Timing is key when it comes to social media posts. The idea is to gain as large of an audience as possible. Social media marketing has evolved into an integral business tool. Any business venture out there ought to have an online presence of some kind. Most businesses invest in websites and the savviest ones have social media accounts. This article aims to identify the best time to post on social media.
The success of any given business depends on two factors, the level of consumer satisfaction and the degree of effort witnessed in marketing. Social media marketing is a recent trend and seems to be catching on pretty fast. Social media marketing capitalizes on the human need to network with other people, build new friendships and exchange experiences. A well-orchestrated social media marketing strategy has the potential to boost your business to new heights.
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The best time to post content on social media is when most people are online. Whether for business or plain social networking, the timing of a post hugely influences its reach.
- FACEBOOK: Getting accurate timing of post is a complicated matter on Facebook thanks to the complicated news feed algorithm. Infographic studies have however established publishing times that are sure to earn your posts a large audience. Studies have shown that more and more people log onto Facebook between 1 pm and 4 pm Monday to Friday. This somehow helps with motivation through the afternoon slump.
The numbers seem to peek at around 3pm weekdays. During the weekends, the best time to post content onto social media is from 11am to 1pm. As always, the target audience will also determine the reach of your social media posts.
- TWITTER: Tweets have a relatively shorter period of time compared to Facebook. The average time for a tweet is 24 minutes which is termed as its half-life. Facebook posts average 90 minutes on the “half-life” scale. The best time to post content onto twitter is 3pm during the weekdays. At this time, the number of logged in users reaches its peak. During the weekends the best times are between 12pm and 3pm.
Other factors come into play as far as twitter is concerned. Things such as tags and retweets determine how long a post floats around.
- INSTAGRAM: Instagram introduces a whole new dynamic to social media content. Based on how popular the posted content is, the posts are likelier to float around longer. Instagram also depends on one’s following and number of people who’ve subscribed to the content. The best time to post content on Instagram is between 11 am and 2 pm during the weekdays and between 7am and 1 pm during the weekends.
- YOUTUBE: YouTube is a whole other ball game as far as social media is concerned. YouTube requires a steady following and subscription base. Infographic studies suggest that the best time to post your content onto YouTube is over lunch hour during the weekdays and afternoons. People have a tendency to “ride-out” weekday afternoons on YouTube. Chances are you have a better likelihood to gain a large audience during this time. During the weekends, between 9am and 3pm the number of logged in users hits its peak.
To conclude, posting content on social media sites isn’t an exact science. It takes time to perfect the practice and soon after a steady trend can be established. Human are creatures of habit but often, patterns can change due to factors outside of our control. Learning to “read the wind” on social media trends can almost assuredly see to it that your social media content receives a wide audience.
REFERENCES: fastcompany.com, blog.hootsuite.com, blog.hubspot.com, coschedule.com