Last week, while attending Social Media Marketing World (#SMMW17), I stayed at the Marriott Marquis in San Diego. In addition to a nice marina, they gave a giant Adirondack chair. It’s bright orange and in the middle of the courtyard landscaping near the pool bar. It’s a fun area and even though it’s bright orange, it fits in well with the marina and pool atmosphere.
The giant chair is designed for group photos, I’m sure many a family photo has been taken here… only to end up on the following season’s Christmas card. After all, the chair is painted with the words “Wish you were here” and you know that’s not true… it’s just more polite than saying “nanner nanner we’re in San Diego and you’re not” – But I’ll get back to my point.
The neat part about the location is that you have a walkway overhead so if you want to get photo from above you can do that! Now the cool part about that is the hotel anticipates you’ll do that by placing their hashtag right on the top of the arm of the chair! #MarriottMarquisSD It’s also a great reminder for the people sitting in the chair. Obviously they want you to take photos in their giant chair, the hotel would love for you to post your photos online, but one step further… they want you to use their hashtag!
I thought I’d bring this up as a reminder. Many times we forget that a hashtag is now a brand icon. Start to develop one for your business. Think about a hashtag, then search it… the reason you search for it is that you want a unique hashtag OR at least one that isn’t used for a negative reason. Next, start using your hashtag! Do you have a central photo area? Do people visiting your business and use your product at a photo stop elsewhere? For example, rental bikes or boats. Another way to use the hashtag is how colleges use it. They send the hashtag as a sign in their welcome pack… they know their new admits will take a photo with the sign and post it online. Finally, if you’re hosting an event, make sure to have a hashtag! One common unifying hashtag is a valuable way to elevate your brand!
Action Step: Come up with a hashtag and start using it!
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