Social media can be tough when you’re running a business page, but it’s a great way to generate awareness and build trust with your industry. The real question is, does tagging other users or company pages really make a difference? Let’s dive into what happens when businesses tag vs. when they don't.

The impact of tagging on social media

Understanding the direct effects of tagging on social media can provide clarity on whether this strategy is worth incorporating into your business's social media plan. Here’s a look at some of the main impacts:

1. Visibility and reach

The core reason you may be interested in a social media plan: to further your visibility and reach. Tagging is a great way to get even further. 

• Tagging: When you tag another account, your post can appear in the tagged account's feed, potentially reaching their followers and expanding your audience.
• Not tagging: Without tags, your post's visibility is limited to your existing followers and the organic reach determined by the platform's algorithm.

2. Engagement rates

Engagement rates help determine how successful your content is and how well it resonates with your audience. 

• Tagging: Tagging relevant accounts often leads to higher engagement. The tagged account is likely to interact with your post, and their followers may also engage by liking, commenting, or sharing.
• Not tagging: Posts without tags rely solely on the engagement from your own followers, which may result in lower overall interaction.

3. Brand awareness and networking

Social media is a great place to build brand awareness and grow your network. 

• Tagging: By tagging different accounts or partners, you can increase brand awareness and foster relationships that may lead to future business.
• Not Tagging: While you can still build brand awareness through consistent posting and quality content, the networking aspect is less pronounced without the direct connection that tagging facilitates.

Tagging on social media can significantly enhance visibility, engagement, and brand awareness by expanding your reach, prompting interactions, and fostering networking opportunities. Without tagging, posts are confined to your existing followers and lack the immediate benefits of direct connections.

Comparing results: Tagging vs. Not tagging

To determine whether tagging is truly effective for your business, let’s look at specific scenarios where we’ve seen businesses use tagging and compare the outcomes with situations where they haven't.

Example 1: Product launch

Let’s say a SaaS company launches a new version of their new product and creates two posts—one with tags of industry influencers and one without tags.

• • Tagged post: Receives higher engagement, with industry players commenting and sharing the post, leading to increased visibility and followers.
  • Non-tagged post: Performs well but has lower engagement and reach compared to the tagged post.

Example 2: Event promotion

Let’s say a marketing agency was promoting a webinar with guest speakers.

• • Tagged post: Includes tags of the speakers, resulting in shared posts by the speakers and higher attendance at the webinar.
  • Non-tagged post: Gains moderate interest from existing followers but misses the extended reach provided by the speakers' networks.

As you can see, if done correctly, tagging can enhance engagement, visibility, and participation in product launches, event promotions and more. Posts with tags tend to outperform those without, showing higher interaction and reach. 

Are the results always different?

While tagging can significantly enhance visibility, engagement, and brand awareness, the results can sometimes vary depending on several factors. It's important to consider these factors to maximize the effectiveness of your tagging strategy. Here’s a few things to keep in mind:

• Relevance of tags: Irrelevant or excessive tagging can be seen as spammy and may not yield positive results.
• Quality of content: High-quality, engaging content will always perform better, whether tagged or not. Tags can amplify good content but won't save poorly crafted posts.
• Platform algorithm: Social media algorithms play a crucial role in determining post visibility. Tagging is just one of many factors that influence how widely your post is seen.

Remember, tagging is not a one-size-fits-all solution. To achieve the best results, businesses should follow best practices. 

Best practices for effective social media tagging

To maximize the benefits of tagging and make sure it works to your advantage, you should follow these best practices in your social media plan.

1. Tag relevant accounts: Ensure the accounts you tag are relevant to the content and your audience. The relevance increases the likelihood of engagement and positive interactions.
2. Avoid over-tagging: Limit the number of tags to avoid overwhelming your audience and appearing spammy. Focus on quality over quantity. That also means, you don’t always need to tag. 
3. Encourage interaction: Prompt tagged accounts to engage with your content by asking questions or creating conversations around the post.
4. Monitor performance: Regularly review the performance of tagged versus non-tagged posts to understand what works best for your audience and adjust your strategy accordingly.

Implementing these best practices can help in leveraging the power of tagging on social media effectively. Better than tagging, you can also achieve similar results just by having your employees participate in sharing your social media posts. 

The importance of employee engagement in social media

Encouraging employees to share and interact with business posts on social media can amplify your reach and engagement even further. Here's why this strategy is important:

1. Expanded reach to employee networks: Employees often have their own social media followers who may not be aware of your business. When employees share your posts, it expands your reach to new and diverse audiences.
2. Increased credibility & authenticity: When employees share content, it appears more genuine and authentic. This can enhance the credibility of your brand as employees are seen as trusted voices endorsing your business.
3. Enhanced engagement & interactions: Employees engaging with posts can lead to more likes, comments, and shares. This higher interaction rate can improve the visibility of your posts due to social media algorithms favoring engaged content.
4. Boosted morale & involvement: Involving employees in social media strategies can boost their morale and create a sense of ownership and pride in the business. It fosters a positive work culture and aligns employees with the company's goals.

By combining strategic tagging and encouraging employee engagement, businesses can significantly enhance their social media effectiveness and drive better results.

Tagging won’t make or break your social strategy, but it helps 

Tagging on social media can make a significant difference for businesses by increasing visibility, engagement, and brand awareness. While the results can vary based on several factors, a strategic approach to tagging often leads to better outcomes compared to not tagging. Additionally, involving employees in sharing and interacting with social media content can further amplify these benefits. 

Need support on your social media strategy or just looking at how to get more leads? Reach out to us! 

Bonus: Tagging accounts vs. Hashtagging

While both tagging accounts and using hashtags are essential social media strategies, they may serve different purposes and yield different results.

Tagging accounts

When you tag another account, your post appears in the tagged account's feed, potentially reaching their followers. This direct connection can prompt interactions and foster networking opportunities, making it ideal for B2B engagement and partnership building.

Advantages:

• Direct connection with tagged accounts.
• Increased likelihood of engagement from tagged accounts and their followers.
• Enhances networking and relationship-building.

Best practices:

• Tag relevant accounts only.
• Avoid over-tagging to prevent appearing spammy.
• Encourage interaction by creating engaging content.

Using hashtags

Hashtags categorize your content, making it discoverable by anyone searching for or following those tags. They are great for reaching a broader audience beyond your immediate followers and tapping into trending topics.

Advantages:

• Expands reach to users interested in specific topics.
• Increases discoverability through searches and trending tags.
• Can attract a larger and more diverse audience.

Best practices:

• Use relevant and popular hashtags.
• Combine broad and niche hashtags.
• Limit the number of hashtags (3-5) to avoid overwhelming the audience.

Summary: Tagging accounts and using hashtags each play unique roles in your social media strategy. Tagging is excellent for direct engagement and networking, while hashtags enhance discoverability and reach. A balanced approach that incorporates both strategies can maximize your social media effectiveness overall.