Social Media: The best time to post according to the stats

Launch Your Online Business in Just 7 Days

Promoting your brand through social media is vital to ensure a successful business in today’s digital landscape.


It’s an effective tool for marketing, growing your brand, and engaging with your online community.


Brand awareness means brand growth, and brand growth means more profit.


If you have been around social platforms for a while, you might have noticed that some of your posts gain more interaction than others.


Not knowing why this happens can be extremely frustrating, especially if your main goal is to run your business smoothly.


While what you post is super important, when you post is just as important.


The key to gaining social media awareness is simply knowing when to post.


Below, we will dive into the best times to post content on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.


(As well as give you a few tips on how to keep your audience engaged with your posts!)

1. When is the best time to post?

Simply put, the time you choose to publish your posts on social media will be one of the main factors that determine the level of engagement that your posts receive.


The main goal of posting content is to gain user engagement, interest, and then conversion. Posting at the wrong time can negatively affect this.


Just a quick note: The time you post content depends on the type of business you run. Take note of which times you receive most interaction by using the information below.


It’s all about experimenting!


By using data provided by social media management platforms such as Sprout Social and HootSuite, you can see which times throughout the day will best suit your business’ social media needs.

1.1. Facebook

Facebook

Facebook is a social networking site that makes it easy for you to connect and share information with friends and family online.


With roughly 2.8 billion users, Facebook has become a platform known, loved, and used by many.


Knowing the right times to post on Facebook will benefit most businesses if done correctly.


Here are some interesting statistics to consider before using Facebook as your main posting platform:

Facebook statistics
  • The majority of Facebook’s users fall between the ages of 25 - 34 years of age
  • 75% of female and 63% of all male social media users use Facebook
  • Two-thirds of Facebook users visit local business pages weekly
  • The average post engagement rate per Facebook post is 0.27%
  • Facebook has the most adverts and the highest click-through-rate
  • 15% of the posts on Facebook is video content (vertical videos are favored)

These statistics seem like they should work in your favor as the demographics fit into most business models.


However, many creators have found it increasingly difficult to promote their content on Facebook.


Businesses have to pay for their content to be featured on the homepage, which can make it difficult for startup businesses to succeed.


By analyzing these statistics, you will be able to hack the system by posting during times when people are most active on Facebook.

Facebook Global Engagement
  • Best time: Wednesday between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
  • Worst time: Sunday
  • Business-to-Business company: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
  • Business-to-Consumer company: Noon on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

As mentioned earlier, it would be best to experiment with the times mentioned above and track the results for yourself.


Facebook offers Page Insights that can also work to your benefit.

1.2. Instagram

Instagram

Using Instagram as your primary social platform is best suited if you want constant user engagement.


Instagram integrates business tools into its platform seamlessly, which makes things so much easier for you!


Here are some tips on how to use Instagram for your business.


Using Instagram is one of the most effective ways of transferring user traffic to your other social platforms.


Using their shop feature also makes running your business from their platform a walk in the park.


Here you can find out how to build a successful online brand outside social media.


Additionally, geotags are especially helpful if you run your own store and want people to know where you’re based!


Here’s why you should make Instagram your primary social media platform:

Instagram statistics
  • Instagram has the highest average engagement rate per post than any other social media platform (1.16% per post)
  • Instagram is one of the fastest-growing social networks in the U. S. market with more than 20.6% of internet users worldwide using the app
  • Posts relating to food received the most interaction across the platform (beneficial if you are in the food industry!)
  • 9 in 10 people on Instagram follow a business account
  • 43% of female and 31% of all male social media users use Instagram
  • People who use Instagram are most likely to be active on other social media platforms (which is great if you also want to create awareness of your other social media accounts)
  • The Instagram algorithm favors recent posts to keep their users engaged

You want to post when your followers are most likely to be online to maximize product engagement.


Here are the times you might want to consider if you are feeling like the ‘gram will be your best fit:

Instagram Global Engagement
  • Best time: Wednesday at 11 a.m., and Friday from 10 - 11 a.m.
  • Worst time: Saturday and Sunday

As you can see, Instagram posts receive engagement well throughout the working day - with inactivity falling between hours you wouldn’t want to work anyway!

1.3. Twitter

Twitter

If you are looking into using Twitter as a promotional platform, we want you to keep in mind that the lifespan of a tweet is short (+- 18 minutes).


Timing is crucial.


Twitter’s main audience (44% of users) falls between the ages of 18 - 24. This means that whatever you tweet, you want to keep short and sweet.


Keep your tweet light and informative!


You also want to remain active on Twitter after posting to answer any queries that followers might have.


I know using Twitter can seem daunting - as small businesses don’t receive a lot of interaction - but it can be a great place to engage with your business community.


Using Twitter can increase the perception of customer care amongst users. If you interact with your audience, you will seem like you genuinely care about their opinions.


It is also the perfect place to post promotional content and link other pages you might want to promote.


