How Often to Post and When
Nonprofits need to harness the power of social media! It’s unparalleled in its ability to spread awareness, share about your cause, fundraise, recruit volunteers and donors and build a community. But it can also be overwhelming. Not only do you have to consider WHAT to post, but also WHEN to post.
And that’s where timing comes in. Knowing when to post and how often can make a big difference in how much engagement you get and therefore, in the overall success of your social media strategy. And a successful social media presence means more eyes on your cause.
So, when to post? Unfortunately, there’s no one size fits all answer here. Each platform (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc) has different peak usage times. For example, the best time to post on Facebook may be Wednesdays at 3pm, while Instagram will see better results on a Thursday at 11am.
And that’s just a general rule for overall users. Your unique audience is going to differ from that as well. If your demographic is adults over 65, you’re going to see different peak times than if your audience is primarily younger. Likewise, if your audience is predominantly working professionals, you might see a peak at lunch time and again after 5pm and on weekends.
So, you can dive into your analytics to discover the best times for you to post based on your content and audience. But how often to post is more consistent across all users. It’s important not to post too much to bother your audience, but just enough to keep you top of mind and share your cause. At Pixa, we recommend posting two times per week and up to one post per day to stay relevant and tell your story.
A content calendar is a great way to stay ahead and organize your posts, so you can show up consistently online. This way, you can plot out your content in advance, choose what’s most relevant and you aren’t left scrambling last-minute wondering what to post.
NO matter how often you post, it’s also important to also set aside time to engage on each platform. If you receive a comment on a post, be sure to reply in a timely manner. This is a direct communication between you and your prospects and donors. Respond to direct messages and also leave comments on relevant posts.
So, keep in mind that social media for nonprofits is just as strategy driven as any other form of marketing. You need to test, tweak and test again until you figure out the best balance for you to increase engagement, grow your audience and stay top of mind.
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