What do people engage with? When should you post?
I’ve found that posting images and videos gets more engagement than straight text. I’ve also found that text that speaks to a controversy or includes news-you-can-use is more successful.
I’ve also found that if I post too many times in a single day, engagement starts to go down. I get it: It’s annoying when one Facebook page dominates your newsfeed.
This infographic from QuickSprout is a useful reminder about the best times to find your audience on Facebook and on other social media platforms. Pin it up next to our desk. Optimize your Facebook promotion.
It turns out that people engage on Facebook most on Thursday and Friday. A lot of people use Facebook when they are at their desks in the their offices, but don’t want to be. Indeed, 86% of posts are published during the week. Earlier in the week, peole are trying harder to actually work, so engagement falls below 3.5% on those days.
People are also just happier on Facebook on Fridays. Their status updates tend to be more upbeat. Happier people are more likely to want to engage with you. They’re more open to new ideas in general.
Early afternoon is the best time to post. Check to see what time zone your largest audience is in. Mine is in Eastern, so I try to post around 1 pm EST. But really anytime between 9 am and 7 pm is fine.
I read a study once that said that people tend to be in a better mood right after lunch. Indeed, parole hearings that happen right after lunch are more likely to lead to a positive result for the parolee. Posts that go out at 1 pm tend to get the most shares, though posts around 3 pm tend to get the most clicks.
Ref: June 22, 2015 Sarah Snow