Do you understand how to use Twitter Hashtags (#’s)?

Twitter uses hashtags to organize tweets, which allows Twitter users to search hashtags to find the content the seek. Not only do they find the content, but they can connect with experts in the area they are searching.

Let’s say if someone is looking for information on weight loss they have the ability to search Twitter using the weight loss hashtag. This is may be #weightloss. So, if you are tweeting about how to lose weight, you’ll want to include the hashtag #weightloss or #loseweight within that particular update to ensure it is searchable via hashtags.

There are probably thousands (dare I say millions?) of hashtags. For example, #loseweight, #weight, and #weightloss are all hashtags. You want to select the one that is used most often.

Here’s a link to information on hashtags – http://support.twitter.com/articles/49309-what-are-hashtags-symbols#

Hashtags can be searched at http://hashtags.org. It will also display a “trend” report so you can see how often a particular hashtag is used. For example, it looks like #loseweight is trending better than #weightloss at this time.

The hashtags you use for the your updates may stay fairly consistent to ensure you consistently reach your target market. You want it to be clear your area of expertise and not cause potential client confusing by tweeting about topics that have nothing to do with the service you provide. Let’s stick with our example of weight loss. If you provide weight loss services, it may be likely that you are tweeting regularly about weight loss, nutrition, and dieting. You may frequently be using the hashtags #weightloss, #nutrition, #dieting. These hashtags may be inserted directly within the tweet or added on at the end:

Here are 5 successful #weightloss strategies – (insert url)
Here are 5 steps to shed the extra pounds…and keep them off! (insert url) #weightloss

Once you understand how to use Twitter hashtags you can utilize the hashtags to grow your online presence.

All the best,
Lisa Nelson