Are you one of the many who is scared to death of #hashtagging? I’ve put together a post completely dedicated to #hashtags and how to use them for your business. This is one of the easiest social media strategies to implement. They are easy, powerful, and will help you increase your reach just by including them in your posts.

Hashtags were originally created by Twitter but have been adopted to the other main social media sites as a way to organize content.

How to Create a #hashtag

You will be surprised to learn how easy it really is.

When you are creating a post on any of the social sites that accept #hashtags, you’ll simply type the “#” with your hashtag word(s) immediately following.

Your hashtag:

• cannot include any spaces between words
• cannot include punctuation
• can have caps however, they do not matter and will return the same results
• can be put anywhere in a post or comment

Be Strategic

Be strategic with your #hashtag use by doing your research ahead of time on what tags you should be using.

Find the right hashtag by researching what other brands in your industry are using.

Create #hashtags based off of locations if you are a local business or hosting an event at a specific location. It is important to use city tags as well as business / event location tags.

Using popular keywords are a great tool for creating hashtags for your business.

Attending an event? Find out what the official hashtag is so that you can meet and connect with everyone else at the event.

Hosting an event? Create a hashtag and make sure to share with attendees ahead of time.

11 Creative Ways to Use Hashtags

1. Create a Tagboard to stay up to date on specific #hashtags. Stay up to date on what others are posting using specific #hashtags.
2. Embed content from a specific #hashtag on your site. Hosting a contest or event? Share others content on your website by embedding it onto your website.
3. Pull the RSS feed in from a specific #hashtag on Instagram into a Custom Facebook Tab.
4. Use the same #hashtag on all of your social media sites.
5. Use a specific #hashtag to host a social chat on a specific network.
6. Crowdsource with #hashtags.
7. Create a #hashtag to host a contest or promotion that your fans can easily share.
8. Run Social Ads based off of #hashtags.
9. Follow the social reach of your brand based off of #hashtags.
10. Give your #hashtag a definition and meaning with a Tag Directory like http://tagdef.com
11. Have attendees use a specific #hashtag for your webinar or during your live online training courses.

The specific URLs to do real-time searches for #hashtags on each social network:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/{uniquehashtag}

Instagram: http://instagram.com/tags/{uniquehashtag}/feed/recent.rss

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/search/?q={uniquehashtag}

Google: Simply go to http://google.com and type in your #hashtag

Google+: https://plus.google.com/s/%23{uniquehashtag}

Don’t be a #hashtag spammer

Be wise when choosing which #hashtags to include in your posts. 2-5 is the social norm, over that you are being annoying and a #hashtag spammer. Occasionally 6 or 7 might be ok, if you really, really must. If your entire post is #hashtags, you have just failed. Go back to the drawing board and find a way to be strategic without spamming!

Awesome story about the power of #hashtags

A month ago, I attended the #gentelmenoftheroadtour #troystopover with headliner Mumford & Sons. I had a Press Pass and was able to shoot the first 3 songs of every act of the weekend. #badass I know. The Gentlemen of the Road Tour made awesome use of #hashtags by pulling in Instagram pictures of those who used the hashtag #gentlemenoftheroad.

During Mumford & Sons singing Lover of the Light, my friend alerted me of an awesome moment happening right behind us. A couple getting engaged during the words – “But love the one you hold And I’ll be your goal To have and to hold A lover of the light”. It was so romantic and the social reporter in me went into sharing action, snapping a pic and posting it to Instagram. Less than a week later, the couple located the picture I posted and commented on it! Seriously awesomeness.

Ready to role on out with your bad-ass #hashtaggin self?

Watch this hilarious video from Jimmy Fallon & Justin Timberlake about #hashtags. #lolololololololololololololol

{ Click here to share the power of #hashtags with your friends on twitter. }