If your goal is to reach as many people in your target demographic as possible, then here’s the bottom line: Know your audience.

For many people, this means posting during high-traffic times online. Research firm iMedia Connection says that page views fluctuate based on the time of day. The lowest point is usually in the early morning, around 5 am. Traffic increases steadily and reaches its peak around 4 pm. For this reason, many believe posting right before or during this peak traffic period is the best strategy for maximum exposure.

But it’s not as simple as that. It is key to know your target audience. When are they online? If you don’t already know, start paying attention. Take a look at when people you are trying to reach comment or “like” your post. Notice the time of day it is, and whether it’s on a weekday or a weekend. Tailor the timing of your posts to coincide with the patterns of your intended audience’s online activity.

Don’t forget to take time zones into account. If you intend to reach an international audience, you may want to alter the times you post to reach those people. Are you trying to reach people on the East Coast or the West Coast? If you are trying to connect with people in a different time zone than your own, make sure you are posting at times that are convenient for them, not you. Some bloggers post twice a day, at times designed to interact with folks from different time zones.

Online expert Sociable Boost stresses that there are no hard and fast rules to social media. Experimenting to find out what times your target audience are most active online is a strategy that will help you in the long term. Also, your personal online behavior or preferences may not be typical; thus, it is not about you but rather it is about your audiences preferences.

If you are trying to reach people through Facebook, keep in mind that many companies block their employees from viewing that website during work, so you may be better off posting in the evenings.

Ultimately, you must know who you are trying to reach, and then tailor your strategy to that particular target audience.

John Bradley Jackson
Entrepreneur, Professor, Author
Deja New Marketing
© Copyright 2012

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