What Are #Hashtags on LinkedIn For And Why to Use Them

You can see them in every LinkedIn post. The sometimes strange expressions behind double (#) cross. Hashtags. #whataretheyfor, sorry. What are they for?

It is very likely that you know hashtags also from using on other social networks. And do you use them on LinkedIn? 

LinkedIn officially introduced hashtags in 2013, but they were stopped because of such a little interest. But because there was still quite a large number of people using them, despite they weren’t supported, LinkedIn brought them back again. 🙂 And as it is with every new thing being introduced, LinkedIn strongly supports their using on PC and on mobile phones.

What is a hashtag?

Wikipedia says: Hashtag is a word or a phrase marked by #. The meaning of the word marked with this symbol is today understood as a form of a keyword. It is being used most frequently in informational systems to “unequivocally” mark posts, documents or their parts, possibly keywords or important words. Short posts on microblogs or social networks can be marked by placing “#” before important words.

How does hashtag on LinkedIn work?

When you see a hashtag in a LinkedIn post and when you click on it, other content shows, which is marked by the same hashtag.

You can also start following a chosen hashtag. LinkedIn will include your preference in the algorithm, according to which are the posts chosen and shown in your news feed.

Why should you use hashtags on LinkedIn?

Simply said, hashtags work as keywords that help your content to show in the search engine results. It makes it easier for your audience to find your content on LinkedIn. Thanks to this, hashtags help you to build your brand on LinkedIn. For example, when you search for a hashtag #linkedinforbusiness, it will show you posts I had published on the Linked Academy site or on my personal profile if they contain tips, instructions, how to use LinkedIn for business. This way you can find out what I do, to whom and what I help others with and what my brand is about.

So if you go and watch my content under the hashtag #linkedinforbusiness, you start noticing and (I hope) also using LinkedIn as a tool for sale and marketing. Thanks to hashtags, you can start building a community, that connects people with similar topics and questions. The ones you can help them with as an expert…

Where to hashtag?

Insert hashtags into every one of your posts, it doesn’t matter if you post on your personal or business profile. Insert them into shared content as well as into the articles on LinkedIn. You can newly hashtag also your business profile and help it to be shown in the search results.

How to hashtag?

Writing hashtags is easy: First the double cross – Press Alt Gr and X at the same time on Windows PC, or press Alt + 3 at the same time on Mac. Then you can start one or more word expression without space, all in lowercase, with no punctuation, more words without spaces between the individual words, then spacebar and you can write the next one. You know the hashtag is written correctly once it turns blue.

It is much more difficult to choose the right hashtag. How to go about it? 

Let’s say, for example, you want to publish an article about how active listening facilitates communication and helps to prevent misunderstandings and conflicts in teams. Use the hashtag #communication. This is a suitably chosen hashtag.

But try to add more, for example: #activelistening #conflictprevention #teamcommunication #teamleading

Why have I chosen these hashtags above? I did have a think about what expressions describe well the content of the post and then also about what my target group is trying to solve, what questions they ask and what they are looking for on LinkedIn… It will be easier if you have clearly defined your target audience on Linked In. More about this in this post >>>

Then it is a good idea to add other targeted hashtags that relate to the content more generally, but they are trendy and followed. If you create the content in English, it will be a little bit easier. Because there are not always as trendy hashtags in your native language as in English, but there is no problem to use English hashtags that are also followed by your audience.

In this case, I recommend #communication, that currently has almost 8,500 followers. How do I know this? I have looked it up on LinkedIn.

So let me summarize: Use hashtags that correspond with your content, your target audience and your field and are specific and targetted. They will connect your audience with your content and your brand. And at the same time, use hashtags, which are frequently followed. These will connect you with a brand new audience. Jana Bartikova

What next?

Did you like this post? Share it on LinkedIn.  

If you want to learn how to use LinkedIn as a marketing and sales tool, attend my course Linked Academy online.

I will lead you step by step, in five interactive and practical lessons.