If you are starting out on Twitter, one of the first things you might ask yourself is what are Twitter Hashtags? The hashtag or # is very similar to tags or keywords on a blog or bookmark keywords. They are used to search or track a topic of interest.

Hashtags Create Context

The idea behind #hashtags is to make the search experience more robust. A hashtag is designed to target a topic so you can follow a topic of interest more closely. It also helps you group your tweets to make them more community friendly. You can trace and monitor tweets,  which is an opportunity to improve the quality of your user experience.

One of the main uses for #hashtags is to create and follow events. The most famous one is #followfriday used to help people discover and praise followers that have joined or helped in the Twitter experience.

How To Use #Hashtags

1. Create a hashtag by putting the # hashtag symbol in front of your chosen keyword – for example #wordpress
2. Generally, you should only use one hashtag per tweet. The idea is to add value to your tweet. Multiple tags will only dilute them.
3. It is best to add your #hashtag at the beginning or end of your tweet but if carefully done, you can use it as a word in your sentence.

Look at the effective use of #wordpress at the end of the final tweet. This is a quick way for the user to get help with wordpress, though in this case it is being offer with a link to a tutorial.  The third tweet has a bunch of tags that offer a clutter view – clearly spam with little care for the user needs.

Choose a #Hashtag Name

1. Do a search with one of the various tag applications like #hashtags or tagdef to find an appropriate tag.
2. If you pick a popular topic to follow, it will have greater search power and you will have a larger audience to draw upon.

There are certain users that dislike the #hashtag experience because they want to use Twitter as a pure form of quick communication. One reason to use them sparingly. During events like #followfriday the Twitter stream can get inundated with tags that remove the ability to read the time line effectively.

#Hashtags can be an effective tool that create a better Tweet and track down practical information, events and trends. Learn to use them effectively and you can create a trend of your own with your followers.

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