#LearnHowtoHashtag

If you’ve spent any time on social media, chances are you’ve heard of hashtags. These outstanding octothorpes are great for raising awareness and starting conversations, but only when used properly. Here are a few tips for getting the best reach with your hashtags.

Watch the length. Hashtags were meant to be short, sweet and easy to search. For example, #Love is the most popular hashtag on Instagram, appearing in almost two billion posts.

Do your research. Not all platforms are the same when it comes to hashtags. It’s best to only use two hashtags per post on Facebook, but on LinkedIn it’s three. Trending hashtags are also different depending on which platform you’re using.

Capitalize each word in your hashtag (#GivingTuesday instead of #givingtuesday). Capitalizing makes it easier to read for everyone, especially people who are blind and rely on screen readers that read web content aloud (these systems use capitals to accurately identify and pronounce words).

It takes time to learn the ins and outs of hashtags. But once you get the hang of it, you’ll begin to see real results in the reach of your posts.