Earle Brown Heritage Center has hosted all kinds of events, and we have watched them adapt and change to new technologies and trends. One of the more recent trends is the use of hashtags to promote a business event.
Hashtags are found on just about every major social network. In the business world, hashtags are a great tool to spread shareable content and promote a conversation among your business’s target audience. Hashtags invite others to join a conversation, view photos, review products or use business services. A business can utilize hashtags to gain customer insight at a very low-cost.
With these thoughts in mind, it is evident that using a hashtag at a corporate event is almost necessary for today’s market.
What is a Hashtag?
A hashtag is a word or phrase paired with the pound symbol to sort topics and manage information on various social media platforms; for example, #SmallBusiness. Hashtags are used by businesses to tag and categorize content to be shared through social media. They are most commonly associated with Twitter, but are also used on Instagram, Google+ and Facebook. This video further explains the basics of hashtags and how to use them.
Why Use Event Hashtags?
Event Hashtags are used to increase awareness and visibility for the event. You can pull conversations together quite simply and unite your viewers. Hashtags also make is easy for people to find and share photos, ideas, and conversations. They give event attendees a tool with which to interact with one another.
Creating a Successful Event Hashtag
It’s important to be unique. There are endless hashtags already floating around the internet, so creating one that is specific to your event is important. Create something that is both memorable and easily recognized. For example, if you are planning a convention hosting different area law firms, a hashtag using law jargon that is recognized among your audience would be appropriate. It’s also a good idea to stay away from acronyms unless they are used in your business or easily recognizable.
Search twitter for recent hashtags. (Click here to view the current #SmallBusiness stream on Twitter as an example.) If the one you choose has been used a lot recently, try another one. Remember to keep it short. On Twitter, users are only given 140 characters – you don’t want your hashtag taking up most of their available space.
Promoting Your Hashtag on Social Media
Prior to your event, it is important to spread the word on social media. Even the most well-crafted hashtag won’t be a success if no one knows about it! Include it on the registration page of your website, create promotions or contests on your Facebook page, write a blog post and share it on google plus, and share images with the hashtag on Instagram. And remember, #dont #write #posts #where #each #word #is #a #hashtag. This is off-putting and appears spammy to audiences.
Where many businesses fall is the follow-up of a hashtag; don’t forget to follow through on the day of the event. Assign someone to answer questions and join the conversation as a representative of your business. Continue to follow the conversation even after the event is over. This is the time in which hashtag conversations can generate new leads, networking opportunities, and much more.
Hashtags are an important and powerful marketing tool for your business. Coupled with the fact that they are relatively inexpensive and easy to maintain, (provided a little creativity and tech-savviness) companies would be foolish not to use hashtags to promote an event.
To learn even more about selecting the right hashtag for your event, read this article by tweetbeam.com.
If you’d like information about scheduling a space at Earle Brown Heritage center, visit our contact page.