Trending Hashtags and Instagram Filters for Summer Months

May 17, 2016
iphone beach photo sunset

Chances are you’re counting down the days until Memorial Day Weekend and the official kickoff of summer. The three months between summer’s holy grail holidays of Memorial and Labor Day are a prime season for marketers. Your audience is generally out enjoying warmer weather, traveling, attending parties, and more. Now is the perfect time to think outside the marketing box and grow brand awareness, increase sales, and hit other KPIs.

First let’s talk about some trending hashtags you can use during the summer months to increase engagement including user-generated content. The key to using hashtags is to focus on a current holiday or event, for example Fourth of July. Then build out from there using similar keywords, ie fireworks, bbq, summer nights, America, family fun, backyard bbq, and many more. Don’t forget to see what is trending on Instagram or Twitter and add hashtags that are relevant.

Word of warning: Don’t use more than 11 hashtags.

Summer Holidays:
#MemorialDayWeekend #MemorialDayWeeken2016 #MemorialDay #LaborDayWeekend #LaborDayWeekend2016 #LaborDay #4thofJuly #FourthofJuly #Fireworks #America #Murica #FathersDay #FathersDay2016

Summer Fun Activities:
#Swimming #SwimmingPool #PoolFun #LazyPoolDays #BBQ #Grilling #BackyardBBQ #BBQandBeers #Summertime #Funinthesun #BestSummerEver #SunsOutGunsOut #SunsOutThighsOut #BlueSky #SummerNights #Summer #FunintheSun #Camping #Boating #Fishing #Hiking #Camp #Boat #Fish #Hike

General Summer Terms:
#Explore #Family #Adventure #Travel #Summer2016

Now, let’s talk Instagram filters. We all have our favorites but some work better than others when the days are longer and the sun appears brighter. Tip: You can save your favorite filters in Instagram.

Beach shots: Valencia
Use Instagram’s built in photo editing features to up the saturation on the sky, water, and sand. Then let the Valencia filter bring down the saturation for a photo that brings your beach photo to life.

beach surfboard summer sun(Photo: Planet D)

Boat shots: Brannan
Perfect for images with strong shadows and helps the water looks more metallic and mysterious. The greyish tint will highlight the contrast of the boat as it glides across the water. Great for scenic shots of the boat, if taking glamour shots of your girls on a boat, use Mayfair.

boat water waves ocean(Photo: G Adventures)

Mountain Adventures: Hefe
Make the peaks, sky, and view pop with the Hefe filter. It ups the contrast and heightens the colors, perfect for those high peaks and showcasing plant life.

view of mountains and sky(Photo: G Adventures)

What are some of your favorite Instagram filters? Ask your audience this question and encourage them to showcase your product in their summer adventures. You can then reuse the content on your channels to increase engagement and brand awareness. These tips are applicable to almost every industry from sports apparel, skincare, alcohol, and edible products.

Now, get out there and enjoy summer!

 

Meet Guest: Amanda Nelson

Amanda Nelson bio photoAmanda is a creative and vibrant Social Media Consultant based in San Diego with experience managing social media campaigns, developing relationships with bloggers, brand development, creating and curating content.

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