can’t begin to count the number of studies I’ve read that claim they know the best time or day to post on Facebook.
While
most of these studies conflict with one another, they also consistently
conflict with my own analysis. This may not be what you want to hear,
but the best time to post depends on your business and your audience.
With a little extra effort and a little creative thinking, you can
determine the best time for you.
How can you determine the best time for your business?
Focus on understanding your audience
Research shows that a
Facebook post receives half of its reach within 30 minutes. Consequently, you should try to determine when your fans are on Facebook and aim to schedule your posts around that time.
Step 1: Determine who your audience is
Look
at your Facebook demographics. They may be different than you think.
You can review the age range and gender break down by opening your
Facebook Insights and visiting the “Likes” tab. If you have multiple
locations or a large customer base, you will want to review the location
of your audience as they may be spread across various time zones.
Step: 2: Think about what their day looks like
Now
that you know the demographic of your audience, think about their day —
is your typical fan a mom? A student? Likely to work at 9-5 job? All of
these factors can help determine the best time to post on your page.
Step 3: Apply what you know
Use
the information you now have about your audience to post effectively.
These Facebook statistics might also help provide more insight about
posting best practices.
Facebook statistics about usage
Today, more people access Facebook from a mobile device than a desktop —
751 million monthly active users to be exact.
Smartphone owners even spend more time checking Facebook on their
mobile device than they do using Google. (For those who are skeptical
about their fans viewing their Facebook content via mobile, don’t worry.
You can check it all out in Facebook Insights.)
Think about this…
80 percent of 18-44 year olds check their smartphone as
soon as they wake up. It’s likely that your fans are reaching for their
phones and scanning their newsfeed as they start their day. This
creates an optimal time to post. In the last month or so, I’ve tested
posting between the hours of 6:30-8:30am on the
Constant Contact Facebook Page and have seen great results.
Smartphone owners tend to reach for their phones around meal times and
86 percent of mobile internet users report
using their device while watching TV. These individuals also spend
almost double their time accessing social media via a mobile device on
the weekends compared to weekdays. Don’t jump to any conclusions just
yet though. Weekends and weekdays, between 5:00-8:00pm, aren’t
necessarily the optimal time to post because of newsfeed competition.
During these hours, you’re likely to compete with your fans’ hundreds of
friends and the other brands they follow.
On the Constant Contact
Facebook Page, I’ve noticed that our posts receive the most engagement
during off-peak hours when less overall posting is going on. Try to find
your engagement sweet spot by determining the intersection of time when
the majority of your audience is on Facebook and the time when the
least overall posting is occurring.
Studies have also shown that
more than half of users only access Facebook when they’re not at work or
school. Also, the hours that people are commuting to and from work
shows mobile usage peaks. Although it’s not safe if they’re driving,
many mobile social media users are checking their phones on the way to
work, which creates a great time to post about your business.
Let’s review. When is a good time to post on Facebook?
√ Early morning
χ During work (9am – 5pm)
√ Between work and dinner
χ After dinner (TV time)
√ Bedtime
χ Weekends
The bottom line?
The best time to post on Facebook is when your audience will see it. And this is going to be unique to you and your business.
Using Facebook Insights
If
you want to analyze actual numbers to determine if past posting times
(or if trying new posting times) are working effectively, simply follow
these steps for using Facebook Insights.
1. Export the “Post level data” from Facebook Insights for your preferred time period.
2.
Open the Post level data in Excel within the “Lifetime Post Stories by
action” tab (the third tab) and delete all columns except D, H, I, J,
and K. Don’t delete E if you’re interested in seeing what types of posts
work well for your audience.
Note: This does not
include clicks on links. It includes only “Likes,” comments, and
shares. To review link clicks, simply review the same columns in the
fourth tab in “Lifetime Post consumers by type.”
Don’t forget, timing
isn’t everything! Determining the ultimate time to post on Facebook won’t increase your engagement if your content isn’t engaging.
Do
you believe in a universal best time to post on Facebook? What time do
you think is the best time to post? Tell us in the comments below.
This article originally appeared on
Constant Contact Blogs and has been republished with permission.
(Facebook posting times / shutterstock)
Determining the best times to post on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and blogs is vital to content marketing
success. The optimal time to share on each platform may vary depending
on your audience, of course. The nature of your business and data about
when your audience is active should inform and drive your timetable so
that you maximize your reach and virality.
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