Best time of day to post on social media

Best Time of day to post on Social Media

Many wonder , ‘What could be the best time of day to post on social networks?’

The solution does not involve a definite answer. There are multiple factors that influence the peak times on different platforms. But worry not; you are in the right place. This blog post will explore the best possible time of the day to post on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn and get excellent engagements. After all, this is what marketers crave!!

These are simple suggestions to assist you in initiating your social media engagement posts. Understanding your audience determines the best days and times to post on social media. Additionally, it is crucial to analyse each social media platform separately to decide the best timing due to their unique demographics and users.

Why not plan out your content for one week and determine which timing works best for you? It’s like finding the perfect melody for your lyrics.

Why is timing important in social media posting?

Appropriate timing is the engine for driving audience responsiveness and engagement on social media. The best approach is to schedule your posts at times when the audience is most engaged. This helps in maximising visibility and engagement. Increasing your overall social media efficacy.

After all, putting effort into content creation with minimal response isn’t motivating, and that’s definitely not the goal!

Now, let’s deep dive into the insights on how to choose the best time of day to post on social media platforms.

Alt text: "this image shows all the icons of the social media platforms and it shows the minute and the seconds hand towards the icons. This is to emphasis on the importance of best time of day to post on social media."

The older stratagem

Social media managers used to rely heavily on monitoring the user behaviour of its target audience while deciding for the best time of day to post on social media platforms.

One traditional tactic relied on understanding the brain’s peak alertness in the morning for efficient learning. Therefore, sharing it during the day will result in the highest level of interaction from the users. Nevertheless, social media posts suffer a decrease during the day due to memory decline. Yet in the afternoon, recollection experiences a boost once more, and involvement levels rise, though not to the same extent as in the morning.

Source: Publication from the Harvard Business Review

Over time, social media marketing strategies have evolved. With the in-built facility of analytics on each platform, various pieces of information, such as user behaviour, patterns of activity, and levels of engagement, can be easily determined. Analysis of the data extracted from these parameters can help social media managers select the best time for posting on social media to distribute content in a manner that will be productive for them.

It is difficult to determine if the previous-era strategy or the current-era strategy will be effective for your business and target audience, whether B2B or B2C. What remains constant is the need to track and analyse analytics consistently and stay updated on social media algorithms. Let’s jump on to see what are the best possible time to post on social media for each platforms.

Let’s decode the art of the best timing for each platform

Best time to post on Linkedin

Alt text: "the image shows the interface of the linkedin platform and the icon of a calender on the right side and a watch on the left side, this is to emphasis on the importance of best time of day to post on social media for the linkedin platform."

Image source: Best times to post on LinkedIn in 2023

LinkedIn is primarily used for professional networking and business-to-business purposes. As marketers, our goal is to maximise engagement on the platform. Timing is crucial, especially when considering regional variations. In India, peak engagement hours are typically between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m., as well as between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Lunchtime also presents opportunities to capture audience attention. Shifting focus to the US region, the best day to post on LinkedIn may differ slightly from those in the Indian market. It’s important to analyse the unique patterns and preferences of your target audience to optimise your content strategy for maximum impact.

Wednesday: 8–10 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM
Thursday: 9–10 AM, 1-2 PM
Friday: 9 a.m., 11 a.m., and 12 p.m.

Source: Best times to post on LinkedIn to increase your engagement in 2024

When starting out, it’s best to split your posting times into morning, midday, and evening sessions. Analysing these engagement metrics can then help identify the ideal posting time for your content. Ultimately, your content strategy evolves through a combination of data analysis and real-world experiences.

Cracking a tip for you:

Keep your eyes peeled for those profile prowlers! Connect with them, build connections, and turn them into leads. It’s organic, saving you a penny. Let’s switch gears and dive into Instagram now.

Best time to post on Instagram

During the day, some increase in activity can be expected, but it tends to decrease in the afternoon and evening. Surprisingly, Thursdays and Fridays are busier around 4 p.m., probably because people are excited for the weekend and are seeking the latest information to kickstart their weekends. Moving forward, weekends generally see a decrease in overall activity, although small increases are noted on Saturday mornings and Sunday evenings.

Source: When is the Best Time to post on Instagram in 2024?

What next?
After determining your posting schedule, it’s time to level up your Instagram presence! Your overall Instagram strategy is closely tied to the success of your posting times. Creating a good Instagram strategy is crucial to achieving success on the platform. Whether you are hoping for a 50k Instagram follower or a 10k Instagram follower, having a proper strategy with a good understanding of timing is an oxygen.

And stay tuned as we crack this next step in another blog!

Here’s a tip-of-the-toe hack for you:

Get your internal squad to jump on board and sprinkle some love on your post within the first 15-20 minutes. That’s the secret sauce for stirring up some top-notch engagement!
Let’s jump into Facebook now!

