Hashtags first became popular on Twitter, or X, but they are now commonplace across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, and other social media platforms. Their main purpose is to group similar posts together to help users find content that matters to them.
As a chiropractor, social media should be a main part of your marketing strategy to drive brand awareness and engage with patients. Whether you’re new to social media or looking to improve performance, hashtags can help.
In this article, we explain how to use hashtags across several popular social media platforms. We also provide a list of common chiropractic hashtags to include in your posts and offer tips on how to conduct research if you’re looking for more niche hashtags.
The Benefits of Using Hashtags in Social Media Posts
While hashtags make social media content easier for users to navigate, they can also benefit you from a brand perspective. Here are some of the reasons why we recommend incorporating hashtags into your social media strategy:
Enhances content categorization: Hashtags label your social media posts. This is important because the platform’s algorithm needs to know what your posts are about to determine which users to show your content to.
Expands brand awareness: Hashtags increase your brand’s visibility because the algorithm shows your post to users outside of your followers who might be interested in your content. Users can also find your posts by typing a hashtag into the platform’s search bar. This shows them all the posts that have used that hashtag, including yours.
Improves post engagement: Labeling your posts with hashtags generally means they’re shown to more users—or at the very least, users who are more likely to be interested in what you’re saying. This increases your chances of getting likes, comments, shares, and other engagement.
While hashtags are beneficial in social media marketing, there is a limit to how much they can help. In fact, if you use them incorrectly, you could actually hurt your marketing efforts. For the best results, stick to a few highly relevant hashtags per post. Avoid adding too many hashtags or including hashtags that aren’t related to the post’s topic because that makes it difficult for the algorithm and users to determine what your content is about.
How Hashtags Differ by Social Media Platform
Every social media platform serves a different audience and purpose, which means hashtag usage also varies. Below are some best practices on how to use hashtags on some of the most popular platforms.
Twitter/X
Hashtags are at the core of how X operates. So much so, there is even a section that shows trending hashtags and topics. For this reason, we recommend using hashtags on X to join popular conversations. Technically, X doesn’t have a hashtag maximum, but we recommend only including one or two hashtags per tweet so that you don’t use up too much of your tweet’s 280-character limit.
Instagram
Instagram used to have a 30-hashtag limit per post, but it recently changed its policy to five hashtags and then to three hashtags. We would recommend using all three of the allowed hashtags. Most marketers make their Instagram hashtags about the topic of the post. They also use it for branding. For example, you might make one of your hashtags the name of your chiropractic practice.
Facebook
Facebook doesn’t have a hashtag limit, but hashtags are generally less popular on this social media platform than on other ones. Since they’re less common, only include one or two hashtags about the topic of the post.
TikTok
TikTok hashtags work similarly to Instagram hashtags in that they categorize content and determine who is shown what videos. TikTok also recently rolled out an update to limit hashtag usage to up to five hashtags per caption.
LinkedIn
Use LinkedIn to build a professional network to connect with other chiropractors, practices, and healthcare professionals. LinkedIn doesn’t have a hashtag limit, but our recommendation is including three to five hashtags related to the chiropractic industry in each post.
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Popular Hashtags for Chiropractic Practices
Even with the differences among social media platforms, there are some hashtags that are popular across the board. Here is a list of 20 chiropractic hashtags that you can use in any of your social media posts:
#chiropractic
#chiropracticadjustment
#chiropracticcare
#chiropractichealth
#chiropracticclinic
#chiropracticdoctor
#doctorofchiropractic
#chiropractor
#chiro
#functionalmedicine
#backpain
#lowbackpain
#neckpain
#kneepain
#painrelief
#painmanagement
#spine
#posture
#getadjusted
#adjustment
How To Research Chiropractic Hashtags
The list in the previous section contains general hashtags about chiropractic care. These tags act as a great starting point, but maybe you want to get more specific to match the topic of your post. If that’s the case, here are a few ways to research and choose your own hashtags:
Search: Every social media platform has a search bar. Type the topic of your post into that search bar, and the platform’s algorithm will show you a list of hashtags related to that keyword and how many posts have used each hashtag.
