Get tips on creating the perfect hashtag that works for you, your fiancé and your guests.
What began five or so years ago as a tool that only the tech-savvy of couples used has quickly become one of the hallmarks of marrying in this digital age. We’re talking, of course, about wedding hashtags, those cute, clever strings of words that turn your celebration into a clickable event #SMILE.
To give you some guidance, we picked the brain of social media pros and wedding bloggers so has to give you the following tips:
• Put your brains together: Even a spouse-to-be without strong opinions about the centerpieces or wedding planning would probably jump at the chance to lend his quick with crafting a catchy hashtag. This is one of the few planning activities both partners can have a blast working on together.
• Don’t use just your first names: Why? Unless you have incredibly unique names, it’s a good bet another couple or many other couples are relying on the same three words. Which means if you’re #VivianAndDimeji, you can count on spending the day after your wedding sifting through the photos on the social media of five other Vivian and Dimeji that recently got married.
• Make sure it represents both of you: You don’t have to include both of your names, or any names at all if your tag still makes sense, such as #Wearelovebirds, for instance. But be wary of making it all about you by using a tag like #ViviansBigDay. Trust us, you don’t want to be that bride.
• Don’t include symbols, punctuation or spaces: This may be a no-brainer, but it’s worth repeating. Besides looking unwieldy, special characters aren’t accepted in hashtags on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and pretty much every other social media network site out there. Numbers tacked on the end, such as #Vividi2017, are fine.
• Do make sure it’s easy to remember: The goal isn’t to make your guest laugh, but a little humor and creativity can go a long way in setting your hashtag apart and, more importantly, getting people to actually use it.
• Don’t use one that already exists: This one is simple. The best way to make sure your hashtag is unique is by searching for it on various sites, Facebook and Instagram are the most popular for wedding sharing. If you get a lot of hits, go with something else.
But note: If you find out just before your wedding that someone else is using your hashtag, don’t change it. It’s too late in the game at that point, especially if you’ve your hashtag is already flying on your invitation card and other printed materials.
• Get a head start: You should be using your hashtag throughout the entire planning process and on your wedding catalogue as soon as possible, we recommend creating one early enough to include on save-the-date cards. Then use it on all related posts on Instagram and Facebook, which might include snaps of your engagement party or the bridal shop where you brought your dress.
• Don’t forget about your vendors: Go ahead and ask your vendors to use your hashtag too. A lot of them are more than happy to support you while also promoting their own work.
• Turned hashtagged photos into printed grid photos: The pictures your guests take might not be clear enough for professional album, but you know they’ll be so much fun to look through in the future. All you need to do is print and arranging all pics for social media into neat little albums more like a grid view print. After all, social media trends come and go, but the pictures that are printed wouldn’t.
