What Time Is It?
Being consistent will always be the key to success in any social media marketing strategy. If you’re not regularly active on social media, people searching for your business may not have the best impression of your business as they search for your services on Facebook and other platforms during their regularly active social media surfing.
Between LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram there is no universal time to post across all platforms your business is currently using. As the demographics for each varies tremendously, your posting patterns should reflect those demographics. Even when you post on each platform should differ depending on who you’re looking to target with a particular message. Is your head spinning yet? Well unspin and take a look below at how you should approach each platform in your social media marketing strategy.
Facebook: Facebook is the unrivalled leader in social media with the most users worldwide. Not having a successful Facebook Page can be the difference between how you and your competition fare in your market, whether that’s global or local. Take advantage of the early afternoon (Between 1PM & 3PM) when most people are likely to share and click on your content. On a much larger scale, if you’re posting from the time you think your consumer is leaving for work or school and when they are just finishing their dinner, you should achieve consistent interaction.
Instagram: Do you have a very visual business? Do you want the latest cut your barbers perform be liked and commented on the most? Is that unique dessert your bakery just made a “must-see” piece of content for foodies everywhere? Definitely have your social media manager at the ready between 5 & 6 PM as most Instagram users are online between those times. And, since the average Instagram photo has a shelf life of about 4 hours, you’ll be front-and-centre when people use the app the most (when they’ve finished the work day and need to be entertained).
LinkedIn: Checking LinkedIn seems to have replace the morning paper for professionals that you’re looking to connect with. As we’ve encountered with our clients on numerous occasions, setting a plan to have your content out between 7 & 9 AM will do wonders for your engagement with professionals in your network. Share news clipping, share specials, but be sure to have what you share become synonymous with your target audiences’ breakfast or cup of coffee in the morning.
Twitter: According to the most recent Buffer Blog stats, your Tweeting times depend on your brand’s goals. Are you looking to convert those eyeballs into website clicks? Then be sure to have those Tweets sent out in the morning. If you’re looking for straight sharing and exposure (Likes & ReTweets), be sure to utilize the evening and late night hours to achieve those measurables. Basically, get them from Twitter to your site in the AM, keep them on Twitter and sharing desirable content with their networks at night.
Since social media marketing is all about a conversation between brand and consumer, choosing the best times to post can be a key factor in how many of those conversations YOU initiate as a brand. That’s right, beyond consistency, when you post on social media can determine success rate of campaigns or even just a regular post. Who you reach is made that much easier if you know when most people are active and on which platform.
