Making sense of #hashtags
I know you’ve seen Instagram posts with a million hashtags at the bottom. What? Why? How does that even help? It seems most people love or hate these little guys #. Some go a little hashtag crazy and some of us don’t use them at all. So what is a hashtag, how does it help and should you be using them? What hashtags are most popular? Which should hashtags should I use for my Mary Kay business?
If you don’t know already, all a hashtag is is word or group of words proceeded by a hashtag (we used to call them pound signs and they look like this #.) They are used online, particularly social media to categorize or group posts together. Be sure you’re not using any spaces. In that case only the first word would attach to the hashtag. So you’d say #sundaymask not #sunday mask.
Hashtags put posts together and can be a great resource for reaching the audience you desire. So, let’s use the #sundaymask example. You use your timewise repair mask and snap a shot for Instagram. Below the image, you comment something about taking the day off (or whatever) and you use the hashtag mentioned. Now, anyone who clicks on that particular hashtag will have the opportunity to view your image. The more popular it becomes the higher up on the list it will be. (Posts become popular when they have a high number of likes…or hearts.) This is helpful if you have your URL in your profile. So, let’s say that you mentioned that you were using a Mary Kay mask, a random Instagram user can find your profile and click your URL to your marykay.com page. Ideally, she’ll order the mask from you. In order for your hashtag to help, you’ll have to have your Instagram account set as public. Then, anyone looking at that hashtag can like your photo and view your profile. If you are worried about privacy, you can have a separate account just for your business. Which, Instagram actually suggests. There is a business profile available and you can even track your success of using hashtags. I found this blog post very helpful in learning more about hashtags and how to set up a business account.
So, what are the most popular hashtags to use for your Mary Kay business?
The top five for Mary Kay are
#marykay
#mymklife
#skincare
#makeup
#beauty
The top five most popular beauty related hashtags (not related to another beauty company) are
#beauty
#instabeauty
#makeup
#model
#cute
one more just because I like it…
#wakeupandmakeup
As you can see, some of them are the same. So, you’ll see non-Mary Kay posts in the broader categories. But those are a great place to start. Keep in mind, the idea here isn’t about originality. So, if you coin your own hashtag, that’s nice, but it may never be noticed. For example, #mkconsultantcarrie may never catch on.
Also, as an independent beauty consultant with Mary Kay, it’s important that you know the legal guidelines to follow. Don’t let this make you shy away from using social media for your business. A few short minutes in the marykayintouch.com website will help you understand what is and isn’t acceptable. Log in to intouch as you normally would, click “resources” and then “digital zone.” Check out the information there so that you know what you can legally do.
Some quick hashtag etiquette: Use no more than three per post. Place hashtags after actual comments.
Hopefully, you feel encouraged to engage more people on social media. It can be a great tool for growing your small business! You’ll be #winning
Originally published at https://blog.pinkoffice.com on October 3, 2018.
