The importance of hashtags in your social media

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In this episode of Social Media for Small Business, Phoebe Vertigan shares her insightful thoughts about the effective use of hashtags in an information-saturated online world. For Phoebe, who is the campaign manager for Thirst Creative — a marketing and design agency based in Melbourne, hashtags are a key way to create a unique marketing campaign for your business and brand.

For those who are still learning about their use, hashtags are ultimately categorical filters for your social media posts. In using them, these filters will be able to connect you to people and communities who are in the same industry or niche as your business. For example, if you are attending an event for small businesses, using the hashtag #smallbusiness on social media channels will immediately connect you to conversations around the world pertaining to small businesses.

A key point about hashtags, as Phoebe explains, is that they can outline perspectives that you or your business wants to be known for. Her advice is to think about your brand, your business name and your motto. Then, look up suggested hashtags across social media platforms. One thing to look out for (and subsequently avoid) is to use hashtags that are associated to different companies or businesses with different values. It is useful to note that the essence of an effective hashtag is its uniqueness.

Following this however, Phoebe also emphasises the importance of using hashtags that convey clear and intentional messages to audiences. What businesses often forget, in using [too] unique hashtags to stand out creatively, is to do so in line with the purpose of their business campaigns. A common mistake is the use of hashtags that are too vague and eventually dilute the core message of campaigns.

Overall, Phoebe believes that “the most important reason why you should be using hashtags is that it allows you to connect with the community.” She goes on to say, “particularly with our businesses, we want our businesses to reach the people who are interested in what we do and potentially even engage with new clients or customers.”

Listen to this Social Media for Small Business podcast interview with Phoebe Vertigan to learn about:

  • Why you should use hashtags
  • How to use the right hashtags for your business
  • Using hashtags to connect to a broader community
  • Whether you should use the same hashtag across all social media platforms
  • Mistakes people make in using hashtags
  • How to find a balance between content and hashtags
  • The art of creating content for greater reach

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This post was co-authored by Natalie Ong. Natalie completed a journalism internship at the Australian Businesswomen’s Network. She studies a Media degree at the University of New South Wales.

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About the Guests

Phoebe Vertigan is the Marketing Campaign Manager for Thirst Creative, a marketing and design agency based in Melbourne. For her, hashtags are a key way to create a unique marketing campaign for your business and brand. She started her career as an Intellectual Property lawyer, before taking up blogging as a way to explore...