Competitors: Maybe you follow the American Chiropractic Association, competing chiropractors or practices, or other accounts. You can draw inspiration from the hashtags they use in their social media posts.
Hashtag generators: There are several free websites out there that aggregate hashtag opportunities from social media platforms. A couple popular ones include all-hashtag.com and best-hashtags.com. You can input a keyword into the website to generate a list of related hashtags. Some of the websites also tell you how many posts use each hashtag and on which platforms.
Final Thoughts
Social media is an excellent way for chiropractors to build brand awareness, share chiropractic advice, and engage with followers. Hashtags play a key role in your social media presence, labeling your posts to tell the algorithm and users what your content is about.
If you’re looking to incorporate hashtags into your practice’s social media marketing strategy, Online Chiro can help. We offer a Social Media Management service that includes regular posting on your social media pages. Contact us today for more information if you’re interested.
Katie McNichols is an experienced writer and editor, specializing in digital content. The aim of her blog posts is to demystify digital marketing for healthcare professionals. She hopes to equip them with the tools they need to build an online presence that promotes their services and grows their practice.
In order to grow their practice, chiropractors must meet potential patients where they are. Most U.S. adults spend time on social media, and 70% of them use Facebook. This makes social media—and specifically Facebook—a powerful tool for chiropractor marketing.
In addition to reaching new patients, Facebook is also useful for building an online brand. Paired with a polished, informative website, a Facebook account with frequent posts shows that you’re an experienced chiropractor.
Keep reading if you’re looking to learn how to set up and post on a Facebook page for your chiropractic practice. We also explore paid Facebook Ads, another part of this social media platform that reaches a wider audience than organic posts.
Types of Facebook Marketing
Chiropractors reach the widest possible audience when they use both organic content and paid advertising on Facebook’s platform. Organic content is what you post on your chiropractic practice’s Facebook page. This type of content is free to create, and it appears in the feeds of anyone following your page.
Your paid ads are sprinkled into the feeds of Facebook users—both followers and non-followers. They say “sponsored” along the top so that users can tell them apart from organic posts. You pay for every feed placement, also known as an impression.
Organic Content
Posting on your Facebook page serves several purposes, including:
Brand awareness: Your Facebook page tells visitors what your chiropractic practice does. That way, you come to mind when they have a musculoskeletal concern in the future and are looking for a chiropractor to see about it.
Practice credibility: You can use your Facebook page to update your followers on news in the chiropractic world or offer them tips on joint health. If you post frequently enough, your followers think of you as knowledgeable and trustworthy. This makes them more likely to schedule an appointment with you when they need chiropractic care.
Patient engagement: One of the main advantages of social media is that it allows for two-way communication. Your patients can react to your posts and send you direct messages. This makes patients feel more connected to and heard by you, and a happy patient continues to see you for their chiropractic care.
Though it’s important to establish an organic presence on Facebook, these posts have their limitations. Some of these disadvantages include:
Limited reach: Your Facebook posts only appear in your followers’ feeds, which means you reach a limited number of Facebook users. There is an exception to this rule that sometimes applies. When your followers react to your posts, you may appear in their friends’ feeds as well.
Time commitment: To grow your Facebook following, you must post several times per month. You also have to keep an eye on your notifications to make sure you respond or react to all comments and messages. This may be too much of a time commitment if you run a small chiropractic practice with few staff members to help you.
Paid Advertising
Facebook paid ads are useful for the following reasons:
Enhanced visibility: Facebook uses the data it has collected on its users to determine who is most likely to be interested in your services and then target their specific demographics, behaviors, and interests with your paid ads. The Facebook users who have these characteristics can be anyone on the platform, not just your followers, which means you’re reaching a broader audience.
Lead generation: Every Facebook ad has a call to action (CTA) that asks the person to do something, such as visit your website. Once they complete this action, they become a lead. A lead is a marketing term used to describe someone who has shown interest in your chiropractic services. A lead isn’t necessarily guaranteed to become a patient, but if you continue to reach out to remind them about your services, you may be able to convince them to schedule an appointment with you.
