Author: Saffire

When you hear the word hashtags, do you dream of a new delicious, bite-size breakfast treat?

Or do you think of categorizing messages on Twitter?

The # symbol, called a hashtag, is used to mark keywords or topics in a tweet (e.g., #mybigevent). Twitter didn’t create hashtags; they were created organically by users as a way to categorize messages.

By clicking on a hashtagged word in any message, it will show you all messages marked with that same hashtag.  So you can easily see all the posts on that topic. And anyone that does a search for that hashtag may find your Tweet.

Here are four things to remember to successfully use hashtags in marketing.

1) Be Unique

Hashtags are a great way to engage your customers about your event and allow them to engage with each other. Using your event’s name or a common abbreviation may be a good start, but try to pick something unique and specific.

For example, #SEwebinar allows us to focus in on the specific topic of webinars rather than just using #SaffireEvents for everything. It will also allow others to search for a specific topic much easier too. You wouldn’t want to promote a contest and then make your participants wade through all your other tweets in order to find the contest updates. Continue reading “#Hashtags – They’re not just for breakfast anymore”

Did anyone notice that the Grammys really kicked up their social media presence this year, especially Twitter?

As far as event marketing goes, the Grammys are a good one to watch – and they had their second highest ratings in 20 years.

We thought we’d share some quick tips that we noticed, so that you might be able to use social media similarly to increase your event’s “ratings” (your attendance).

1. They posted their hashtag, #GRAMMYS, everywhere!

2.  They didn’t just post social media options at the Grammys, their Twitter and Facebook URLS (as well as their website URL) were posted well before the event in ads, etc. as well as during the event before commercial breaks.

3.  They told customers what they’d get for following, including behind-the-scenes photos and exclusive coverage. (Sound familiar? We always suggest that events do this – you can do this too!)

4. They let people know they were listening. Periodically, LL Cool J would read tweets on the air, and you could do the same at your event.

5. They were active during the event on social media. This is important so you can direct, guide and enhance the conversation, not just relying on your audience.

Think about your event and how you can use the Grammys, one of the biggest global events, to inspire you to kick up your social media presence this year!