To ensure the best engagement with your tweets, check out these stats:

Twitter statistics
Twitter Global Engagement
  • Best time: Wednesday and Friday at 9 a.m.
  • Worst time: Saturday and Sunday
  • Business-to-Business company: Monday or Thursday at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
  • Business-to-Consumer company: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday at 12 p.m. and 1 p.m.

1.4. LinkedIn

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a platform that favors those with professional careers.


The user interaction rates are also very low in comparison to other social media platforms.


Got to keep things professional, you know?


Here are a few things to consider when using LinkedIn as your chosen social media platform:

LinkedIn statistics
  • 50% of students with a degree use LinkedIn
  • Most users (37%) fall between the ages of 30 - 49
  • 57% of LinkedIn users are mobile users
  • 45% of LinkedIn users are in upper management

Now that you know that, here are the best times to post on LinkedIn:

LinkedIn Global Engagement
  • Best time: Wednesday from 8 - 10 am & noon, Thursday at 9 a.m. & 1 - 2 p.m., and Friday at 9 a.m.
  • Worst time: Sunday
  • Business-to-Business company: Wednesday
  • Business-to-Consumer company: Monday and Wednesday

Although LinkedIn is mainly for professional careers, don’t be afraid to look into using it as a platform to communicate with your followers.


It is a great place to get to know people.

2. Other Social Media platforms you might want to consider

Now that you know which times to post to the top-performing social media platforms, it’s time to expand your horizons.


Having a profile on the following social media sites is not required, but it’s a good way to promote your business.


If you want to increase user engagement and have fun with social media I would recommend that you have a look at the following platforms:

2.1. Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest is home to creatives.


The platform is created to share and save images, videos, and animated GIFs. The main purpose of saving images is to create pinboards where you can cluster information and create mood boards.


These pinboards are visited by internet users (who don’t need an account to be able to access content on Pinterest).


Posting to Pinterest relies more on what you post, rather than when you post.


This means that it can act as a background promoter for your business.


Pinned images redirect the user back to the website where the image is originally found - bonus!


Simply create an account for your business, post images, videos, or GIFs of your product, and wait for user traffic to shift to your social media profiles or your website.


Here are Pinterest’s user stats, just for the sake of knowing the demographics:

Pinterest demographics

If you find that your content is more artistically driven, using Pinterest can help you out a lot!


Posting good quality and aesthetically pleasing photos can keep users engaged and wanting more!


Here is an interesting article if you are interested in how aesthetics define your business.

2.2. YouTube

YouTube

YouTube is a great way to share video content with your followers.


You can post ‘how to’ video tutorials for your products.


It is also a great way for you to share promotional business content, or to simply interact with your customers through vlogs (video blogs)!


According to YouTube demographics, 62% of businesses use YouTube.


Posting content to YouTube can work to your benefit as it is one of the social media platforms that are almost equally split in age demographics.


This means that you can target audiences of all ages.


If you’re not yet convinced, here are some YouTube stats:

YouTube demographics

As you can tell by these statistics, everything works in your favor if you use YouTube as a promotional platform.


Being a content creator on YouTube is another topic in itself, but if you simply want a platform to post more business content on - my advice would be to go for it!

3. How to ensure success when posting

3.1. Social listening

Social listening

Social listening is a crucial component in any business.


Be it a small local bakery or a large international company - business owners need to listen to their customers to know how they can improve their services.


The same applies to your online business and social media.


Understanding what your audience wants and needs can only work to your benefit!


You can use these insights to plan your long-term content strategies and to organize your content production.

5 Simple Tips

If you are uncertain of which platforms to use, we suggest you explore your options.


Find a platform that suits your needs, skillset, and business requirements.


Remember, more platforms = more customers!


If you want to look at the demographics of your business more closely, we would recommend that you use Sprout Social.


They are an all-in-one social media management platform that will give you insight into all your business’ analytics.

3.2. Posting

Posting

Having analyzed your audience, you can use the relevant data to see how you can create and deliver fitting content.


Personalized content is a MUST HAVE if you want to keep your audience engaged.


People want to be seen and heard, so creating content that they prefer will give you a revenue boost (by up to 15%!).

Personalizing Posts

For business and post planning, HootSuite will be your best friend!


Their main goal is to help you plan, create, and schedule your posts.


Their platform helps you to use your analytics to optimize your performance.


That is what you want after all, right?

4. Conclusion

Knowing which times to post is a helpful way of increasing awareness and generating effective content engagement.


You can use this information to help you optimize the times you post and know which platforms will work to your benefit.


All businesses are different and require personalized posting times.


So, track the times which you receive the most interaction and adjust the time you post accordingly.


Social media platforms also change their algorithms to suit their needs, so keep an eye out for new updates to suit your needs!


Simply summarized, here are the best times to post:

  • Facebook - Weekday afternoons, and during general office breaks
  • Instagram - Weekdays, except from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Twitter - During commuting times in the evening, and afternoons
  • LinkedIn - Weekdays, during office hours

Our final word of advice: Never stop testing and experimenting with your social media pages.


Post consistently.


Post your best content on Wednesdays.


Keep your audience engaged and happy!

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