Is there even a best time? We don’t know what the best times are exactly but there’re definitely some timings that are better than others. There are some timings that you should definitely avoid if you want your post to – reach more people, get more engagement, help you to get more sales, help you get more customers to come to your location.
Start thinking with when do you use social media the most.
Which are the times where you’re scrolling through social media?
Let us take you through the life of your potential customer, let’s call her Amy, so that you can have a better idea how it works.
- Don’t post when most people are sleeping [ Mon – Thurs 11:30pm – 6:30pm ]
Yes, there are some people who sleep extremely late but the key here is the get to the MOST people and not the SOME people.
Why shouldn’t you post when people are sleeping?
Because social media is so crowded, people are constantly posting, when your Amy is awake, your post might have been already gone from their feeds (means not seen & ignored).
Once your post is ignored, it will send a signal to Instagram & Facebook that your post is not interesting to this customer and therefore, most likely will not show your post to Amy in future.
- Don’t post when people are at work
At work is a tricky one because there are times where we do scroll through social media when we’re at work even when we’re not supposed to.
So which are these times that you scroll through social media when you’re at work?
It’s definitely not when you just arrived at work at 8am because it’s not just not very nice to start using your phone right away. During this time, allow Amy to settle in at work, brew her coffee, talk to colleagues about what’s for lunch or what they did last night. Then allow more time for some actual work to be done. Before Amy gets bored, tired and needs a break when she’ll start scrolling on her phone to find some inspiration. What time will it be then? Probably after 1030am. And so, 1030am – 12pm actually might be a good time to post.
Then, when else during the working day is good to post?
If you’re selling food, do it before 12pm because by 12pm, Amy might have already decided what she wants to have for lunch. And during 12pm-1pm is probably the time Amy is having lunch with her colleagues and it’d be rude to be scrolling on her phone. But 1-2pm is also a good time because Amy is settling down in her office and her desk, probably scrolling her phone one last time before she starts working again.
When you’re at work, what are the times when you feel you need a break? 3pm-5pm? It’s the time when you feel the sleepiest at work and can’t wait for the day to end. That’s why we always have tea-time because we usually need a break at 3pm.
What will Amy do during 3pm? Make a coffee, go to the toilet, feel hungry, talk to colleagues and SCROLL her phone.
So yes, 3pm might also be a good time to post especially if you’re selling food because Amy is hungry. Nice photos of food will make her feel even more hungry and might make her want to visit your shop after work.
Does this sound like you when you were at work too?
If you’re in the F&B business, you need to understand that, food photos will be even more effective to people like Amy when they’re hungry. When you’re full, however good the food looks, you’re still full. The impulse to want to grab a bite is much less.
If you have a retail shop, you have to take note of the hours when you want people to visit your shop by.
There are different things to take note for different industries because different industries have a different target audience.
That being said, avoid posting during the real working hours – 8am – 10am, 12pm-1pm (lunch), 2pm-3pm, 5pm-6pm.
- Don’t post when most people are out
When are the times Amy is most likely to be out?
Evening dinner sessions, evening chill out sessions, weekends.
When Amy is out with friends and family or when she’s busy shopping at the supermarket, she will not be free to scroll her phone.
So, don’t post when she’s out. You can find times on weekends before Amy’s day starts or after her day out ends. Somewhere between 8am-10am or 9pm-11pm?
The best times to post are when MOST of your potential customers are at home, bored or free to look at their phones. Only 2% of our followers will see our post. We want to try to reach as many people as possible. The more reach 1 post gets, the more engagement. The more engagement, the more likely they will see your next post too.
The best time to post on social media is when your potential customers are not working, on their way to work, lazing on the sofa, lying in bed, sitting on the toilet bowl.
Take the time to figure out who is your target audience and how their lifestyle is like and then decide for yourself, for your industry, which are the times that suit your target audience!
If you still need help with social media, we’re here to help!