Social media is a great way for businesses to promote themselves and connect with their audiences. However, there is such a thing as over-sharing. So how often should a business post on their channels?
As much as some marketers would like you to believe, there isn’t a set answer for this question. There are however, general guidelines that should be followed in order to make the most out of your profiles on your chosen social media platforms.
Different platforms should also be treated differently in terms of how often to post content, and the type of content to be posted.
Golden Rules for All Social Media Sites
Posting quality content consistently is one of the major keys to social media success. Customers will engage with content that serves a purpose, whether that’s to inform them of a new product/service, discount offerings, news regarding your business, or related industry news etc. that’s up to you. Posting for the sake of posting isn’t worth the time spent on it, and posting the same type of content over and over will just bore your audience and won’t create the meaningful, engaged follower base you’re seeking.
Posting once-a-day is more than enough for Facebook users, any additional posts generally result in decreased engagement as it sets off a ‘spammy’ vibe. It is often a juggling act though, and posting any less than twice per-week may not be enough to generate the awareness you’re seeking and keep audiences interested.
The great thing about Facebook is that it’s perfect for posting multiple types of content. Some social media platforms have increased limitations on what and how you can post (e.g. Instagram with photo’s/videos only, and Twitter with a certain character limit), yet with Facebook, post live videos, pre-recorded videos, photo’s, articles, blogs – the world is your oyster (well, Facebook is your oyster).
Twitter is so much more fast-paced than any other social media platform, and that’s partly to do with the 280-character limit, resulting in content growing stale more quickly. You’ll find that large corporations can post up to 15 times on Twitter in one day alone, don’t worry though, 2-3 times a day for smaller businesses works just as well.
Twitter is now famed for the witty comment’s companies have for certain news stories, as well as the notorious arguments between celebrities. This is because the platform is most viewed as somewhere to vent your feelings, making it a bit like the world’s largest general comments section. It’s for this reason that businesses need to be extra careful over Twitter. If you do feel like you can put a funny spin on something, and know it won’t alienate any of your customer base and would be in line with your brand personality, do it. It can be fantastic for a business’ awareness and can really reveal their fun side.
Instagram is arguably the most popular social media platform, with 1 billion monthly users. It’s been noted that under 25s spend on average 32 minutes on the platform each day (not necessarily all in one go). Posting 1-3 times a day, and thinking about when your audience will be scrolling through the platform, will mean your brand gets exposure at prime moments.
Instagram is made for visual content, whether that’s images or videos. Anything that represents your business in a fun/fresh light will go a long way, it’s a great place to show your company culture, as well as being another platform to promote your products/services in a more visual way, really highlighting what you offer.
Remember to mix up the type of content you’re posting, if you only ever post photos, audiences will lose interest fairly quickly. Videos, images and blogs are all key types of content that generate more awareness and engagement than plain-text posts. It’s always an idea to create a bank of content for social media posts that aren’t necessarily time-conscious, and can be used whenever you get writer’s block for content to share.
Unsure about which social media apps you should be using? Give our guide to the best social media platforms for your business in 2021 a read!
If you’d like to learn more about how to make the most out of your social media platforms, contact us today, we’d be happy to help!
