Hashtag

A hashtag is a keyword marked with the hash sign that links content thematically across social networks. The principle became popular in 2007 through Twitter and works similarly today on Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube and Facebook. Clicking a hashtag shows a list of all posts using the same tag.

Structure and rules

A hashtag consists of the hash sign followed by letters, numbers or underscores, no spaces. Special characters break the hashtag. Upper and lower case are irrelevant, but help readability for compound tags. Some platforms limit the number per post or rate too many hashtags as spam signal.

Strategic use

Hashtags fall into four groups. Brand hashtags tie communication to your own brand, campaign hashtags accompany time limited actions, topic hashtags open up reach in subject discussions, trend hashtags ride on current attention. A small mix of large and niche tags often beats relying purely on viral mega tags.

Context in daily marketing

In day to day marketing, hashtags sit at the centre of social media strategies. They play no direct role in email marketing, but campaign hashtags are often linked in newsletters to create cross channel reach. Anyone sending newsletters with JD Mail and being active on social media in parallel can use a clear hashtag to pull recipients into the conversation and measure responses.