Submitted by: Sydney Luther, Communications Assistant
To read Part 1 of this post on hashtags, click here!
Hashtagify.me creates a web of hastags related to the one you search.
Last week I wrote about the basics of hashtags. Now that you know what they are, I understand it can be daunting to decide which one to use. I found a couple websites that can help if you’re unsure. Hashtagify.me shows all hashtags that are related to a single hashtag you search for. For example, it tells me that #craft is related to #handmade, #art, #Etsy, #gifts and #shopping, but also to #beer. This tool shows you how that hashtag is being used online, and helps determine whether there is an unrelated use of the hashtag you hadn’t considered before. There may be another use of a word you didn’t realize was popular online!
Another helpful website is ritetag.com, which will tell you how strong your hashtag is based on worldwide usage and what hashtags are related to it. When I search #craft, it says that’s a “good” hashtag (not “great,” but not “unused”), but the top rated hashtags related to it are about beer. When I look up #FineCraft, it says that’s “good” too, but interestingly has no commonly related hashtags. When I look up #AffinityGallery, it says it’s “unused.” It tells me that #Photography is a “great” hashtag, because it’s very popular.
For our exhibition the narrative dish, we are using the hashtag #thenarrativedish.
If you’re planning an event, it’s a great idea to develop a hashtag that people can use on social media when they discuss the event. However, you need to do some research before you choose one, because you want to use a unique hashtag so that when people search it, they only end up with results about your event. For example, for our upcoming market WaterFront Fine Craft Market, we’ve decided to use #WaterFront2015 as the official hashtag, because many people have already used #WaterFront to refer to a wide range of topics.
The Saskatoon Fringe Theatre Festival is a great example of using an event hashtag. The event planners display signs all over their festival with the hashtag #yxefringe, which encourages people to tweet and post to Instagram about the festival. It’s free advertising for the event! The Fringe can retweet and share those posts showing people enjoying the festival, and anyone interested in the Fringe can search that hashtag and see all the posts that used it all in one place. It’s a great online marketing tool for any large event.
A small sample of photos posted to Twitter using the hashtag #yxefringe.
Another thing you can do is use hashtags set up by others, like we’ve recently done with #craftselfie. The Canadian Crafts Federation is encouraging people to post photos of themselves with craft on Saturdays during Craft Year 2015. When we use that hashtag, we know we’ll be retweeted by Craft Year on Twitter. Another example is Tourism Saskatoon’s #ExploreYXE, which you should use when posting about Saskatoon. Similarly, Tourism Saskatchewan uses #ExploreSask and Tourism Regina uses #SeeYQR. Here is a list of hashtags set up by other organizations that are useful to use:
• #CitizensOfCraft – Citizens of Craft
• #CraftYear2015 – Craft Year
• #CraftSelfie – Canadian Crafts Federation
• #ExploreYXE – Tourism Saskatoon
• #ExploreSask – Tourism Saskatchewan
• #SeeYQR – Tourism Regina
• #ExploreCanada – Tourism Canada
• #BroadwayYXE – Broadway Business Improvement District
Additionally, we at the SCC have determined several hashtags for our upcoming exhibitions and events, which are listed below. Further hashtags will be announced on posters and other advertising for gallery exhibitions. Please use the following if you’re ever posting about our markets and exhibitions!
Exhibitions Hashtags:
• #TheNarrativeDish – The Narrative Dish, an exhibition featuring the contemporary ceramic work of 6 artists from across Canada, including Carole Epp (who decided this hashtag and spurred our use of future exhibition hashtags! Thanks, Carole!)
• #ClayStudioThree – Clay Studio Three Fortieth Anniversary Exhibition
• #SCC40thAnniversary – The Saskatchewan Craft Council’s 40th Anniversary Show & Sale
• #SCCMelodyArmstrong – Contemporary Jewellery by Melody Armstrong, a solo exhibition of new jewellery works
• #LeahMarieDorion – Country Wives & Daughters of the Country: Métis Women of this Land, a solo exhibition by painter Leah Marie Dorion
Event Hashtags:
• #WaterFront2015 – The WaterFront Fine Craft Market, June 27 in Saskatoon
• #HandcraftFest2015 – The Saskatchewan Handcraft Festival, July 17-19 in Battleford
• #WinterGreen2015 – WinterGreen Fine Craft Market, November 20-22 in Regina
If you’re an SCC member planning an event and decide on a hashtag, let us know and we can help you promote it via our social media!