What are Twitter Hashtags?

Twitter hashtags can be very confusing especially for people who are new to Twitter. In a nutshell, a hashtag is any string of characters excluding spaces that follow a number sign (e.g. #cool or #whataretheytalkingabout).

Additional questions about Twitter hashtags include:

Who creates them? Anyone can create a hashtag.

What is the purpose of hashtags? To categorize key words or phrases which can be easily found in a Twitter Search.

What do they mean? Clicking on a hashtagged word displays all other Tweets marked with that keyword. A popular hashtagged word usually becomes a Trending Topic.

How do you create a hashtag? Compose a tweet. Select a keyword(s) or phrase. Insert a # in front of the selected keywords. Viola! You have a Twitter hashtag.

What is the hashtag etiquette?

- hashtags included in Tweets from public accounts allows anyone to search for that hashtag and subsequently view your Tweet.

- Don't spam with hashtags. Don't over-tag a single Tweet. It is suggested using no more than 2 hashtags per Tweet.

- Use hashtags only on Tweets relevant to the topic.

Now that you have a better sense of what a Twitter hashtag is, I encourage you to try creating a hashtag with your next Tweet!

This blog originally appeared on The De-tech-tive 4 Teachers.

Tags: development, etiquette, hashtag, professional, twitter

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