How to use Social Media Metrics for Optimizing Your Marketing Strategy

The way we communicate has been changed by digitalization and also by the growing use of social media platforms. There are around 4,7 billion internet users worldwide. Most of them are using social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more. Therefore, social media offers great potential for your marketing.

Social signals help you to see which of your posts generate engagement from your followers in the form of likes, shares, and comments. You can use this data to review specific campaigns and optimize your social media marketing.

In this blog post I’ll show you

  • what are social media metrics,
  • which metrics are important for your social media posts,
  • how to use social media metrics to optimize your marketing strategy.

What are social media metrics?

Social media metrics, or KPIs (Key Performance Indicators), are metrics you can use to assess how successful a social media strategy is. More precisely, it shows you exactly how successful a single social media post is. The social media metrics can be prioritized and selected according to your (business) goals and serve their purpose.

There are qualitative and quantitative metrics. Quantitative metrics include for example the number of followers, likes, shares, retweets, comments, etc.

Qualitative metrics measure how people react to the content of the post. Is the feedback positive or negative, do people love, criticize or miss something?

In this blogpost, we will focus on quantitative metrics.

Which social media metrics are important for your social media posts?

If you like to analyze the performance of your social media posts, take a look at the following metrics:

  • Impressions: A count of how many times the post has been viewed.
  • Link clicks: A count of link clicks, to further content.
  • Likes: A count of how many times the post has been liked.
  • Re-Shares/ Re-Tweets: A count of how many times the post has been reshared or retweeted.
  • Comments: A count of how many times the post has been replied to.

How to use social media metrics to optimize your marketing strategy?

Metrics are valuable indicators to assess how well a post is received by followers and readers and how users engage with it, like or share the content. To make sure you grow your community and reach your goals, it pays back, if you regularly check your metrics on your social media accounts across all platforms. This helps you to

  • keep track of which posts, topics, campaigns work well
  • adjust any laps in your social media strategy
  • identify trends and challenges to implement into your future campaigns.

Platforms that reach so many people in real-time can open new avenues for lead generation, increase brand awareness, and increase sales. Analyzing the performance of your posts therefore proves to be a good way to adapt and optimize your social media marketing and grow your business.

How to get social media metrics?

Some networks, like Facebook and Instagram, offer their own tools to get insights. However, it can be very time-consuming to check the performance of your posts in each network separately. A social media metrics analysing tool is a good way to reduce this work and save time you can better invest in optimizing your strategy.

The WordPress plugin Blog2Social is a social media automation tool that enables you to manage your entire social media scheduling and sharing directly from your WordPress dashboard across multiple social platforms. You can schedule and share your website content, your blog posts, and product posts. You can also create and share any other social media posts consisting of texts, links, images, and videos automatically. A social media calendar shows you an overview of all scheduled posts. And, with the Social Media Metrics Add-on you can track the performance of all your social media posts you shared with Blog2Social – all in one tool.

With Blog2Social you can track the following metrics (depending on the data availability of each social network):

  • Impressions: A count of how many times the post has been viewed.
  • Link clicks: A count of link clicks, to further content.
  • Likes: A count of how many times the post has been liked.
  • Re-Shares/ Re-Tweets: A count of how many times the post has been reshared or retweeted.
  • Comments: A count of how many times the post has been replied to.

How to optimize your marketing strategy with social media metrics?

Social media marketing should be used to serve your (business) goals. Social media metrics help you to assess how successful a specific campaign, your topics are, in each single post.

Let’s take a closer look at what you can do to even achieve social signals and use the data to optimize your social media strategy.

1. Share high quality content

The social media metrics make it easy to see which social media post is performing well. However, you first need to reach your audience on social media at all to get those social signals. To do so, it is important to publish good content that brings value to your readers. Share high quality content that leads your readers to interact and to give feedback by keeping the following points in mind:

✔ Look for inspiration on relevant industry channels, blogs, newsletters, or from the comments of your followers. Can you pick up on a current topic, is there a gap in coverage you can fill, or are there questions you can answer?

