Why Your Small Business Should Participate in an Instagram Weekend Hashtag Project

Instagram is hands-down, the hottest social media site of the moment.

Now, unlike other social media sites, Instagram does something pretty cool. They actively promote their users, for free.

One way they do so is with their Instagram Weekend Hashtag Project that could expose your small business to their 280 million followers.

What is the Instagram Weekend Hashtag Project?

Every Friday, Instagram announces their Weekend Hashtag Project where they ask users to submit photos based on a designated theme with a designated hashtag so they can find your photos.

Why This Is a Good Opportunity for Your Small Business

Instagram chooses their favorite photos from the competition and every Monday features them on their blog, meaning big exposure for those chosen. How so? In addition to being featured on their blog:

• They also share the Instagram names of their top choices on their Instagram profile, to their 280 million followers.
• Instagram will tweet out their favorite entries, to their 37 million followers.
• They post their favorite entries on their Facebook page, to their 60 million fans.

This is a lot of free exposure. But stick to the theme if you are going to participate; don’t use your photo to blatantly promote your business or you will unlikely be selected.

I kept tabs on a photographer’s Instagram profile that was recently featured on their blog and social media sites and he gained over 3,000 followers in just two hours. And that is just followers, who knows how much traffic it drove to his profile.

Some of Instagram’s Recent Weekend Hashtags Projects

• #WHPresolutions2018, which asked participants to take creative photos and videos that symbolize their resolutions for the year ahead
• #WHPfeelslikehome, which asked participants to take creative photos and videos that capture the feeling of being at home
•  #WHPfairytale, which asked participants to capture creative photos that feel like scenes from a fairytale

If you are interested in participating in the Instagram Weekend Hashtag Project, simply follow @instagram on Twitter and look for a post announcing the weekend’s project every Friday.

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About Me

A 20+ year marketing professional, small business consultant, ebook author & blogger, my advice has been featured in the NY Times, Forbes, Success Magazine, Yahoo Finance, American Express, GO Banking Rates, Big Commerce, Business2Community, SheKnows to name a few – so this is professional advice you can trust!

I sell online on Shopify, Etsy, Gumroad and on Amazon back in its early years. This, combined with my decades of marketing & business experience means I can advise, mentor as well as come up with creative new ideas for your business. It really does help to talk to someone who is objective to get a new, but professional, perspective.

I have also written publicity pitches for clients that resulted in them being featured in Real Simple Magazine, Apartment Therapy, House Beautiful, Vanity Fair, Houzz, Martha Stewart, Glamour Magazine, LONNY, DesignMilk, Emmaline Bride – just to name a few. Be sure to try my Publicity Pitch and other Marketing Services.

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