YES!! Hashtags are a thing and they are an important part of your social media activities in the digital space.
What is a hashtag?
Let’s start here. What is a hashtag? It’s that simple – a pound sign (#) with written text next to it and no spaces in between the words or pound sign. Once this text is published on the social channels that support hashtags, it is then converted into a live link that will be used to filter your content to other posts using the same hashtag.
The primary purpose of a hashtag is to unite, filter, organize information:
Using a hashtag on Twitter
Definitely, use the hashtag to identify trends and to search and filter for like-minded content on this platform.
Using a hashtag on Facebook
Just like on Twitter, a hashtag on Facebook can be used to filter content. However, since most profiles are only visible to people you are connected with, hashtags on Facebook are typically only displaying results from public profiles such as brands, high influential individuals, etc.
Using a hashtag on Instagram
Instagram is where you will see quick results with your hashtag usage. As illustrated in the image below, the screenshot showcases activity from individuals who are engaging with the post or my profile within minutes of the post going live. They have all found my published post via the hashtag.
You can also identify what is trending and see the volume of published content that resonates with that hashtag.
Using a hashtag on LinkedIn
LinkedIn can’t make up its mind about allowing hashtags or not, but as of recently, they are encouraging them to be used for the purpose of promoting the published content and articles. This helps to identify other articles of similar nature.
Now that you’ve got your tidbits in order, let me know what other questions you have about social media, marketing, or personal branding that I can answer!