Ad retargeting: Facebook’s retargeting capability shows your ads to users who have previously interacted with your chiropractic practice. For example, maybe they have visited your website or seen a previous ad. This strategy is more effective than cold outreach at turning leads into patients because these individuals have heard of you.
Here are some of the cons of Facebook paid advertising:
Added expenses: Facebook offers cost-effective advertising compared to other platforms, such as Google Ads, but it still isn’t free. You have to set a monthly budget for paid ads and factor that cost into the other expenses of running and marketing your chiropractic practice.
Ad blindness: Internet users are constantly bombarded by ads, so their brains sometimes filter them out, a phenomenon called ad blindness. You don’t want this to happen with your ads, so you need to make them relevant and eye-catching.
Content Marketing Ideas for Chiropractic Facebook Pages
The content on your Facebook page is usually informational in nature because you’re trying to build a brand for your chiropractic practice. Here are some ideas for Facebook posts that tell your followers exactly who you are and position yourself as experienced and knowledgeable.
Wellness Tips
Educate your followers on how to improve their spinal and joint health. For example, you could provide tips on maintaining good posture while working at a desk all day or list stretches to do before working out to prevent injuries. This type of content not only shows your patients that you care about them beyond just getting them to schedule appointments with you, but it also demonstrates that you know what you’re talking about.
Patient Testimonials
Potential patients like to hear from current patients to determine if you can help them. You can repurpose an online review from your Google Business Profile or share an in-depth story on how you helped a patient and ask them for a quote to include. These testimonials show real examples of what you do, giving potential patients an idea of the quality of your services.
Chiropractic News
Chiropractic news is everything from research studies to news articles to holidays that are relevant to the chiropractic industry. For example, the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) has a tab on its website for research that shows the value chiropractic care offers patients. You could write a Facebook post about a new study that was recently added to that page.
There are also a few holidays throughout the year that are specific to chiropractors, such as National Chiropractic Health Month in October. Every year has a theme to focus on a specific aspect of chiropractic health. You can make a post for the first of the month where you explain the theme for the year and provide health tips related to that theme.
Practice Updates
Many of your followers are likely going to be your current patients, so you can use your Facebook page to update them on any changes to your chiropractic practice. For example, you can do a spotlight on a new staff member joining the team or talk about the new telehealth service you’re offering. You should also add these operational changes to your website, but it’s still good to write a separate social media post to ensure your patients find out about them.
Behind-the-Scenes Glimpses
Behind-the-scenes content humanizes your chiropractic practice, making it easier for your followers to connect with you. Here are some examples of this type of content:
A day in the life as a chiropractor
A holiday celebration with staff members in the office
A demonstration of turning over an exam room between patients
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Campaign Ideas for Chiropractic Facebook Ads
The copy for your ads should be different from the posts on your page because the purpose of the content is different. In this case, you’re trying to promote your chiropractic services, so you want to directly talk about what you do. Below are some specific ideas on how to do this.
Patient Concerns
Chiropractic ads perform better if you directly address the pain points with which your target audience may be struggling. For example, if you specialize in sports-related injuries, you can make the first line of your ad about sprains, tears, or something else. The second line of your ad would then talk about how you treat that injury. This approach helps your audience see the value of your services.
Limited-Time Offers
Consider running a promotion, such as $25 off your first adjustment. People are always looking for ways to save money, and if you make the deal time-sensitive, you encourage them to book an appointment with you immediately as opposed to putting off the decision.
Before & After Shots
Use before and after photos to show how you have helped a patient. For example, you can demonstrate how their posture has improved or how the swelling in their ankle has gone down. Appealing visuals stand out, grabbing the Facebook user’s attention when they’re scrolling through their feed and showing them a real example of your chiropractic care.
Regardless of which content idea you choose to use for your ad campaign, be sure to keep your copy concise. Facebook recommends a length of around 125 characters, or about two lines of text. If a potential patient wants to learn more about your specialty or practice, they’ll visit your Facebook page or website.
Best Practices for Chiropractic Facebook Marketing
There are certain tips and tricks that apply to all Facebook content, not just ads or posts. We explore these universal recommendations below.