✔ Pimp your content by using multimedia, since visuals like photos, infographics, videos, GIFs, etc., can improve 200% more shares and engagement.

More facts: Tweets receive 150% more retweets for posts with images than without. On LinkedIn posts with images generate a 98% higher comment rate. These are social signals you need to boost the ranking of your posts.

LET'S GET VISUAL- Why visual content is so important

✔ Customize your posts with individual comments, hashtags, handles, and emojis to invite your followers to engage with you.

2. Share your posts at the best times on social media

The time of publishing can play a decisive role in achieving engagement. Posting at the time when your audience is most active will help you to generate more social signals. So get as many likes, shares, and comments as well as a wide reach posting at the time your readers are online.

The following infographic provides you with the perfect starting point for the right timing. Use the suggested days and times for orientation. Please note that weekdays differ from weekends.

Best times to post on social media

3. Track the performance of your posts

Start sharing your posts at the best times and monitor what happens over time. Use different post formats and share them to the same conditions (same time of day and same day of the week).

Track how often a post was commented on, re-shared and liked. Then you can analyze how well a post has performed or not to use the results for your further strategy and optimize your social media marketing.

Conclusion

As you can see, the social media metrics provide many options for optimizing your social media marketing. You get feedback in a different way from your followers, readers, customers and you can use it to see the success of your posts and discover trends. As more and more people around the world get access to the internet, the presence on social media will continue to grow. So take the chance, and track the performance of your social media posts now!

The Best WordPress Themes: What Theme to Use for Your Website

The best WordPress themes add uniqueness, style and usability to your website with colors, fonts, individual formats and more.

WordPress itself makes it easy to set up your website and manage your content, but when it comes to front-end design, you might want more than the default look. This is where themes come in. They allow you to set-up intricate navigation menus and headings, membership forms for community websites or online shops without the need to have any expertise in coding yourself.

Are you wondering which theme could be the best for your website? Then you’ve come to the right place!

Do I need a theme for WordPress?

Technically, no. For example, if you use WordPress as a test environment or to learn how to code. If you are already proficient at coding, you might want a completely custom design for your website. However, I would nonetheless recommend basing your website on a template to save yourself unnecessary work.

Overall, most website admins, developers, agencies and bloggers use a WordPress theme as an easy way to start a website design.

With a theme you can even change the look of your website quite easily. You are not stuck with it once you’ve chosen a WordPress theme: Themes don’t change the underlying structure of your website content – they only change the look and feel of your site.

For example, if you’ve already published several blog posts, changing your WordPress theme won’t remove or edit any of the content in those blog posts. It will only change the appearance of that content.

One way or another: Using a responsive WordPress theme is a great idea for beginners, intermediates and even for WordPress pros.

What makes a great WordPress theme?

There are thousands of themes on WordPress. It’s really hard to decide on the best one for your website, but here are some things to keep in mind when you are on the lookout.

Look either for a multi-purpose theme with a general, versatile design or a theme with a niche design that is tailored to your business or topic. Make sure to choose a modern design: Take a look at your favorite websites for inspiration.

Elements that make a good WordPress theme

  • Fast loading times, so your website runs smoothly and doesn’t take long to render
  • Lightweight and clean code that doesn’t conflict with plugins
  • High quality, fast responding support and helpful FAQs
  • A responsive layout that works on multiple devices, including phones and tablets
  • Content, like images and menu design, that fit your style
  • Options to work with either the built-in WordPress block editor Gutenberg or one of the many reputable page builders
  • Options to add your own branding and design elements such as typography and colors

Free vs. Premium Themes

WordPress is an open source CMS. That means WordPress and many of its add-ons, like themes and plugins, are free to use and customize. However, there are so-called premium themes which do cost money. Is it worth spending some of your budget on a premium theme?

Free WordPress Themes

Pros:

  1. It’s free – You will have to spend absolutely none of your budget on a free WordPress theme.
  2. High quality – The free themes you will find on wordpress.org are bound by and committed to a high quality standard by WordPress. Every theme you can find there has gone through a strict theme review process.
  3. Trial and error – Of course, it is much easier to try out free WordPress themes until you find one that you like. However, most premium themes offer a basic free version or a free trial to try and see if it matches your expectation.

