BY Kathy Crosett
We have heard that consumers’ social media use has shifted during the pandemic. Does this shift in behavior/social media trends impact when your clients should post their press releases on social sites? Absolutely! Here are the details from Sprout Social’s recent research on this topic.
Social Media Trends per Platform: Timing of Press Releases
Sprout Social’s research on the most popular social sites indicate some changed consumer behavior and social media trends concerning timing in the past couple of months. Previous research showed Facebook users were checking out the site on Wednesdays at 11:00 a.m. Now, Facebook users are on the site on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at that same time. If your clients want to connect with these folks, make sure their latest press releases are active by 10:00 a.m. on those mornings.
Instagram users exhibit slightly different behavioral patterns and social media trends because of the pandemic. Folks checking out this site tend to active on Monday, Tuesday and Fridays at 11:00 a.m. Researchers detected another busy time at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday afternoons. Marketers should post their fresh press releases just before these peak times to get the biggest exposure.
There’s something about Twitter users and Fridays. Even before the COVID-19 outbreak, Twitter users made Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. the most popular time on the site. That busy period has shifted slightly in the past couple of months as new social media trends are on the rise. Twitter users are on the site early, peaking at between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. If your clients want to make an appearance on the Twitter stream, they’ll need to post press releases early.
In the pre-COVID-19 world, this professional site seemed to draw interest when users were catching up on news and trends before they started their workday. Now that many folks aren’t commuting and their workday and personal time may be commingling, peak traffic times on the site have shifted. Here’s when traffic has been highest on LinkedIn during the past few weeks:
- Wednesdays 3:00 p.m.
- Thursdays 9:00–10:00 a.m.
- Friday 11:00 a.m. — noon
Marketers must be as careful with posting press releases on social sites as they are with other media formats during the pandemic. Consumers' social media trends concerning usage have shifted and brands must pay attention to that change. Branding campaigns can generate a position feelings when they explain how a company is supporting first responders.
Overall, researcher reports that they’ve detected a 0.2 drop in numbers of post done each day by marketers. But there’s been a big shift in activity levels by industry vertical. While media and entertainment sites have added 8.9 posts a day and health care organizations have added 5.3, retailers have dropped up to four posts and travel and tourism sites have dropped 4.4 posts.
Social Media Use Has Shifted
Work with your clients to manage their social media activity to be sure press releases are going live at the right time. To learn more about which consumers are most influence by social media, check out AudienceSCAN, available at AdMall from SalesFuel.