My Favourite #Hashtag
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a hashtag is ‘On social media websites and applications: a word or phrase preceded by a hash sign and used to identify messages relating to a specific topic.’ (Oxford English Dictionary, 2023) In other words, a way of linking and searching for similar content. For instance, if you put the hash symbol (#) in front of the word London in a Twitter search, you will find a plethora of results that relate in some way to the city. However, in recent years the hashtag has moved far beyond its humble beginning and ‘the practice of tagging, once an act of classification, has emerged as a means of forging and contesting social bonds.’ (Zappavigna, 2018, p. 1) So, not only can you use it to search for content of interest, using hashtags reinforces a sense of belonging by mutual interest, much in the way fans of influencers will tag their idols name in their posts in the hope they will see it, or other fans will find them.
Personally, my favourite hashtag is #equestrian as it sums up a lot of the posts I make and want to see. It relates to all kinds of horse or rider content, but it often leads me to loosely related images or text I don’t find relevant (for entertainment purposes), like brushes or arena substrate – yawn! A downside of the hashtag. Although I add this to a lot of my social media posts, it’s quite generic which is probably why Equine Business Resource decided not to list it in their top 30 equine hashtags to use: 30 Equestrian Hashtags For Instagram.
fig.1 Neigh surprises with the Instagram search #equestrian results!
On Instagram alone, there are almost 16.5 million search results for #equestrian! (fig.1) But why do so many of us use it? It is an easily recognisable word covering a wide genre – horses, their equipment and associated sports. On an individual basis, as Zappavigna suggests, there is a social attachment to the word which creates universal appeal. But there is also wide business value in such a generalised term. One might be unlikely to search for #PooPicking but, Quick Pick Equine sell a product that does just that and would be of interest to most horse people, which is probably why they have chosen to include #equestrian in their advertising hashtags. The reason for this according to Stathopoulou in her article on Consumer Branded #Hashtag Engagement is business want to ‘create branded content that not only breaks through the clutter of traditional media but is also highly shareable online.’ (Stathapoulou, 2017)
I would also argue there is an element of professionalism to #equestrian, as the Oxford English Dictionary description is someone ‘skilled in horse-riding’. (Oxford English Dictionary, 2023) We all want people to think we are good at what we do, after all, that’s why we are posting to social media! Blogging.org certainly agree with me; top of their list of must-use equestrian hashtags is #equestrian - Best Equestrian Blogs and Hashtags to Follow in 2022 (blogging.org) On this understanding, why wouldn’t any company associated with the equine industry not use the ‘professional tag #equestrian? Maybe subconsciously, by using #equestrian, I feel like I’m more of an expert than just a horse-rider?
fig.2 A social bond to which all #equestrian people can relate!
