Hashtag: What Does It Mean and How to Use It Properly?

The hashtag is a term associated with topics or discussions that want to be indexed on social networks, inserting the pound symbol (#) before the word, phrase or expression. When the combination is published, it becomes a hyperlink that leads to a page with other publications related to the same topic. This is a part of social media marketing strategy.

After its first usage by Twitter, (#) symbol became worldwide popular and gained a new meaning: hashtag. Let’s find out more about Hashtag (#) in this article.

WHAT ARE HASHTAGS?

In 2014, this term was included in the Oxford dictionary and it defines as a word or phrase preceded by a pound symbol (#), used on social networks especially Twitter to identify messages on a specific topic.

Further, it is also said that the hashtags are associated with the topics or discussions on social networks such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. So, if Instagram users, for example, post photos with the hashtag #Horse, everyone on the social network can find related content – i.e., the image of the horse by clicking on the word.

HOW TO USE HASHTAGS: THE GOOD AND BAD PRACTICES

If Hashtag is used wisely, it helps people find your business page more easily and also it helps to engage with your audience. So, understanding the importance of hashtags, below are the few things someone should not do while using a hashtag (#).

Don’t use too many words together

Keep your hashtags short and, if they need more than one word, start each word with a capital letter. i.e., #DevLegends #HashtagTips

Don’t use a hashtag for every word in the phrase

Separate the hashtags from your text, putting them at the end, after expressing your main idea. In some cases, if the word you want to use as a hashtag is in the middle of the sentence for example, “How to Use #Hashtag in your Social Networks” then it is not good to use hashtag this way “#How #to #use #hashtag #in #your #social #networks”.

Use hashtags related to the post

Don’t overdo the number of hashtags! Overuse of the hashtag in any post makes the content difficult to read and can also alienate customers, apparently an opportunistic desire to be featured on all indexing pages. Likewise, they must be related to the post. Using hashtags that are unrelated to the post can irritate users.

Be careful with the spelling

Imagine your post in your Instagram account contains a hashtag with the wrong spelling, i.e., #DevLigends. So, while clicking on the link to that hashtag would not lead to the desired page. Even If you use the incorrect hashtag intentionally, it is not a good idea. There might be a low number of users who searches with incorrect spelling in the hashtag.

HOW TO PROMOTE YOUR PRODUCT/SERVICE USING HASHTAG

Now that you have an idea of what to do and what not to do when using hashtags, we will talk about how to promote your product or service using this resource.

Because your social media profiles are public, using hashtags makes your posts visible to everyone with the same interests. So, the posts are not limited to just your followers. Therefore, choosing the correct hashtag can increase the reach of your posts on social media.

Create hashtags for your company or event

Using a specific hashtag for your company’s marketing such as promotions or giveaways, or an event, can be a good way to increase your followers.

Find the appropriate hashtags for each social network

Each social network is unique and it is important to find out which hashtags people use on each social network to get a better idea of what to post. On Twitter, for example, the idea is to keep hashtags short, as the character limit per post is 280. On Instagram, in turn, the space for text allows you to use more hashtags. In addition, the social network is image-oriented and many people search for photos by hashtags, for inspiration. This creates a space to explore more general topics.

Look for hashtags with high volume of posts

We know it’s not wise to use a popular hashtag, like #goodmorning, only to appear on a page with many posts and hits. It is not worth using a hashtag from scratch if there are already others with high volume of publications. Include generic hashtags about your post content and segment to broaden the reach of your posts.

On Instagram, in addition to users, you can also follow hashtags. To follow a hashtag, the process is the same as following a person or company. Start by searching for a topic of interest or by clicking on a hashtag in any post. Then you will go to a page dedicated to this hashtag. Then just click the follow button.

When you follow a hashtag, you will start to see posts with this tag both in your feed and in stories. The hashtags you follow can also be viewed in a tab, alongside the people you follow and along with suggested topics to follow.

Using the appropriate hashtags is already a way to expand the reach of your company not only on Instagram but also on other social networks, since it helps to publicize your publications beyond your followers.