Writing posts on social media can be draining and sometimes they will even go unnoticed. Coming up with something that is successful on social media every single day, while running your business isn't the easiest of tasks. Luckily there are hashtags to help you out! A hashtag is simply a means to organize and advertise a thought, topic or idea. The more appealing the topic, the more likely the hashtag will be shared. With a little insight on how hashtags work you can play around with multiple ideas to see what helps you gain interest and generate interest on your page. Using hashtags in a post is one sure way to help you expose your business to new audiences across all platforms. However, many people don't know what a hashtag is, how to use them, or rules to hashtagging successfully. So we are writing you this blog to make sure you are informed!
What is a hashtag?
Hashtags were created to organize a certain topic on social media. If a reader would like to see more on #MarketingMondays all they have to do is type that into the search of the social platform they are on to see what other results come up.
How to use a hashtag:
There is no right or wrong way on how to #hashtag. What you would normally do is write out what post you would like to use (the shorter, the better), and then either hashtag important parts on the post or add three to four hashtags at the end that highlight what the post is about. It doesn't always have to be about business, it could be something as general as #MotivationMonday or as specific as #BloominMonday
- Informative hashtags do better than hashtags that are too broad. Make sure they give insight on the topic and don't leave people questioning what the hashtag means.
- Always make sure you proofread your hashtags! Since it needs to be one word there leaves a lot of room for spelling errors or epic misreading. Prime example was the release of the Susan Boyle album using #susanalbumparty.
- Incorporate hashtags into your marketing plan. Place it on your marketing material, website and wherever else business associated information can be.
- Fun one-time trending tags like #WaitressProblems, #RestaurantLife and #ChefProblems can provide an opportunity for your marketing message to gain traction on the web and a laugh. In the same boat; contributing messages of support to trending disaster-related hashtags can help followers see your business in a new light.
- Live tweeting during a major event will let your followers know what they are missing out on! Having a Happy Hour? Ask your customers to tweet while they are there using a specific hashtag to raise relevance within the social community.
- Nobody likes to spell check... especially a long word. K.I.S.S.; Keep it simple sweetheart!
- Limit the number of hashtags you use and work them into the sentence to help with limited character use!
Good Example: #mobilegeddon are you ready for it? #market your #business right with #Ordereze. Read more on our blog http://bit.ly/1O8RhqQ
Bad Example: Mobilegeddon are you ready for it? Market your business right with Ordereze. Read more on our blog http://bit.ly/1O8RhqQ #Ordereze #Mobilegeddon #Marketing - Remember why hashtags exist. It’s very easy to let the logistics of hashtag marketing strategy become a distraction. Hashtags exist as a means of allowing otherwise unconnected comments to share a common element, allowing people who don’t know each other to talk about the same thing together. The hashtag itself isn’t the message, it’s a tool that allows other people to share the message. If you are attempting to co-opt the trend without contributing to the conversation, people will notice.
- No one owns a hashtag!
- Avoid banned hashtags. Although Twitter hasn't started to ban hastags yet there are lists out there for Instagram and other platforms that are big no-no's.
Monday Hashtags
#MondayFunday – Show your employees enjoying their day at work!Tuesday Hashtags
#MotivationMonday – Start off the week on a high note and motivate people.
#ManCrushMonday or #MCM – Have a man in your life that you think is awesome? Celebrity or not, give him a shout out.
#MusicMonday – You don't have to be in the music industry to appreciate the art! Have a new song you love, or an oldie you will never stop listening to? Share it, because people love to feel like they know you!
#MeltdownMonday - Have a rough start to the week? Post about it to find the humor in madness.
#MondayMadness- Post about fun events you might be having or even specials that are only served on Mondays.
#BackToWork - Invite your customers in for a back to work special or as a reminder that you are there to help fuel their bellies to get the job done.
#MustHaveMondays - Have a special that will help people get over their first day of the week? Share it!
#MargaritaMonday - Because it's 5 o'clock somewhere.
#TransformationTuesday – Have a great before and after of the building, waitstaff, food, or even customers who have been coming there a long time? Share it!Wednesday Hashtags
#TipTuesday – It's always great for any business owner to share tips on how they have become successful.
#TravelTuesday – Have somewhere you would like to visit? Ask your customers to post pictures of where they would rather be and tag you in it.
#TastyTuesday - What you’re eating! New dishes, specials, or good looking food.
#TakeMeBackTuesday - A throwback or an older post
#TryItTuesday - Have a new dish? Entice customers to come in and try it.
#TopPickTuesday - Have a top pick entree people love? Make it a special for the night.
#TequilaTuesday - More fun than margarita Monday!
#TerrificTuesday - A happy second day to the week.
#WayBackWednesday or #WBW – Just like Transformation Tuesday! Have a great before and after of the building, waitstaff, food, or even customers who have been coming there a long time? Share it!Thursday Hashtags
#WisdomWednesday or #WeekdayWarrior - Middle of the week motivation.
#WellnessWednesday – Have a healthy dish that you would like to sell more of? Entice the fitness crowd to come in for the #FitDishOfTheDay!
#WomanCrushWednesday or #WCM – The counterpart for Man Crush Monday, show those beautiful ladies you’re in love with them!
#HumpDay - Over the 'hump' or middle of the week!
#WackyWednesday - Take pictures of your customers or wait staff doing crazy and funny things. People love to see you have a sense of humor.
#WhyNotWednesdays - Invite people to come in for a drink or two... Why not? It's Wednesday!
#WednesdayFriendsDay - Take pictures of group at your establishment and post them to share how much of a good time your establishment is.
#ThrowBackThursday or #TBT – More popular than #WayBackWednesday or #TransformationTuesday! So if you didn't get a chance to post something, today is the day!Friday Hashtags
#ThirstyThursday - This helps promote restaurants and bars that serve alcohol. Let your customers know where and why they should come visit.
#ThoughtfulThursdays - Again, another chance to give people inspiration during the week!
#ThursdayHersday - Invite all the ladies down to have a drink because Thursdays are Hersdays!
#ThursdayTreat - Great chance to promote a new dessert or drink!
#FridayFunday – Similar to Monday Funday, show pics of your staff having fun, or it can be more open to sharing anything fun.Saturday Hashtags
#FollowFriday – Use it to tag and highlight other people or brands worth following, it’s great for making connections.
#FlashBackFriday or #FBF – Similar to Throwback Thursday but not as popular, it follows the same theme of sharing old pics.
#FriendNightFriday/#FriendFriday - Ask people to share that they are out at your establishment for a night out with friends.
#SocialSaturday – This is probably the most open hashtag of them all, use it to share anything that’s fun and amusing.
#SaturdaySwag – Perfect for promoting your brand! Have customers take selfies of them enjoying food at your establishment.
#SaturdayNightFever - Have people know where the fun is on Saturday nights to help liven up the crowd.
#Caturday- People post pictures of cats on Saturdays (this is actually a thing…)
#SelfieSaturday - Take a selfie of yourself or your waitstaff to post and ask people to come visit you!#SlamminSaturday - Perfect day to post pics of how busy you guys are and to invite others to join in the fun!
Sunday Hashtags
#SelfieSunday – Same as #SelfieSaturday! Take a selfie of yourself or your waitstaff to post and ask people to come visit you!
#SundayFunday - Tell the crowd where to enjoy their day off!
