It’s a question that has been baffling marketers since the
beginning of social media marketing – when and how often should you post on
social media?
There have been plenty of studies to answer the question,
from social media giant Hootsuite,
to articles from leading marketers on Forbes.
The short answer of course is; when your audiences are most likely to be
listening!
Based on the studies above, the consensus seems to be that the
optimal time and frequency to Tweet is about 3 - 5 times a day at around 3pm
and post on Facebook once a day between 12pm and 3pm.
Every brand’s audience is different and the acid test is
when you get most engagement. Social media is a great communication channel for
brands that creates a more personal relationship, leading to improved customer
loyalty, increased inbound traffic and higher conversion rates. It’s also true
that social media marketers who have an instinctive understanding of how their
audience interacts will have the most success with social. So, if you’ve got a
regular supply of high quality, owned and third party content to share, and a
content strategy, social media can be a real boost to your marketing efforts.
But let’s forget the studies for a moment and go back to
basics – what is social media?
At its simplest level it is a collaborative digital space
where the online community can interact publicly, sharing thoughts, ideas,
images and views. It’s about being “social” with communities and those who
share similar interests to us. By its very nature it’s reactive and
conversational, so should we really be trying to programme when and how often
we post?
It seems to me that we should follow one simple rule - only
post when you have something to say that’s valuable, relevant and interesting
to your community. With so much content
available, and so many channels through which to find it, the tweeters and
Facebook users of today expect to be informed and entertained. They no longer tolerate mediocre content, so
if you don’t think your followers will like it – don’t post it!
“But posting more
will increase my followers – right?”
I’ve heard and read this many times, but unfortunately
posting just to increase frequency or because it may be the ‘right time’ to do
it is unlikely work. In fact, it’s possible that these posts won’t even be
seen. Because…
A. Social media followers are a fickle, switched-on bunch
People follow brands on social media because it benefits
them in some way, because the content entertains them, they learn something new, or maybe get
access to a promotion, product info or instant customer service. As soon as
that content becomes too frequent, dull or worse, useless, many won’t hesitate
to press that unfollow button.
A recent survey by Sprout Social of more
than 1000 people found that 41.1% would unfollow a brand if the information
wasn’t relevant. People expect high quality content when they follow a brand so
it’s absolutely vital to understand what content resonates with your audience.
B. Content algorithms
Social media platforms are constantly evolving to improve the
user experience and prevent spam-filled newsfeeds. In order to do that, they
need to make sure people only see the content they’re likely to care about, and
most social platforms have already taken measures to prioritise popular
content. Therefore, the social posts that don’t attract adequate interaction
are the least likely to be seen.
This means that the social media landscape has become a
battle ground for brands, with everyone competing for likes and retweets. To
cut through the noise you need stand-out content otherwise your posts will sink
to the bottom of the pile and, with a half-life of a tweet only 24
minutes, this could happen faster than you
think!
The general rule
It’s easy to get wrapped up in social media. Mainly because
it appears to give you the opportunity to directly connect with your target
audience and provides loads of data on their characteristics and habits, data that
can potentially help you understand your customers and improve how you market to
them.
So dedicate the right time and resource to ensuring your
social media activity will really engage your audience Dig deep and be creative
with your content to make sure it stands out and attracts attention, but above
all
…only post when you have something worth saying, something that that’s valuable, relevant and genuinely interesting to your audience!
Katie Tilling
Marketing Executive