TIMING IS HARDER THAN SEO
We humans have a few social instincts hardwired in our brains. It’s nearly impossible to explain, but we all know when something is funny, awkward, or simply attractive. Add to the list our extra-sensory detection of good and bad timing.
We cringe when we see others fall victim to bad timing. And as the last (and trickiest) element in the broad formula for effective content, timing can make or break your content marketing campaign.
It’s usually hard to teach such an abstract art. Just ask Borat.
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USE THE DATA
But when it comes to content marketing, timing often boils down to knowing the data and using it to your advantage.
What data you ask?
The tons of data about social market trends gained from research that you don’t want to do. Thanks, researchers.
You’ve made sure that your material is great and that it’s delivered well in an appropriate format. By timing your content well, you’ll ensure that your labor of love will reach the most relevant people and generate inbound traffic to your site, rather than sit idly by itself in some dark corner of the Internet.
Let’s break down the best times to share your content to maximize its reach:
Hour-to-Hour
- Early Morning: Studies show that folks are generally in better moods when they get out of bed. Getting your content in front of smiling faces is always better than the alternative. Mornings are also better in terms of reach. With most Internet activity sleeping as people sleep, posting early in the morning will get your content first in line for folks to read over breakfast or on the train to work.
- Early Evening: There is a glut of social media activity in the early evening hours. Chalk it up to relaxing at home after work or reviewing materials for the next day at the office, folks simply have the ability to access more of what they want when they return home. In studies related to those above, there is an additional bump in mood that happens after dinner. So there’s that.
- Note: Posts made during the middle of the day have a better chance of getting lost in the wash, especially business posts. For best results, any substantial content posted during the day should go up before 10:30am.
Day-to-Day
As indicated in an above study, it’s important to take the patterns of your industry into account. Generally speaking, there are two things to keep in mind:
- Weekends are underused. There is a good chance your audience will engage better with your substantial content during the weekend than during their helter-skelter workweek. The numbers back this up, as there is a 14.5 percent higher rate of interaction on business Facebook pages during the weekend.
- Attention wavers late in the week. Fridays are usually a day to avoid as folks are burnt out and focusing on other things, like that shiny light over there. Unless it’s an email blast, lean towards the beginning of the week to share your content.
RESULTS MAY VARY
People are fickle creatures, so similarly, so is the social web stratosphere. Experiment with different times across different social channels and track your results with analytics. Adapt accordingly. As wide-reaching observations gleaned from human behavior and recent studies, the above framework is a good place to start.
[...] Timing is that most elusive creature. With comedians, it’s that instinct that’s impossible to teach. With content marketing, it’s a bit more within reach. Timing has to do with when you discuss certain topics (in relation to the external trends) and how often you reach your audience. The keyword is “slightly.” Stay slightly ahead of trends and stay slightly visible to your audience. Too much of either can make you seem irrelevant and invasive, respectively. [...]
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