Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
So why has Facebook waited until now to use hashtags?
Hey, I'm Jamie Le, Social Media and PR Strategist at Creative Bube Tube.
Clickable hashtags have been around since 2009 and put to use by platforms like Twitter,
Instagram, Google+, Pinterest and Tumblr. Why did Facebook wait until now?
In Facebook's announcement, Product Manager Greg Lindley said that between eighty-eight and
a hundred million americans are on Facebook during prime time TV every night
and even though these people were potentially talking about the same shows
there was really no way for them to include themselves in the bigger conversation.
Enter the hashtag --
the reason Twitter became a household name and a staple for social TV.
Facebook's decision to join the rest of the social web is presumably to get in on some of this
social TV action.
Data showed that during this year's Superbowl, 38% of commercials displayed
hashtags while only 7% had a Facebook icon or URL.
On top of that, Twitter recently developed an advertising option that allows marketers to
target users based on what they're watching on TV.
Facebook clearly wants in on the game.
But incorporating hashtags may not target television advertisers like
Facebook seems to hope it will.
Number one, hashtags have been largely associated with Twitter.
Number two, the majority of Twitter users are public. Facebook's selling point is their privacy,
an online connection to offline friends. Users may not trust Facebook as a source for unfiltered conversation.
But I guess only time will tell.
For all the latest and greatest happenings in social media and television advertising, keep up with our
blog.