By Lynne Williams

Hashtag usage on social media may be well understood by some, mysterious to others, or somewhere inbetween. The hash sign (#) is utilized before a word or string of words so others can find specific content or a theme indexed on social networks, including LinkedIn. The hashtags can become discoverable or searchable by others as a category, per se. People can find, follow, or contribute to conversations with this method of organization.

For example, if there was a social event with the hashtag #bettyboopssocial and lots of people at the event took pictures and posted them on social media using that hashtag, everyone at the social would be able to see each other’s pictures. This is an example of creating your own hashtag and you can even do this for yourself personally or for your business.

Check out #GreatCareersPHL on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram and you will see posts by either @GreatCareersPHL or, perhaps, posted by others who have taken pictures at various events.

You can also follow hashtags in your personal interest area to see what others are posting.

Examples of Veterans Hashtags

#military #veterans #miltaryveterans #militaryspouse #vets #milspouse #milspouses

Examples of Jobseeker Hashtags

#jobsearch #jobsearching #careertransition #jobseeker #careermanagement #resume

Example of IP Hashtags

#intellectualproperty #ip #copyright #patent #trademark #brandprotection #litigation

On LinkedIn, you might not find #ineedajob being used, as it’s a more professional platform, but you will certainly see that hashtag on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Social Media Examiner has a great synopsis on the use of hashtags on LinkedIn, as does Hootsuite. Linkedin also provides guidance in their help section.

#ihopeyouhavefunwithusinghashtags (though use more serious ones on LinkedIn) and try to hone in on the hashtags of your target audience with relevant content where you can create engagement or search for hashtags in your area of interest.

Don’t miss our upcoming featured events next week:

• 5/18/19 LinkedIn Part 3 of 3 and free headshots
• 5/20/19 Share Your Valuable and Popular WordPress Plugins
• 5/20/19 Integrating Emotional Intelligence into the Job Interview
• 5/21/19 Launch meeting of our new Nonprofit Career Network (NCN) Philly on The Value in Marketing & Fundraising for Nonprofit
• 5/21/19 How to Make a Long Term Career Out of Temporary Jobs
• 5/22/19 Strategic Research-based Approaches to LinkedIn at Delaware SCORE
• 5/23/19 Integrating Emotional Intelligence into the Job Interview

Missed the previous LinkedIn tip? Click here.

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Lynne Williams is the Executive Director of the Philadelphia Area Great Careers Group, a 501(c)3 nonprofit of almost 4100 members providing career education and networking. Contact Lynne by phone at 484-393-2951, email at director@greatcareersphl.org, on social media @GreatCareersPHL and