How to Add Tags on LinkedIn

Tagging on LinkedIn is more than just a notification - it's a simple yet powerful way to amplify your post's visibility, drive engagement, and build stronger professional connections. This guide covers everything you need to know, from the step-by-step how-tos for tagging people and companies to the strategic best practices that separate meaningful mentions from spam. You'll learn the different ways to tag, why it matters, and how to do it right.

Understanding the "Why": The Strategic Power of Tagging on LinkedIn

Before jumping into the mechanics, it's important to understand what a simple @ mention or a # hashtag actually does for you and your content. When used correctly, tagging is a growth tactic that nurtures your network and expands your content's reach without costing a dime.

Increased Reach and Visibility

This is the most direct benefit of tagging. When you tag a person or a company in a LinkedIn post, you're not just sending them a notification. You are creating a direct link to their professional network. Your content has a chance of being surfaced to their followers and connections, an audience that may have never seen your profile otherwise, contributing to effective LinkedIn posts. For instance, if you tag a well-regarded industry expert in a relevant post, their engagement (a like or comment) can expose your content to thousands of their followers. Similarly, tagging a company places your post in their page's "mentions" tab, making it visible to anyone who visits their profile to see what others are saying.

Driving Meaningful Engagement

Tagging is a direct invitation to join a conversation. When you mention someone, you're tapping them on the shoulder and saying, "Hey, this is relevant to you," or "I'd love your thoughts on this." This personal prompt makes them far more likely to comment, share, or react. For example, if you post an article about the future of remote work, you could tag a collaborator by saying, "Great point made by @JaneDoe during our chat last week about productivity." This not only gives Jane credit but encourages her to jump into the comments, adding her voice and deepening the conversation. This interaction acts as social proof, showing a more active and engaging discussion, which often gets prioritized by the LinkedIn algorithm, a key factor to increase B2B engagement on LinkedIn.

Building Relationships and Giving Credit

Professional networking is built on mutual respect and acknowledgment. Tagging is a modern-day form of giving credit where it's due. It shows you value others' contributions, ideas, and expertise. Did a speaker at a recent conference inspire you? Thank them for their session and tag them. Did a teammate go above and beyond on a project? Give them a shout-out and tag them in a company update. These small acts build goodwill and strengthen your professional ties over time. It's an authentic way to show you're collaborative, appreciative, and plugged into your industry's community.

How to Tag People and Companies on LinkedIn (The Step-by-Step Guide)

The actual process of tagging on LinkedIn is very straightforward and consistent across different parts of the platform. Here's a breakdown of where and how you can do it.

Tagging in a New Post (Desktop or Mobile)

This is the most common use case. Whether you're sharing an update, an article, or a photo, the process is the same.

1. Click "Start a post" at the top of your LinkedIn feed.
2. Write out the text for your post.
3. When you want to tag a person or company, type the @ symbol.
4. Immediately start typing the name of the person or company. A dropdown menu will dynamically populate with suggestions based on your network and your spelling.
5. Select the correct profile or page from the list. Once selected, the name will be highlighted in bold blue text, confirming the tag is active.

Pro Tip: Once you've successfully tagged someone, you can edit the text without breaking the tag. For example, after selecting "@John Smith Head of Marketing," you can use your backspace key to delete "Head of Marketing" and make it a more natural mention, like "Thanks @John Smith for the insights." The tag remains, but the text is cleaner.

Tagging in a Comment

Want to pull someone into an existing discussion or reply directly to them? Tagging in a comment follows the exact same logic.

1. Find the post you want to comment on.
2. In the comment box, type your response.
3. Use the @ symbol and start typing the name of the person you want to alert or address.
4. Select their profile from the pop-up list.

This is extremely useful for answering questions. If a follower asks something you don't know the answer to, you could comment: "Great question! I think @JaneDoe from our engineering team is the best person to answer this."

Tagging People in Photos

If your update includes a visual with team members, event attendees, or collaborators, you can tag them directly in the photo.

1. Start a post and click the image icon to upload a photo.
2. Once your photo is uploaded, look for a "Tag" icon or button in the editing options.
3. Click the tag button. Then, click anywhere on the photo.
4. A text box will appear. Start typing the name of the person you want to tag and select them from the dropdown list.
5. You can repeat this for multiple people in the same image. Once done, click "Done" and finish writing your post.

