Through bespoke solutions, Eimer helps Funeral Directors and Celebrants gain a better online presence, build communities and trust online with zero stress and hassle in a short space of time. She also co-hosts the only social media for business radio show in Ireland called “The Let’s Get Social Show” every Friday at 2pm on Dublin South FM and the show is on podcast too. Check out www.fitsocialmedia.ie to learn more.
To Hashtag or not to Hashtag that is the question…
Advertisement
Iwas asked the other week “What are hashtags?” “Can they help my Funeral business grow online?” These are great questions and I have added a few more that might help when it comes to using hashtags.
What are hashtags?
“A word or phrase preceded by a hash sign (#), used on social media websites and applications” is the definition on Google.
So what are they for?
They are topic or theme led eg: #Funerals #FuneralHome #FuneralDirectors, you add the hash sign to the front of a word or joined up phrase on a social media post. When you type a hashtag on a desktop computer or laptop then the wording goes blue and if you type it on a mobile then the wording goes embolded. The hashtag then becomes a clickable link (hyperlinked). So when you click that hashtag you will see all the posts that have used that particular hashtag. So in other words, any post that has added a particular hashtag to the caption will be found inside what I call a “hyperlinked bucket”.
Why use them?
Here are some benefits of using hashtags: • They increase your organic reach by being searchable as some people will come across your post who might not have found you any other way. • Another opportunity to attract new followers. • Use them as a monitoring and social listening tool to keep track of what people are commenting, posting and industry related news etc… • Helps you specify your niche and what you do. You can follow hashtags (eg: Instagram) and then see in your newsfeed what is showing up for that hashtag. • Type a hashtag you want to research (for your hashtag research) in the search bar of any of the social media channels and find top posts, recent posts, new content ideas, new accounts you want to follow and engage with as the business etc..
What ones?
Here are some for you to include: • Have a branded one (your business name) eg: #TheFuneralTimes and when someone clicks on it, everything you have posted is there and can increase more interest and engage more followers for you. • Industry related ones - here are some, for example: #FuneralDirector #FuneralDirectors #FuneralHome #FuneralMarketing #FuneralHomeMarketing #FuneralProfessional #FuneralProfessionals #FuneralService #FuneralServices #DeathCare #DeathCareIndustry • Your Geographical Location (Geotag) such as your town, county, country eg: #Blackrock #CountyDublin #Ireland as people do search using locations. • Trending days or trending hashtags; as long as they are relevant so you could look up a great website: www.daysoftheyear.com and it has some novel and interesting dates that you turn into a hashtag, or if you are on Twitter check out what’s trending. • Days of the week such as #TuesdayThoughts #SundayMorning can be part of your hashtag strategy, but they can only be used on the specific day.
How many hashtags?
My advice is don’t go mad and use too many hashtags as it can then look unnatural and spammy to your followers. Here’s a guide for each of the social media platforms, note that these are not set in stone and can change: • Facebook (5 max) • Facebook Stories (3 max) • Instagram (30 max) • Instagram Stories (3 max) • Twitter (2-3 max) • Linkedin (5-7 max) • TikTok (5-6 max)
How to find them?
Again using the social channels you are on for your research (they all have search bars) and see what is relevant and how popular (if too popular then you won’t get found, eg: anything posted with above a million posts will be difficult to rank for). Also, look at what your competitors are using. And you can try some tools such as
Where do you put them?
As a rule of thumb add the hashtags at the end of your post on most platforms So for example, on Facebook and LinkedIn create a new paragraph and add them under your caption. On Instagram add in 5 or 6 full stops one under each other (full stop, return, full stop, return, and so on…) under your caption. Twitter you have limited space so just add the 2 or 3 hashtags at the end of the caption of your tweet/post.
Can they help grow my business online?
Hashtags are a great opportunity for your content to get in front of people who may not know of you and for your account to get found. Increase your social media engagement, gain followers and this all leads to people getting to know, to like and to trust as they can engage with you online and build relationships with your funeral business.