Use Visuals
Every paid ad includes some sort of visual (e.g., picture, video, infographic, carousel). Even with organic posts that don’t require a visual, you still see better engagement with one. For example, maybe you include a headshot in the spotlight post about the new staff member joining your practice. Facebook users can feel overwhelmed when they see a lot of text, so photos and videos are a visual way to get your point across.
Keep HIPAA in Mind
HIPAA guidelines prohibit you from sharing a patient’s personal information on social media unless they give you express permission to do so. Personal information is anything that can be traced back to them, including images of their face and body. If you don’t have their consent, you either have to refrain from posting their story or remove all personal details and tell a generic story.
Use a Content Calendar
Keeping up with Facebook can be daunting, especially when you’re posting on your page and running an ad campaign. That’s why we recommend setting up a content calendar to plan each month ahead of time. You can even schedule your posts and ads to go live on a certain day.
Chiropractic Facebook Advertising vs. Google Advertising
Another type of paid advertising chiropractors should consider is Google Ads. There are several types of Google Ads, but the traditional type is the one that appears at the top and bottom of search results. Like Facebook Ads, they say “sponsored” so that Google users can tell them apart from website pages that have appeared organically on the search engine.
Google Ads serve a different purpose and target a different audience than Facebook Ads, which is why we would recommend splitting your advertising budget between the two and running ad campaigns for both. Below is a quick comparison so that you know how to use each platform.
Facebook
Google
Ad Purpose
Educate users on what you do so that they know who to turn to if they need a chiropractor in the future
Turn users who are actively searching for a chiropractor to treat a musculoskeletal condition into patients
Placement Process
Auctions, where the highest bidder wins placements on feeds
Auctions, where the highest bidder wins placements on search results
Payment Structure
Pay per impression (whenever you appear on a feed) unless you set up an ad campaign to run otherwise
Pay per click, which is why Google advertising is also called PPC advertising
Ad Cost
Fewer advertisers means it’s cheaper to win an auction
More advertisers means it’s more expensive to win an auction
Audience Size
Fewer users means access to a smaller audience to target
More users means access to a larger audience to target
Audience Targeting
Specific demographics, interests, and behaviors based on the characteristics of users who have responded to your ad campaigns in the past
Generic search terms
Ad Format
Ads have visuals and copy
Traditional ads that appear on regular search results are text-based without visuals
Other Social Media Platforms for Chiropractic Marketing
The goal of social media advertising is to connect with users who could potentially become patients for your chiropractic practice. Facebook is a good place to start with this because it is a widely used platform with a broad user base.
However, maybe you set up Facebook and want to add another platform to your marketing strategy. Or, maybe you want to reach a younger audience and create more video content. In which case, we have summarized some other social media sites you might consider in the table below.
User Base
Content Type
Potential Use Cases
Facebook
All ages, though slightly older
Mix of text and visuals
See previous sections
Instagram
Young
Photos and videos
Educational infographics on your area of practice
TikTok
Young
Short videos
Behind-the-scenes glimpses of your office and staff
YouTube
All ages
Long videos
In-depth demonstrations of adjustments
LinkedIn
Professionals
Mostly text, though visuals possible
Connect with other chiropractors
LinkedIn isn’t a platform you would use to directly reach new patients. We included it on this list, though, because it gives you a place to connect with other chiropractors and medical professionals. They might be willing to share what their digital marketing strategy looks like, which could indirectly help you with practice growth.
Final Thoughts
Building a Facebook presence for your chiropractic practice is more than the occasional post or ad. You need a marketing strategy that reaches the right audience and encourages them to engage with you, which requires research, time, and commitment.
If this is more than you can handle on your own, Online Chiro is happy to help. Our team of experts works with chiropractors on PPC advertising, social media management, and other digital marketing efforts. Contact us today to learn more about our services.
Katie McNichols is an experienced writer and editor, specializing in digital content. The aim of her blog posts is to demystify digital marketing for healthcare professionals. She hopes to equip them with the tools they need to build an online presence that promotes their services and grows their practice.