Photo tags are great for visually celebrating your team after a successful project or event.

The Art of the Hashtag: A Different Kind of Tagging

While @ mentions are about people and companies, hashtags (#) are about topics and conversations. They are a form of tagging that categorizes your content, making it discoverable for users interested in specific subjects - even if they don't follow you.

Why Use Hashtags on LinkedIn?

• Discoverability: Users can follow hashtags like #ProjectManagement or #DigitalMarketing. Using these in your post gives you a chance to appear directly in their news feed.
• Context: Hashtags quickly signpost what your post is about, helping both the algorithm and human readers understand its relevance.
• Community: They connect your content to larger, ongoing conversations happening across the platform, positioning you as a participant in your industry's discourse.

Hashtag Best Practices on LinkedIn

• Stick to 3–5 Relevant Tags: Unlike some platforms where more is better, LinkedIn's audience appreciates a focused approach. Using more than five or six hashtags can look spammy and dilute your message.
• Mix Broad and Niche: Combine popular, broad hashtags (e.g., #Leadership) with more specific, niche ones (e.g., #ServantLeadershipModel). The broad tag provides reach, while the niche tag connects you with a more targeted and engaged audience.
• Create a Branded Hashtag: As your company or personal brand grows, consider a unique hashtag (e.g., #LifeAt[YourCompany]) to group your own content and encourage user-generated posts.
• Place Them Naturally: You can add your hashtags at the end of your post for a clean look or integrate them organically within sentences if it feels natural, like: "We're excited to share our latest breakthroughs in #AI for healthcare."

Tagging Etiquette: Best Practices and What to Avoid

"With great power comes great responsibility." This old adage applies perfectly to tagging. Used well, it's a brilliant networking tool. Used poorly, it's a quick way to annoy your network.

DO: Be Relevant and Authentic

Only tag people who have a genuine connection to your post. Did they contribute to the project? Did their article inspire your thoughts? Are they in the photo? Add context telling them why you're tagging them. A simple phrase like, "Inspired by a recent article from @JohnDoe" provides context and feels much more authentic than a random tag.

DON'T: Spam Tag

The biggest mistake you can make is tagging a long list of people (especially popular influencers) purely to try and grab their attention. It's obnoxious, transparent, and ineffective. These kinds of posts often get muted or ignored, and you risk getting a reputation for spammy behavior. If you tag more than 5–10 people who have nothing to do with what you created, stop and reconsider.

DO: Respond When You Are Tagged

Tagging is a two-way street. When someone takes the time to include you in their content, acknowledge it. Even a simple like or a "Thanks for including me!" comment shows your appreciation and encourages future engagement. It reinforces the relationship and signals to others that you're an active member of the community.

Troubleshooting Common Tagging Issues

Sometimes tagging doesn't work as expected. Here are a few common issues and their fixes.

Why Can't I Tag Someone?

• You misspelled their name: Double-check that you're spelling it correctly as it appears in their profile.
• They blocked you: Self-explanatory. You can't tag someone who has blocked you.
• Privacy settings: Some users may have privacy settings that restrict who can tag them. This is less common for content that gets broadly posted online.

My Tag is Just Plain Text

This almost always happens when you type the entire '@JaneDoe' name out without selecting her profile from the dropdown menu. To create the actual, clickable tag, you must select the person or company from the pop-up list that appears as you type.

Removing a Tag

• Removing a tag you made: Simply place your cursor over the tagged name in the post editor and remove it. The tag won't appear.
• Removing a tag of yourself: If someone has tagged you in a post or photo and you want to remove it, click the three dots (...) at the top right of their post and look for an option like "Remove Tag" or "Remove Me From Image."

Final Thoughts

Understanding how to add tags in LinkedIn - from mentioning colleagues to smart hashtag use - transforms your posts from simple updates into powerful conversation starters that expand your reach and build meaningful professional connections. It's one of the most accessible ways to take your content strategy to the next level on this platform.

At Postbase, we're focused on simplifying the day-to-day tasks of social media management, like scheduling posts and tracking engagement. We built our visual calendar to make it easy for you to plan your content in advance, drafting your posts, writing the captions, and adding the relevant @-mentions and hashtags. Then you can schedule it and trust that it'll publish reliably every time, saving you from complex operations and unreliable tools.