Since we manage accounts on a lot of social media platforms, we’re often asked if it’s worth using hashtags on Facebook in 2024. In our experience as social media managers, using popular hashtags on the Metaverse – especially on your Facebook page – is a necessity!
Meta has put a lot of work into organizing content on their platforms by topics and interests. By selecting topics for your Reels, using trending hashtags on your posts, and searching content by popular hashtags, it’s easier than ever to find content that matters.
So, if you want to be found by your target audience, it’s imperative to know what Facebook hashtags to use. It’s even more important that you use them often! So, then, how exactly do hashtags work?
First off, let’s make sure we’re on the same page! Facebook tags and Facebook hashtags are completely different and have two distinct purposes. Facebook tags are when you select another account or page in your post.
This is a great practice to do when you visit a local business and want to post about your experience, or you’re out with friends/family and you want to share your photos with them on your profile.
In these cases, you can tag the small business or your friends and family to share the post with them! They will get a notification that they’ve been tagged in a post and they will be able to add it to their profile and share it. To tag a person or a business, they have to have a Facebook account or page and they have to have their privacy setting turned to public or ‘allow tagging.’
On the other hand, Facebook hashtags are used to tag the category or labels of your content. Every hashtag – word or phrase – that you put will have its own ‘home’ on the Facebook platform.
For example, if you type #gardentools into the search bar on Facebook, you’ll see posts with that hashtag from every person who has ever used it in a post. Hashtags are not selecting people, businesses, or even places, they are organizing your post into a category so when people search for things, your post comes up in those search results.
As of 2023, Facebook had 2.989 billion active users. It was ranked first among the world’s most active social media platforms. Because of the amount of activity, there’s a lot of competition to be seen. But, by using a popular hashtag in your next Facebook post, you can better connect with the audience that matters to you.
Though Reels can seem like a separate platform in Facebook, it still carries many of the same rules as regular Facebook posts. You still only want to use three to five hashtags at the most! Reel content is short-form video content and is used to quickly capture people’s attention before they scroll to the next video.
People will only see the videos that are categorized in the type of content they like and interact with. This is controlled by the ‘algorithm,’ a shadowy program that keeps track of what content users enjoy. This is why it’s important to incorporate hashtags into your Reel content!
To make sure your posts are reaching the people who enjoy your type of content, you need to label it correctly so that the algorithm properly organizes it and shows it to your target audience.
When creating hashtags for Facebook, you don’t want to go crazy with them! Using too many hashtags is just as bad – or worse – than using too few. The general consensus is that it’s best practice to use only 2–4 hashtags per post on Facebook. Usually, these posts perform the best and give Facebook a clear indication of where to place your content.
When using hashtags in your social media posts, it’s crucial that you only use relevant hashtags. You want to be certain to use the right hashtags! So, you’ll want to be sure that you…
And now for the hard part: how do you find trending hashtags? Luckily, Facebook has made it extremely easy to find the hashtags you need. By using Facebook’s ‘explore’ page, you can search for content based on interests, as shown in the following example.
You can use this feature by clicking on a topic that you think speaks to your brand. Then, search the content you see there for common hashtags, posts that are performing well, and other ways to connect with your target audience. You can also use it to check out hashtags on Facebook that are currently trending, as shown below.
Creating content that caters to one of these trending Facebook hashtags is a great way to reach a large number of people. It works especially well when your product is related to – or addresses – an issue expressed by the people using the hashtag. You can also use it if your product or service has a larger, more generalized target audience, as it can help to narrow your focus.
There are three main ways that people place trending hashtags in their posts: either by placing them at the end of their post, within their text, or a mix of both!
It’s super common to put the most popular hashtags at the bottom of your post, in a section of their own. For visibility, this is a great way to make your posts look clean and aesthetically pleasing. Though that is not to say that mixing Facebook hashtags in with your text is frowned upon. In fact, if you can use trending Facebook hashtags that fit your content but maintain the readability of your post, it’s a fun way to make your posts stick out a bit from the rest!
‘I’m feeling like a bookworm today at the Downtown Kalamazoo Library! Reading is so much fun!’
1. At the end of the post
‘I’m feeling like a bookworm at the Downtown @kalamazoolibrary! Reading is so much fun!’
#bookworm #reading #readingisfun
2. Inside the post itself
‘I’m feeling like a #bookworm at the Downtown @kalamazoolibrary! Reading is so much fun!’
3. A mixture of the two!
‘I’m feeling like a #bookworm at the Downtown @kalamazoolibrary! Reading is so much fun!’
#reading #readingisfun
Obviously, you don’t want to use the same hashtag over and over. Luckily, there are a few ways to find other relevant hashtags on Facebook. First, you can do a quick Google search for the best hashtags in your desired category, for example ‘top hashtags in 2024 for coffee shops.’ Then, you take that list and select the ones that pertain to your content.
Another option is to search Facebook itself for the best hashtags and see what type of content comes up! Check to see the dates the content was posted and how popular the content is.
More than ever before, hashtags have a huge impact on the performance of Facebook posts. The platform is actively working to streamline content organization and aiming to make it more easily accessible by users. Seizing this opportunity, we can help you optimize your content for easy categorization, ensuring that you’re seen by a highly valuable audience!
At Kzoom, we aim to provide the best digital marketing and social media management services in Kalamazoo. Whether you’re a fledgling business that’s looking to establish an audience or you already have an audience you’re speaking to, we can help. So, reach out to us today to learn more about our social media offerings!
Kiah is a passionate marketer. She is a social media wizard who loves staying on top of current trends and creating intriguing content.
In her free time she loves digital painting, reading fantasy novels and spending time in the woods with her dog, Luna.
