Wedding Planning Essentials :: #Hashtag or #NoHashtag! Why Wedding Hashtags Are Wonderful!

In a world where we are consuming more information than ever on a daily basis, things can get lost in cyberspace pretty quickly. The world online seems to be organized in a series of hashtags, so why not use them to your advantage on your wedding day?

Hashtags, for those who do not know, are words or phrases with no spaces that start with the pound (#) symbol in order to create a link to a page featuring a list of other photos or videos with that particular hashtag. This makes it easy to search for things and let others find your tagged content.In 2017, couples are creating hashtags that are used by guests attending their wedding. Guests can post a photo of themselves or a group at the wedding, then attach the hashtag so that all the photos show up in one place when people search for the tag. This can be great for weddings where the couple may not have a photographer or want photos that the photographer often misses, like candids. When it comes to bigger weddings, photos can often become lost in the internet hole, and simply searching for their custom hashtag allows a couple to see all the beautiful photos from their special day. Many people will argue that a hashtag is unnecessary for a wedding, seeing it as something trivial for couples to stress about. But personally, I see it as a way to embrace the photo and internet based culture that we are currently living in. People may say that it’s a very millennial thing to do, but it’s simply a way to embrace the times. Hashtags provide another way for guests to interact at a wedding on a different platform and share the happy day with those who might not have been able to make it. If someone is having a destination wedding with a limited guest list, those who did not attend can search the hashtag to see photos and experience the day from the eyes of guests who were there. Social media is heavily integrated in our daily lives, so sharing wedding photos via social media is going to happen regardless.

One thing that couples often stress about regarding hashtags is the name of the hashtag itself. If you’re choosing a hashtag, you want it to be creative. If not, you’ll often see that your wedding photos are blended with someones else big day, who happened to use the same hashtag as #KeepingUpWithTheJoneses. In order to be original, many couples will mix their last names, make a pun, or place their wedding year at the end.Not sure what to use as your hashtag? Ask your bridal party or reach out to family and friends! You never know, Great Aunt Dorothy or your kindergarten crush might have a brilliant idea you wouldn’t have thought of, and it’s a special way for others to help out with the wedding.

Before you share your hashtag with the world, make sure you are very happy with it! Once you have shared it, people may start to use it and you won’t want to go looking in two places for photos of your big day because one person used one hashtag and one person used another. A great tip, is to place your custom hashtag on your Save the Dates and Invitations that way guests can hashtag photos from any wedding related festivities leading up to the big day too! If you plan to just use the hashtag on the day of the wedding, make sure to have it written on a sign, somewhere near the entrance or at each table so guests will know to use it. As a reminder, you do not NEED to have a hashtag! If you’d like to go old school and not involve technology with your wedding, go ahead! It’s your special day to celebrate the love you have with your partner, so you get to decide what you want to do with your day.