You’ve spent a great deal of time researching, brainstorming, creating and designing your content and now it’s time to share it with the world.
But wait – when is the optimal time to ensure your content gets in front of the right eyes at the right time?
Knowing what to post on your social platforms is one thing. Knowing when to post is another thing altogether – each social media channel attracts a different type of audience who are active at different times. For example, LinkedIn users are more likely to be active during work hours, networking, reading up on industry trends etc. whereas Instagram users are more likely to be active in their free time.
If knowing when to post on social media has got you feeling like you’re herding cats, you’ve come to the right place. Sprout social has published its latest insights of the best time to post on each platform based on their 20 000+ customer base. In this article we’ll break down the best social media posting times, analysed by data to determine times which reap the highest engagement rates.
Best Time to Post on Facebook
As we can see above, weekends are the worst time to post on Facebook, which makes sense – people are busy seeing friends, going out and doing the things they can’t do during the week.
Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays between 9:00 and 13:00 seem to be the the sweet spot for Facebook. You’ve got some room to play with, so experiment within that time range and see what works best for you.
Best Time to Post on Instagram
Similar to Facebook, engagement on the weekends doesn’t look too great.
According to Sprout, Tuesdays between 11:00 and 14:00, and Monday through Friday from 11:00 to 12:00 are the best times to share your content with the world on Instagram.
Best Time to Post on Twitter
Twitter’s stream moves quickly. As such, you’re likely to be posting more than once a day.
Again, weekends don’t look good, but Wednesdays between 9:00 and 15:00 are your best bet at getting your tweets seen by the right eyes.
Don’t be afraid to experiment a bit with your Twitter strategy; a fast-paced platform like Twitter requires some experimentation to generate the quantitative data that’s required to drive your future decisions.
Best Time to Post on LinkedIn
Similar to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, Sprout’s data shows that posting on the professional networking platform on the weekend is a no-go.
Your optimal window of opportunity to post on LinkedIn is Tuesdays to Thursdays between 9:00 and 12:00.
Although these times are backed by data, you need to remember that they’re developed using data from Sprout Social’s users. Yes, engagement may be low on weekends, but your brand may be producing content that users are interested in consuming on weekends.
At the end of the day, it’s best to use these times as a guideline. They shouldn’t dictate your publishing decisions but rather lead them in the right direction. Ultimately, your audience persona and understanding of your customers will help you know which times work best for your brand.
