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Hashtag, you’re it!
Jul 27, 2020
Promote your page and business with this handy device, but use it wisely
Just about everybody who’s been on social media for more than an hour will have run across the ubiquitous hashtag: a “pound sign” (#) followed by a hyperlink. But not everybody knows what these are or how to best use them.
So first, a definition is in order. According to Hootsuite, a hashtag is:
Twitter was the first social media platform to start using the hashtag. In 2007, an enterprising techie had the idea of clustering topical content around a tag. Now, if you’re interested in #NaturePhotography, #RecipeOfTheDay or #hockey, you just click the hashtag and you’ll land on a page full of posts about those topics.
But this innovation is useful for more than just the interested web-surfer. If you have a business, you can put hashtags into your posts to expand your visibility. Say, you sell solar water heaters and have a Facebook and Twitter page. By using a tag like #SolarWaterHeaters, you have expanded your reach – and to an audience likely to be interested in that product.
If you’re going to use them, though, it’s important to remember some best practices.
First, make sure there are no spaces, emojis, symbols or punctuation in your tag. The words should just run together as one. Keep them as short and intuitive as possible. While #SolarWaterHeaters is specific enough to give you a somewhat targeted group, something like #SolarWaterHeatersInJacksonvilleForUnderAThousandDollars is too long and too esoteric.
Remember, too, that there should be a single # in front of your entire tag. So, #do #not #hashtag #every #single #word.
Avoid using trending hashtags on a post that isn’t about the trending topic just to expose the post to more eyeballs. If your post about solar water heaters contains the tag #OutfitOfTheDay, you’ll look like an opportunist and you won’t have an audience specifically interested in your product. A sea of people looking at your post doesn’t help if they’re not in the market for solar water heaters. Also, a highly trending tag means your post will blend in with many thousands upon thousands of others. A good rule of thumb is to make sure your hashtags add meaning to your post.
If you do want to include a trending tag, make sure it reflects what you’ve posted. For example, #ThrowbackThursday is fine to use, just make sure your post is an old photo like all the others bearing this tag (and make sure it’s Thursday).
When you use a hashtag, your accounts and posts should be public, too. If they aren’t, then hashtagging won’t matter because your post won’t be viewable by the public.
Also, don’t forget the virtue of moderation. Filling your post up with a flurry of tags is a less-than-best practice. On Twitter, try not to use more than two. The same goes for Facebook and LinkedIn. You can get away with using more on Instagram, maybe between five or 10 – but no more than that. Up to five on Pinterest is good.
So, use this device to help your page’s visibility, but use it wisely.
Happy #hashtagging.
So first, a definition is in order. According to Hootsuite, a hashtag is:
“… a way to connect social media content to a specific topic, event, theme or conversation. They also make it easier to discover posts around those specific topics, because hashtags aggregate all social media content with that same hashtag.”
Twitter was the first social media platform to start using the hashtag. In 2007, an enterprising techie had the idea of clustering topical content around a tag. Now, if you’re interested in #NaturePhotography, #RecipeOfTheDay or #hockey, you just click the hashtag and you’ll land on a page full of posts about those topics.
But this innovation is useful for more than just the interested web-surfer. If you have a business, you can put hashtags into your posts to expand your visibility. Say, you sell solar water heaters and have a Facebook and Twitter page. By using a tag like #SolarWaterHeaters, you have expanded your reach – and to an audience likely to be interested in that product.
If you’re going to use them, though, it’s important to remember some best practices.
First, make sure there are no spaces, emojis, symbols or punctuation in your tag. The words should just run together as one. Keep them as short and intuitive as possible. While #SolarWaterHeaters is specific enough to give you a somewhat targeted group, something like #SolarWaterHeatersInJacksonvilleForUnderAThousandDollars is too long and too esoteric.
Remember, too, that there should be a single # in front of your entire tag. So, #do #not #hashtag #every #single #word.
Avoid using trending hashtags on a post that isn’t about the trending topic just to expose the post to more eyeballs. If your post about solar water heaters contains the tag #OutfitOfTheDay, you’ll look like an opportunist and you won’t have an audience specifically interested in your product. A sea of people looking at your post doesn’t help if they’re not in the market for solar water heaters. Also, a highly trending tag means your post will blend in with many thousands upon thousands of others. A good rule of thumb is to make sure your hashtags add meaning to your post.
If you do want to include a trending tag, make sure it reflects what you’ve posted. For example, #ThrowbackThursday is fine to use, just make sure your post is an old photo like all the others bearing this tag (and make sure it’s Thursday).
When you use a hashtag, your accounts and posts should be public, too. If they aren’t, then hashtagging won’t matter because your post won’t be viewable by the public.
Also, don’t forget the virtue of moderation. Filling your post up with a flurry of tags is a less-than-best practice. On Twitter, try not to use more than two. The same goes for Facebook and LinkedIn. You can get away with using more on Instagram, maybe between five or 10 – but no more than that. Up to five on Pinterest is good.
So, use this device to help your page’s visibility, but use it wisely.
Happy #hashtagging.
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