Hashtags have been around for centuries on various forms of social media. It was actually Chris Messina who had the idea. A proposal for organising social media posts by topic or theme based on a set of keywords. He couldn’t have known then that this would become such a successful advertising strategy.
Hashtag campaigns on social media platforms are exactly what we’ll be discussing here.
We’ll define a hashtag campaign, highlight its advantages, and share some lessons learned from actual campaigns.
What are we waiting for?
How do Hashtag Campaigns Work on Social Media?
A hashtag campaign is exactly what it sounds like: a campaign that is promoted with hashtags in order to increase exposure and participation. Promote your brand, products, launches, events, and more with the help of hashtags, which help you reach the right audience.
Hashtag usage in social media campaigns is highly influential. Including every relevant hashtag won’t automatically increase your sales. That’s right; it’ll extend your sphere of influence. However, it’s not worth the time and energy to reach out to people who have no interest in what you have to offer.
The Value of Using Hashtags in Social Media Campaigns
The first benefit is increased exposure for the brand.
Using hashtags, you can get your message seen by more people than you normally would. You can reach people who have never seen your brand before, which is great for spreading the word about your company.
Including your brand name in a hashtag is a great way to increase exposure to your business.
Advertise your upcoming products, shows, or other events
Using hashtag campaigns, you can spread the word about your upcoming releases, shows, or other events.
During filming, many movies launch their initial #hashtag campaigns. This allows moviegoers to follow the hashtags for the film and receive timely updates about it.
A hashtag should also be made for any new product or event that is being introduced. All the information your audience needs can be found by searching the hashtag.
Once the event has taken place, they will use that hashtag to share content on their social media profile, expanding your reach.
Make social media campaigns more interactive
A successful hashtag campaign will increase interaction like nothing else. Customers, followers, or whoever is interested in your campaign will want to participate by using the hashtag.
Use hashtags to promote your business and get your name out there. Your chosen hashtag should be simple and straightforward to both remember and type.
Locate content created by the audience
Using a branded hashtag, you can encourage your audience to create and share content associated with your business.
They may have their own reasons for doing it, but you still might wonder. They’d do it because it’s popular among social media users to be featured on a company’s profile.
In this case, everyone benefits. Your customers appreciate you highlighting them on your page. More so than with professionally shot images, leads are more likely to convert when you post user-generated content.
What You Can Take Away from These 7 Successful Hashtag Campaigns
A lot of work and study goes into making a successful hashtag campaign. Let’s take a moment to be inspired by some popular hashtag campaigns before diving into the analysis.
Coca-#ShareACoke Cola’s campaign
Coke’s #ShareACoke campaign is the gold standard for hashtag marketing campaigns and will forever be discussed. One of the most ingenious hashtag campaigns ever.
Coke bottles were adorned with stickers bearing real names and job titles, which increased sales and brought in a flood of user-generated content for the campaign’s creators.
ALS Association located with IceBucketChallenge
The ALS Association benefited in two ways from the #IceBucketChallenge campaign: awareness of ALS was increased, and $115 million was donated. The campaign’s underlying cause was a major impetus.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a degenerative neuromuscular disease, and the ALS Association is a nonprofit dedicated to raising public understanding of the disease and funding research into a cure. While they didn’t create the #hashtag trend, they certainly benefited from it. And by “enough attention,” we mean the attention of prominent figures like George W. Bush and Bill Gates, among many others.
Display Us by Dove
Hashtag campaigns on social media are great because they allow you to connect with your target audience. It aids in communicating values and beliefs. And if your demographic agrees with your stance, it could do for you what Dove’s #ShowUS campaign did for them: skyrocket your company’s success.
Dove regularly releases new advertisements promoting healthy body image, genuine beauty, and acceptance. Seventy percent of women feel they are not portrayed in advertising, so Dove started the #ShowUs campaign.
Taken with an iPhone from Apple, naturally
The #ShotoniPhone movement has exploded in popularity and become a cultural phenomenon in its own right. Starting off as a competition, Apple encouraged its customers to show off their most impressive screenshots. After writing a review, your photos could end up on Apple’s website, in ads, in stores, and on billboards.
This has become one of the most successful user-generated content (UGC) hashtag campaigns ever, with over 26 million posts on Instagram using it. In addition, Apple regularly showcases #ShotoniPhone photos on their Instagram account.
A hashtag campaign is ready to begin
There are commonalities among successful hashtag campaigns. They’re easy to use but highly efficient. A lot of interaction can be sparked with them. These kinds of campaigns are how you can use user-generated content (UGC) to gain social proof. They continue to work for you in the long run, unlike paid advertising campaigns.
You can’t launch a campaign on day one and expect it to explode in popularity overnight. You should also keep an eye on how well it’s doing and how your target demographic is responding to it. I don’t understand how you’re able to pull that off.