People often ask: when is the best time to post on Twitter? When we Tweet, we want to hear people chirping back in approval, or retweeting the clever things we say. If you’re Tweeting at the wrong time, all your followers could be offline, leaving only a handful are online to see your post, and all your social media efforts were for naught. How do you know when is the best time to post on Twitter? We’ve got some suggestions and research to help you figure that out.
P.S. We know this probably isn’t what you’re hoping to hear, but your best time to post on Twitter is dependent on your community. There is no hard and fast rule that will apply to everyone. The only way to ensure accuracy is to get a tool - the good news is there are a number of free tools to help you out with Tweeting times and we’re here to point you in the right direction.
Tip 1: Post at least once a day
The best time to post on Twitter is at the very least, daily. Twitter requires users to be almost constantly engaged with their audience to capture their attention. Depending on how you use Twitter, this might mean sharing a new blog post or Tweeting about a current topic. Whatever you might be sharing or Tweeting about, pencil in some time to post on Twitter at least once a day, even if it’s just to let your audience know that you’re still there.
Tip 2: Test what works by posting at different times
There’s an avalanche of research available out there in the world of the internet, that has attempted to give a broad best time to post on Twitter time for absolutely everybody. Bear in mind this may not always be right for you. However, Dan Zarrella, Hubspot’s resident social media scientist, has done intensive studies into the best time to post on Twitter, and can provide useful insight into what works well. He claims Tweets posted at the weekend have higher click through rates (CTRs) than those posted during the week. Why? We think it’s because the majority of people are browsing social media during their down time on the weekend and are more likely to see your posts - rather than sneakily checking their feeds at work. In addition to this, Zarrella found Tweets posted later in the day had higher CTRs than ones in the morning. Give these timing tips a go and see if your engagement rates soar.
Tip 3: Consider scheduling Tweets
If you’re not always around to post at weird and wonderful times of the week, a scheduling tool can do your Twitter the world of good. Both Hootsuite and Buffer allow you to schedule Tweets in advance to ensure that if you get caught up during the working day you’re still present in the Twittersphere. Of course we recommend that you only schedule some of your Tweets and continue to live Tweet; remember to check in with Twitter to make sure any responses to your Tweets don’t go unnoticed. The best part about these two tools? They integrate with SocialBro’s Best Time To Tweet Report to optimize Tweeting times (we’ll discuss this later).
Tip 4: Evaluate your results
This is a little less scientific than you might like, but the easier way to figure out your best time to post on Twitter without using any tools is to compare your post performance in terms of retweets, favorites and link clicks. Bit.ly is a great tool to monitor your link clickthroughs, it generates a shortened URL and enables you to track how much engagement it received. If you want a simpler way to track performance, our Tweet Analytics can show you all this information at the click of a mouse. We’re also compatible with Bit.ly - we’re a friendly bunch.
Tip 5: Post with your audience in mind
Don’t just post on Twitter when you feel like it, think about your audience.
- Who are they? If you’re marketing to young adults, they use Twitter in a very different way to a slightly older audience. For example, they’ll be more likely to Tweet at 2am than someone who needs to be up for work at 6am.
- Where are they located? Pay attention to your market. If you’re UK-based and trying to attract a wider US audience, post at optimum times in the US to make sure they’re always seeing your Tweets, otherwise you mind find all your Tweets are lost in translation.
- Think mobile. Twitter revealed 60% of their user base logged in via mobile devices at least once a month. Increasingly, users are using their phones to use Twitter rather than their desktop computers, so make sure your posts are optimized for mobile. Especially as 79% of mobile users are likely to browse Twitter several times a day… more chances for them to see your posts!
Tip 6: Tweet during the weekend
Research claims most brands Tweet during the working week. Probably because that’s when staff are around to Tweet. They noted that the peak for brands Tweeting was on a Thursday, and this dropped during the weekend. We already know from research we conducted into retail Twitter accounts that Tweeting on a Sunday is extremely effective, so why not Tweet then and see what happens? Other research has also indicated that brands cash in on the most retweets during the weekend.
Tip 7: Give Audiense a go!
You’ve tried the rest, now try the best. Okay, that’s a little cocky, but we CAN help you take the guesswork out of calculating the best time to post on Twitter. How? We have a dedicated feature that puts all of it’s energy into finding your perfect time to post on Twitter. Our ‘Best Time To Tweet’ tool, which can be customized according to particular audience segments calculates your best time to Tweet as well insights into what topics, hashtags and links your community share the most. Not only will this help you with your best time to post it’ll also optimize your content to enhance your engagement with your target audience. Best of all? Audiense has a Free Plan - join today and find out your best time to post on Twitter.
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