Guarantee Your Social Media Posts See Maximum Engagement With These Great Tips

You’ve spent time picking the perfect picture and crafting a witty caption. Go you. You’re hilarious. Post! ...But not so fast. The right timing and social media platform selection can make or break post engagement (if it gets seen at all). Here are some tips on when it is best to post, and which platforms to use based on your target audience.

Facebook

• Percentage of Internet users on Facebook:
  • Gender:
    • ​Men: 66%
    • Women: 77%
  • ​Age:
    • 18-29: 82%
    • 30-49: 79%
    • 50-64: 64%
    • 65+: 48%
• Best days and times to post:
  • Wednesday at 3 p.m.
  • Saturday and Sunday between 12-1 p.m.
  • Thursday and Friday between 1-4 p.m.
• Peak times to post:
  • 1 p.m. results in the most shares
  • 3 p.m. results in the most likes
• Tips to get the most out of your post:
  • Use action verbs like “comment,” “share” and “like”
  • Use videos or images to garner more engagement
  • Tag users and other businesses when they’re included in your content

Twitter

• Percentage of Internet users on Twitter:
  • Gender:
    • ​Men: 25%
    • Women: 21%
  • ​​Age:
    • 18-29: 32%
    • 30-49: 29%
    • 50-64: 13%
    • 65+: 6%
• Best days and times to post:
  • Weekdays between 12-3 p.m. and 5 p.m.
• Peak times to post:
  • 1 p.m. results in the most retweets
  • 6 p.m. has the highest CTR (click-through rate to your link)
• Tips to get the most out of your post:
  • Tell followers to “retweet” and “favorite” your posts
  • Put a period before any replies or mentions so that all of your followers can see your interaction. An example of a mention: .@XdesignInc You rock!
  • Check out URL shorteners like Goo.gl to save on limited characters. Instead of using the full URL like this one, http://thinkx.net/get-digitally-organized-in-2016, you can shorten it to http://goo.gl/iY0RUx.

Instagram

• Percentage of Internet users on Instagram:
  • Gender:
    • Men: 24%
    • Women: 31%
  • Age:
    • 18-29: 55%
    • 30-49: 28%
    • 50-64: 11%
    • 65+: 4%
• Best days and times to post:
  • Monday-Thursday at any time, except between 3-4 p.m.
• Tips to get the most out of your post:
  • Tag influencers of your industry in hopes that they’ll share it
  • Share behind the scenes or sneak peeks of upcoming campaigns

Always remember to keep posts as integrated as possible across multiple social platforms - if you’re launching a campaign on one platform, promote it on another. This will ensure brand consistency, and it will create a streamlined presence. These best practices will help you get the most out of your posts - creative content is only half the battle. If you need assistance in social media combat, get in touch with us.

Sources: Maximize Social Business, Hubspot, PewInternet