Sorry I am so late to the party, but thought I'd share my experiences:
Yes, I use hickory smoke powder (not salt) in my jerky rub -- even before I smoke it. I use 1Tbsp garlic powder, 1Tbsp onion powder and 1tsp of hickory smoke powder and then ratio it up according to quantity because I like to lay it on heavy.. If I want to add any heat, I also throw in some jalapeno powder. I know, it may seem counter-intuitive or even over-powering to add powdered smoke before actually smoking the meat but, IMHO, it does something really magical to beef/venison jerky. I never found this stuff locally and had to order it online.
As for anything else I rub or marinate, such as shoulder, ribs or turkey, I don't have experience with adding it to those rubs.
But I can attest to having success with beef jerky -- maybe because I only smoke it for 2 hours before dehydrating it...
Give 'er a try!