Tag Archive for: social media marketing

How Often to Post on Social Media

Here’s the #1 question I answer: “How often should I post to social media?” There’s no one right answer, but I can offer insight.

First, you need to consider your goals and audience. Post zero times to places where you audience isn’t or that don’t support your goal. Quality content always beats quantity. If you don’t have anything great to post, don’t post.

Now that we have that out of the way, here are the current guidelines for the most commonly used platforms:

  • On Instagram, post between 3-7 times per week
  • On Facebook, post between 2-5 times a week
  • On Twitter, post between 1-5 times a day
  • On LinkedIn, post between 1-5 times a week

Every social media account is unique, so looking at your metrics is absolutely key to getting the right frequency.

Frequency on Instagram

It is generally recommended to post to your Instagram feed 2-3 times per week, and no more than once per day.

Key Instagram statistics:

  • The average user spends 30 minutes a day on Instagram
  • 81% of people use Instagram to research products and services
  • 63% of American users check Instagram at least once a day

Posting on Facebook

It is generally recommended to post once a day, no more than daily. Some studies have even found less engagement if you’re posting more than that.

Key Facebook statistics:

  • Facebook is the world’s third most-visited website
  • More than half of American users check Facebook several times per day
  • The average user spends 34 minutes per day on Facebook
  • 80% of people access the platform using mobile only

Tweeting Guidelines

It is generally recommended to post no more than 3-5 times per day. People on Twitter are looking for news and events.

Twitter statistics:

  • 42% of American users check Twitter at least once a day
  • Users spend about about 15 minutes per visit

Using LinkedIn

On LinkedIn, post once a day and generally on business days.

LinkedIn facts:

  • Companies that post weekly on LinkedIn see a 2x higher engagement rate
  • 12% of American users check LinkedIn several times a day

Instagram at 11

Instagram launched in 2010. Here are important stats for marketers to know in the platform’s 11 years:

  • Over 1 billion people use Instagram every month (88% are outside of the US)
  • Instagram has 140 million U.S. users
  • Instagram is the 9th most popular Google query
  • In terms of active users, Instagram is outranked only by Facebook, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger
  • Users are about half male, half female
  • Instagram users spent an average of 30 minutes per day on the platform in 2020
  • 81% of people use Instagram to help research products and services
  • 11% of people use Instagram as a news source
  • 500 million people use Instagram Stories every day
  • 90% of Instagram users follow a business
  • The average Instagram business account posts once per day and sees an average 1.46% monthly followers growth
  • The average engagement rate for an Instagram post by a business account is 0.96%
  • How-to tutorials are the most popular form of Instagram video content

Marketing Tips on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is gaining momentum. With fewer ways to build professional networks in person, professionals increasingly turn to the platform to build networks and more. For marketers, this means that more users than ever are actively engaged on LinkedIn.

According to Social Media Examiner, almost 700 million people are on LinkedIn, and 45% of internet users who make more than $75,000 a year use LinkedIn. Four out of five LinkedIn users drive business decisions at their companies. That’s a marketing opportunity not to ignore.

LinkedIn Is the Professional’s Social Network

LinkedIn is the platform people use for their professional lives. While most people spend time on Facebook and Instagram to reconnect with friends and family, people come to LinkedIn for professional development. In 2020, people also turned to LinkedIn to stay in touch with colleagues and teams.

Authenticity Comes to LinkedIn

The professional focus hasn’t changed, but today’s users understand that authenticity is important. Posts now go beyond awards, promotions and company news. People are sharing their career challenges, personal success stories, and reflecting on the role of business as global citizens. It is supporting the human connections that help us feel like we are not alone in our challenges.

Less Curating, More Originality

Once it was a good LinkedIn strategy to serve as a curator for a subject or area of expertise. The people who gathered and shared information around a topic were highly valued.

Now, people are more likely to engage with original content from posters than shared articles and links. People are looking for content that reflects a person individually. Likes and shares are most often earned on this original content.

Using LinkedIn Polls and Questions to Get Input

One way the platform supports discussions is with polling options. LinkedIn polls are available via profiles, company pages, and LinkedIn Events, and allow you to provide multiple response options to a question.

Polls are especially useful for creating engagement because people like sharing their opinions. Asking open-ended questions rather than yes/no questions engage your audience and let them share their opinions. Asking questions is a good way to open conversations that build a sense of connection and trust.

Everyone Is an Expert

LinkedIn now lets every user author long-form articles. This is a great way to reflect expertise and to share information and resources. Articles are creating a deep database of content around millions of professional topics, adding value for all users.

LinkedIn Live for Pages

LinkedIn Live is available by application for use on personal profiles and company pages. The key is to decide what your goal is, and then plan the length and content of your live video around the goal.

To improve your chances of approval, be sure to have two-factor authentication enabled on your account before you apply and ensure that your page admins and account are in good standing.

When you apply for access, LinkedIn will assess your page’s video and content creation history and engagement history. You should have a few hundred followers who consistently engage with your content; brand-new pages with no history are unlikely to be approved.

Once approved, you’ll need to use a third-party tool to broadcast via LinkedIn Live.