Are Twitter-Style Hashtags On Facebook A Savvy Move?

Are Twitter-Style Hashtags On Facebook A Savvy Move?


Despite the inability to pull up all posts about similar topics or index conversations around trending topics, Facebook users already placing hastags in posts: Please carry on. But just know they may actually work in the future.

The social network is reportedly considering incorporating one of Twitter’s signature markers, the hashtag, into its platform, according to reports in the Wall Street Journal and other news outlets. While many are unsure how far along Facebook is with the hashtag process, it isn’t likely to begin for some time. The Menlo Park, California-based company has declined to comment on the recent reports.

Hashtags, words or phrases preceded by a pound (#) symbol, allow users to gather Twitter messages surrounding a news event or topic for tracking and aggregation purposes. The hashtagged words that gain popularity often become trending topics. While it is believed that Facebook’s hashtag system would work like Twitter’s current model, that information is to be determined.

Beyond the supposed Twitter-Facebook feud, implementing hashtags into their business model is a smart revenue-generating move. Similar to Twitter’s promoted hashtags; advertisers could theoretically “promote” user posts that contain specific hashtags as they currently do with the “likes” on business pages.  The move would change the user experience, and some, like members of the “This is not Twitter. Hashtags don’t work here” movement on Facebook, are not fans of hashtag usage on the robust platform. The group has over 10,000 “likes.”

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