TikTok Hashtags: How to Use Them to Increase Your Reach

With over a billion monthly active users (and counting), TikTok is becoming one of the leading social media platforms. Attracting mostly a younger audience, the platform sees a ton of usage and engagement. In fact, micro-influencers are close to reaching the 18% mark in engagement rates. So it makes sense that businesses are flocking to TikTok to increase their reach.

And the best way to increase your visibility on the platform? tik tok hashtags.

This post will explore in depth what are TikTok hashtags, why you should be using them and how you can take advantage of them. let’s find out.

What are TikTok hashtags?

Tiktok hashtags help to categorize the uploaded video content on the platform so that users can easily find it. For example, someone searching for the #Gaming hashtag on TikTok might find video content related to gaming. Or if someone searches the hashtag #PTD, they will find content related to the BTS song, Permission to Dance.

Hashtags on TikTok work just like they do on platforms like Instagram and Twitter. Adding a certain hashtag to a video will make the content searchable when someone searches for the hashtag. It allows users to engage in trending or relevant conversations using the right hashtags.

Being an entertainment-focused platform, TikTok naturally garners the highest number of hashtag views with 535 billion views for entertainment content. The second most popular category is dance, with 181 billion hashtag views. Pranks, fitness & sports, home repair/DIY and beauty/skin care hashtags are other popular categories by number of views.

Benefits of using hashtags in your TikTok strategy

Even if you are not running a full hashtag campaign, hashtags should be an important part of your TikTok strategy. From improving your ability to find content to building a community- there is a lot they can help you with. Here are the top reasons your business should use hashtags in its TikTok strategy:

increase visibility

Adding hashtags to your video captions can help you expose your content to TikTok users who are not already following your brand. When you use hashtags relevant to the content of the video, you can attract people who are already interested in the topic. For example, adding the hashtag #DIYProject can help your video show up in search results for people who are searching for the hashtag.

increase engagement

Better visibility can also translate into higher engagement rates. When more people see your content, there is a chance that many of them will want to engage with it by liking or commenting on it.

create community

Branded TikTok hashtags are a great way to build a community around your business. You can encourage your audience to make videos using brand-specific hashtags. This will help you build a strong community of followers who enjoy sharing content related or relevant to your business.

For example, BUXOM Cosmetics has managed to build a community around the #BuxomBabe hashtag. They have beauty enthusiasts and influencers alike creating TikTok videos using the hashtag.

identify the competitors

Popular industry-specific hashtags can also help you uncover other businesses using the hashtag. This is a great way to identify competitors you may not already know about. And you can check their profile and content to benchmark your TikTok performance against them.

Get Great TikTok Content Ideas

Searching for category-specific hashtags will reveal results for the top performing content related to the hashtag. It’s a great way to see what resonates with your target audience and get content inspiration.

Find relevant influencers

You can also use hashtag searches to find influencer accounts that are creating content relevant to the hashtag. If you are planning to run an influencer marketing campaign, this is a great way to find TikTok influencers with whom you can partner.

jump on trends

TikTok trends come and go, but capitalizing on the right people at the right time can help increase visibility and engagement. When you create content based on trending hashtags, you are showing your followers that your brand is fun and relevant. Plus, there’s a higher chance that your video will appear on the correct discovery pages. This further increases the visibility of your content and can help you get more TikTok followers.

how to research tiktok hashtags

While researching hashtags to use for your brand TikTok, you should give priority to the ones with high view count. It is also a good idea to research trending hashtags on TikTok in a relevant niche or industry. When a hashtag is trending or has a high number of views, it tells you that people are interested in it. This increases the chance that the right people will find and engage with your content when you use hashtags.

There are several ways to find and research hashtags on TikTok:

• The TikTok Discover tab highlights some of the top hashtags that are trending currently.

• Check out the list that compiles the top TikTok hashtags across various categories.
• Use a tool like TikTok Hashtags to find the most popular hashtags related to a certain topic. The tool will also provide you with useful statistics such as the number of posts, views and post views.

how to create tiktok hashtags

When creating a TikTok hashtag for your brand, follow these best practices to improve your chances of success:

• Make sure your hashtag matches your campaign, content or challenge.
• Do not create too many hashtags as it can confuse the audience. Focus on creating one or two great hashtags that are instantly recognizable and easy to share.
• Keep your hashtags simple, memorable and easy to spell.
• See hashtags you’ve created on other social platforms. See what works and use them as inspiration.

Tips on which hashtags to use on TikTok

Now that we’ve got our bases covered, let’s explore some tips on how you can make the most of TikTok hashtags:

Combine niche hashtags with popular/trending hashtags

While popular and trending hashtags are great for reaching a mass audience, they are also highly competitive. Unless you already have a large number of followers on your account, it becomes a bit challenging to get attention. Niche hashtags can help you attract people who are already interested in your content. Plus, they’re less competitive, making your content easier to find.

Combine both types of hashtags, to get the best of both worlds. The idea is to gain popularity by using specific hashtags so that you can improve your visibility in trending or popular hashtags.

Note that the following TikTok uses niche hashtags like #EcoHack and #FoodWasteTip, as well as the trending #TiktokHolidays hashtag.

Always research for trendy hashtags for the moment

Trends on TikTok are often short-lived, which means a hashtag that is trending today can easily lose its status. So make sure you research hashtags that are trending at the moment. You can use tools like Hashtag Expert to find the latest trending hashtags to use for your brand.

Consider the Character Count of Your Captions

TikTok allows up to 300 characters in your caption and your hashtags will count towards that. So keep your captions short to leave room for your hashtags.

Keep track of the maximum number of hashtags

TikTok does not set a strict limit on the number of hashtags you can use. But since there is a caption character limit, be sure to consider this when choosing how many hashtags to add. We recommend using 3-5 hashtags so you still have room to write descriptive or funny captions.

start a tiktok challenge or contest to promote your branded hashtags

One of the best ways to increase visibility on the platform is to start a challenge or contest. Get creative and come up with a branded hashtag that people can use to participate. The more people who create content around hashtags, the better chances you have of attracting other TikTok users. To further enhance your branded hashtag, consider partnering with influencers who can promote it to you.

For example, Chase Bank started the #ShowMeYourWalk challenge, asking fresh graduates to show off their graduation walk. The challenge also saw considerable participation from celebrities like Kevin Hart.

Use #ForYou, #ForYouPage or #FYP with caution

You must have seen these three hashtags in many Tiktok videos. These extremely popular hashtags have got trillions of views. So it is no surprise that people are using them in hopes of increasing the visibility of their content. Many users believe that these hashtags will help their videos to appear on more pages for you.

But there is no clear evidence that this is so. And with these hashtags being highly competitive, relying heavily on them may not be the best idea. Instead, give preference to niche and trending hashtags that stand a better chance of visibility. Then experiment with #ForYou, #ForYouPage or #FYP to see if they make a difference.

Make TikTok Marketing Work for You

With more and more businesses taking advantage of TikTok in their marketing strategies, it is high time to step up your efforts as well. Use the tips above to make the most of TikTok hashtags and gain a competitive edge on the platform. And don’t forget to use TikTok Analytics to find opportunities to keep improving.

 

TikTok Hashtag Posts: How to Use Them to Increase Your Reach first appeared on Sprout Social.