#HASHTAG

In the early 2010s, numerous people started using social media platforms daily such as Facebook and Twitter. As these platforms became more popular it became difficult to search for specific posts, there being an infinite amount of content. As a result, hashtags were created by a former web designer, Chris Messina, to compose certain posts into groups, by simply adding a pound sign, followed by a word or phrase (Edwards, 2013).

Nowadays, new generations have adapted this method to compile a vast amount of content on newer platforms such as TikTok and Instagram. Searching for relatable content online has become effortless, just click on any hashtag on any post and there, you have a collection of content that uses the same hashtag. This technique has become more commonly used in photographs and videos, creating a compilation of similar content or discovering the creator(s) of the content. The use of social media and hashtags throughout these past years has created a pleasant, supportive, and friendly environment for users.

Not only do regular daily users utilize these functions in their posts, but companies and organizations have gotten on board with this trend. The use of hashtags helps expand a company's recognition and audience all over the world, by integrating hashtags into commercials for viewers to use when they buy and post a product (Barker, 2022). Although hashtags have become a very popular thing, some have fallen out of date, and staying up to date with new tags is important, if wanting to get more likes and views on your post.

Edwards, Jim. “The Inventor of the Twitter Hashtag Explains Why He Didn't Patent It.” Business Insider, Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/chris-messina-talks-about-inventing-the-hashtag-on-twitter-2013-11.

Barker, Shane. “15 Hashtag Campaigns That Maximized the Brands' Reach.” Shane Barker, 31 July 2022, https://shanebarker.com/blog/hashtag-campaigns/.