Thankfully, there is a science behind timing social media posts. Though finding the exact perfect time and day to publish content can be challenging, multiple studies have found that there are optimal times to post on each platform. Here’s a breakdown of the best, worst, and peak times to post on social media!
Many of us need inspiration to get us through the afternoon slump. Often times, this means checking Facebook for some boredom buster. Research revealed that engagement and user happiness are highest on Thursdays and Fridays so publish that feel good content in time for the weekend!
Best times:
Saturdays and Sundays: 9 AM, 12 PM – 1 PM
Wednesdays: 3 PM – 4 PM
Thursdays and Fridays: 1 PM – 4 PM
Worst times:
Saturdays and Sundays: Before 8 AM, After 8 PM
Peak times:
Mondays to Thursdays: 9AM – 3PM
Millions of people check the Twittersphere during downtimes like commute and quick breaks. Remember to include images on your tweets for it has been found to increase clicks by 36%, visits by 31%, retweets by 41%, likes by 48%, visitor-to-lead conversion rate by 33%, and leads by 55%.
Best times:
Mondays to Fridays: 12PM – 3PM
Worst times:
Mondays to Sundays: After 8 PM
Peak times:
Mondays to Thursdays: 9 AM – 3 PM, 5 PM – 6 PM
Pinners on Pinterest are usually looking for home improvement hacks, DIY tricks, and sumptuous recipes. You’re more likely to get more engagement during the weekend when users are relaxing after a long week at work. Posting relevant content is especially vital on Pinterest as 55% of users have engaged with brands and retailers though the site.
Best times:
Fridays to Sundays: 5 PM and onwards*
Saturdays: 3 PM
*For retail and fashion brands
Worst times:
Mondays to Fridays: During regular work hours
Peak times:
Fridays: 3 PM
LinkedIn’s professional nature allows brands, companies, and users to engage with each other during work hours. In a nutshell, the business-centric social media platform is a workday platform. In fact, CoSchedule reported that business people are most likely to read LinkedIn in the morning like the newspaper.
Best times:
Tuesdays to Thursdays: 12 PM, 5 PM – 6 PM
Worst times:
Mondays and Fridays: 10 PM – 6 AM
Peak times:
Tuesdays to Thursdays: 7:30 AM – 8:30 AM, 12 PM, 5 PM – 6 PM
YouTube
YouTube is home to a plethora of videos. The video-sharing giant reportedly has over a billion users, generating billions of views daily. People often watch videos on YouTube to be entertained and get information (e.g. tutorials, reviews). In fact, YouTube said that the average viewing session on mobile is more than 40 minutes.
Best times:
Mondays to Fridays: After regular work hours
Thursdays to Sundays: 12 PM – 3 PM
Worst times:
Mondays to Sundays: 5 PM – 6 PM
Peak times:
Thursdays to Sundays: 12 PM – 3 PM
Instagram is meant primarily for mobile devices. Though users can view content and engage with others through their desktops, the photo-sharing network’s features can only be accessed through its app. Thus, users tend to use Instagram all the time at any time of the day.
Best times:
Mondays and Thursdays: 2 AM, 8 AM – 9 AM, 5 PM
Worst times:
Mondays to Sundays: 3 PM – 4 PM
Peak times:
Mondays to Thursdays: 8 AM – 9 AM
Try to stay consistent within these optimal publishing times. When it comes to getting good engagement on social media, it is all about timing! Don’t let those valuable content go to waste with minimal exposure. Post them during peak times and maximize the hours your audience is devoting to their social media sites.
If you are in need of an extra pair of hands to manage your social media accounts, feel free to contact us or avail of our 5-hour free trial!
Discover how you can leverage social media with our Social Media Series!
- Simple Tips to Creating Engaging Social Media Content
- Talk About Timing: The Best Times to Post on Social Media
- Social Media Best Practices to Boost Customer Engagement
Pepper Virtual Assistants is a business solutions firm that specializes on virtual administrative and personal assistance, online marketing, customer support, and copywriting. We are known for reliability through our managed services, responsive client handling backed by extensive training, and rockstar virtual assistants hired for their skills and expertise.
Timing means everything especially when it comes to business. There will always be a good time and bad time to do business, the same goes for social media. It’s really good that there’s a time to post on social to get engaging contents. This will actually help any business to get presence over any social media network.
One thing we should also consider in creating content is who are your target audience (like the personality of the person, preferred style of writing in blog posts, lifestyle, interests, etc). Posting content is like delivering a message personally to the audience who you want to reach; it is also like getting to know a friend, and wanting them to be your best friend! Of course, timing is a factor in earning traffic and attention in the world of social media, but still an output will not be noticed
if it doesn’t spark their personal interest.
Best times:
Mondays to Fridays: After regular work hours
Thursdays to Sundays: 12 PM – 3 PM
Worst times:
Mondays to Sundays: 5 PM – 6 PM
So the best time to upload to Youtube is after regular work hours, which would start at 5pm, but 5-6pm is the worst? A bit confusing. Do you advise that it would be After work hours – ideally between 6-8pm or similar?
Thanks!