Best time to post on Facebook

Alt text: "the image shows the facebook icon and a clock on the left side to demonstrate that while posting An image demonstrating the best time of the day to post on social media for the facebook platform."

Image source: When Is the Best Time to Post on Facebook in 2024?

Facebook is frequently visited during coffee breaks, breakfast, or while waiting in the car before heading to the office. It’s also common for colleagues to scroll through it during lunch breaks. Many folks scroll through Facebook during their morning coffee, breakfast, or while waiting in the car before work. We also notice people using it during their lunch break. However, these are just assumptions based on when people engage the most. It’s always better to conduct your own testing and research to find the ideal times for your social media posts.

However, these are just assumptions based on the analysis of when engagement is at its highest. Doing your own research is always preferable to finding the best timing for your social media posts. Below are some recommended times for social media managers to experiment with.

Monday: 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM
Tuesday: 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM
Wednesday: 9:00 AM, 10:00 AM, 1:00 PM, 4:00 PM
Thursday: 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 4:00 PM
Friday: 11:00 AM, 4:00 PM, 6:00 PM

Source: Best Times To Post On Facebook In 2024

Cracking that one mystery:

Go live on Facebook Weekly! It’s the key to cracking the engagement code and unlocking the mysteries of Facebook engagement!

Who’s next? Twitter: “Our go-to social platform!”

Best time to post on Twitter

Alt text: "the image shows the Icon of Twitter app along with a clock emphasizing on the importance of posting at optimal times for maximum engagement".

The best times to expect high engagement during the week are between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Mondays. On Tuesdays, the engagement hours are from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., and then again from 5 to 6 p.m. On Wednesdays, the prime hours are from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., followed by 5 p.m. Thursdays see high engagement between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. On Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, you have the chance to engage in a highly interactive manner by tapping into your peak creativity, as people tend to be more relaxed and their attention span is heightened during these days.

Best Days: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Other days, it’s a choice: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

US region: 8 a.m.–10 a.m., 12 p.m.–2 p.m.
7 AM–9 AM, 11 AM–1 PM
5 AM–7 AM, 9 AM–11 AM

Timings for India: 9 a.m.–11 a.m., 1 p.m.–3 p.m.

Source: When is the Best Time to Post on Twitter in 2024?

It may not be fair to claim that these are the perfect times for engagement. The ideal time ultimately depends on your target audience and the analysis you do to determine when they are most engaged. Different audiences respond better at different times, so it’s important to understand your specific group’s preferences. The key is to study their behavior and preferences carefully to identify the optimal engagement periods.

A simple Twitter hack:

By categorising the accounts you follow into different groups based on their industry and interests, you ensure that you engage with relevant tweets. This savvy move ensures you’re interacting with content that truly resonates with you.

Here’s a wrap now

Tough, right?

We work hard and create excellent content, but often get little engagement. But don’t worry!

Though there’s no perfect time to post on social media, these tips can certainly help you sail through. Consider this blog as a guide to help your work gain traction and engagement.

Additionally, we can collaborate to gain an understanding of your brand and assist you in developing an excellent full-package social media strategy.

Footnotes:

- Kanuri, V. K. (2019, May 24). A Study Shows the Best Times of Day to Post to Social Media. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2018/09/a-study-shows-the-best-times-of-day-to-post-to-social-media

- Santora, J. (2023, October 31). Best Times to Post on LinkedIn [Updated April 2024]. Influencer Marketing Hub. https://influencermarketinghub.com/best-times-to-post-on-linkedin/

- PT, A. (2024, March 28). When Is the Best Time to Post on Instagram in 2024? SocialPilot. https://shorturl.at/pySTZ

- Best Times To Post On Facebook In 2024 [Original Research]. (2024, March 28). CoSchedule Blog. https://coschedule.com/social-media-marketing/best-times-to-post-on-facebook

- PT, A. (2024, April 3). When is the Best Time to Post on Twitter in 2024? SocialPilot. https://www.socialpilot.co/blog/best-time-to-post-on-twitter

- Keutelian, M. (2023, November 29). Best times to post on LinkedIn in 2023. Sprout Social. https://sproutsocial.com/insights/best-times-to-post-on-linkedin
- Q. (2024, January 24). When Is the Best Time to Post on Facebook in 2024? QuickFrame. https://quickframe.com/blog/best-time-to-post-on-facebook/

Sneha Sengupta

Sneha is a committed marketing specialist who specialises in strategic management, especially in development of brands, growth marketing and SEO strategy. Sneha is passionate about marketing innovation and excels at creating memorable marketing materials. She has a strong background in growth management and marketing strategic planning. Sneha is dedicated to boosting business growth through innovative and effective marketing techniques. She has a good amount of experience with organic growth strategies. Besides work she loves to cook and travel.