The Power of Hashtags on Twitter

When I first started using Twitter, I was confused by all the hash marks in front of words. I'd see a Tweet like this:

#amwriting about the #civilwar and I need information about #rifles used by soldiers. 

Eventually, I learned what was going on. These are called "Hashtags." They make use of the power of the Twitter search engine to create ad hoc groups and to aid research on Twitter. Here's how it works. Let's say I am a fan of Haven on the SyFy channel, and I want to see what other people are saying about Haven and maybe even join the conversation, I can go to Twitter.com and type #haven into the search bar at the top of the page. It will pull up all Tweets that have been posted with that word preceded by the hash mark.

I just did that with #Haven and the first post was someone asking when the new season would start. I'm sure some person will have an answer and respond with the #haven hash tag.

Now, just as an aside, this points out to one aspect of Twitter which should make you think before you tweet. Since all tweets (unless you purposely elect to have yours hidden) are searchable and basically public, you need to be careful what you tweet. I don't mind. I don't tweet anything I don't care that the world reads. I'm less cautious on Facebook because I can control who reads my posts there more precisely.

Now, Back on point, hash tags make it possible for you to communicate with thousands of people who are not "following" you on Twitter. They can also respond to you. This is huge because some people follow certain hashtags all the time. For instance, there's a hashtag #amwriting. Writers post that they are starting to write. It provides a type of accountability. But they also often ask research questions, post links of interest to writers or just seek support and advice. I have a column open on Tweetdeck following that hashtag group all the time.

Writers can use hashtags in many ways.

1. To target special interest groups. Let's say you just posted a blog about your new book on motorcycle maintenance. You could post a tweet like this:
   
   Fix your Ride. #Motorcycle #repair for everyone. Find out more at URL
   
   This will not only go out to your own followers, but also to everyone who searches for #motorcycle that day. That could be thousands. 
2. To network with writers and others. Writing can be a lonely business. Sitting on the computer pounding out copy can get a bit tiring at times. Just knowing there are others out there doing the same thing can be an encouragement. Some good hashtag groups for writers are #amwriting, #amediting, #nanowrimo and #writingsprints. You can also follow specific genres such as #scifi, #sciencefiction, #mystery and #romance. 
3. To create your own group. Maybe you are in touch with a number of people who share a given interest, you can come up with an agreed upon hashtag and use it to reach across twitter accounts to keep in touch. For instance, you might have a writers group in your town and create the hashtag #mytownwriters . Then just search for that hashtag to see what everyone is doing or set up an automatic search in an aggregator like TweetDeck or HootSuite. 
4. To do research. With hundreds and even thousands of people following certain hashtags, you can post a request for information and almost be sure to get a response. Let's say you are doing' research on caregivers for Alzheimer's patients. You could post something like:
   
   #amwriting an article on #alzheimer's #caregivers. Looking for interviews DM or email at _____.
   It is best to use an email address that is specifically used for research and not your personal email because this is very public.  By hashtagging #amwriting, #alzheimer's and #caregivers you increase the chances of people responding because people searching any of those terms will see your request.
   
   You can also simply search for your subject. For instance, I just plugged in the hashtag #alzheimer's and got a link to an article from Everyday Health about what to do when dementia patients refuse help. Indeed, this is a twitter account devoted entirely to Alzheimer's. So, clicking on that link, I find all sorts of links to articles about Alzheimer's including many related to caregiving. In fact, I found myself happily clicking through several articles. My father had the disease and I'm always interested in information about it.

So, before you post that tweet, think about "hashtagging" it a bit. 

Learn more about Social Media and other Computer Mediated Communication in a special course offered just for writers. This 18-Week Course covers all the social media including the new Facebook features and Google Plus and Twitter. But goes beyond social media to also cover blogging, researching online, writing for the web (and the opportunities to write for online publications), creating websites on a budget, digital publishing, online collaboration and using email professionally. This course is based on one I teach at my college, but geared toward the need of writers. The instructor guided course begins February 1 and costs $19.95. An abridged autopilot version will also be offered for free. For information about all the new courses go to http://educationwantstobefree.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-courses-for-spring-and-big-bargains.html