Cons:

  1. Limited support options – Some of the developers offer support through WordPress forums for free themes, but they are not obliged to help you out.
  2. Not very unique – If you use a popular free theme, your website will probably look like many other websites out there. Also, there are usually limited options to customize the visual appearance of a free theme.
  3. No warranty – Free themes are distributed without obligations, so if it doesn’t work as expected, you’re on your own.

Premium WordPress Plugins

Pros:

  1. High flexibility – Premium themes almost always come with more features and customization options: Shortcodes, images, buttons or even complete page builders for custom design creation.
  2. Ongoing support and updates – A great advantage: the ongoing support provided by the developers and the communities that comes with a premium theme.
  3. Showstopping design – In general, premium themes tend to have a higher design quality. Even though free themes are held to high standards, the standards for premium themes are much higher.
  4. Plugins & extras – Many premium themes come with a bundle of plugins. This way, they make it much easier to handle your design and even add options such as SEO, marketing and more with just one purchase.

Cons:

  1. The cost – Of course, premium themes are not free. They can be quite expensive, actually. Especially for beginners it might be hard to assess if a theme is worth its price. However, look out for free trials that will help you with your decision.
  2. High complexity – Some premium themes are quite complex, if they were not specifically made for beginners. This gives you more customization options, but it will require a little more expertise in coding.
  3. Switching – If you set-up your website using an intricate theme, switching themes and creating a new cohesive layout might be more complicated. Also, when switching premium themes, there is also the added cost.

Find the best WordPress theme for your website

There are thousands of WordPress themes out there, for every business, topic, and style preference. But for now, we’ve gathered some of our favorites for you. All of the themes have been tested and rated by users around the world. They are all available in the WordPress theme database, which makes them easy to install. They have all been reviewed and approved by the WordPress team. All of these themes offer a basic version for free,  with more options at affordable prices in the premium versions that you might find worth looking at.

We’ve selected multi-purpose and very customizable themes that are well supported and have already been proven by thousands of active installations. While being popular, the themes will still give you plenty of options to make your website look unique. Take a look and find the best WordPress theme for you!

Make sure to give us your feedback on these themes in the comments. Do you use one of these themes and want to share your experience? Do you have another favorite theme that we should feature in this list? We’d love to hear from you!

Astra

astra is a great wordpress theme with thousands of happy users
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Brainstorm Force$ 49.00+1.000.000 +5/5 (5.054 ratings)

Astra is suitable for blogs, personal portfolios, business websites and WooCommerce storefronts. It is very lightweight (less than 50KB on frontend) which means it offers unparalleled speed. Built with SEO in mind, search engines will love your site. It offers special features for designing your own headers, footers and much more. Through templates it is fully customizable even if you have no experience with coding. Astra works perfectly with all page builders like Elementor, Beaver Builder, Visual Composer and more. Astra is regularly updated and the Brainstorm Force Team offers support to the users. It is compatible with WooCommerce, responsive & translation ready, also for all languages that are read right to left.

Neve

Neve - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Theme Isle$ 59.00+300.000+5/5 (876 ratings)

Neve is a super fast, easily customizable, multi-purpose theme. It’s very popular, because you can do so many different things with it. The theme’s perfect for blogs, small businesses, startups, agencies, e-commerce shops (compatible with WooCommerce) as well as personal portfolio sites and most types of projects. A fully AMP optimized (for mobile) and responsive theme, Neve will load in mere seconds and adapt perfectly on any viewing device. While it is lightweight and has a minimalist design, the theme is highly extendable, it has a highly SEO optimized code, laying the groundwork for resulting in top rankings in Google search results. Neve works perfectly with Gutenberg and the most popular page builders (Elementor, Brizy, Beaver Builder, Visual Composer, SiteOrigin, Divi). Neve is also WooCommerce ready, responsive & translation ready.

BuddyX

DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
wbcomdesigns$ 59.00+4.000+5/5 (12 ratings)

BuddyX is an ideal theme for community and membership website providing a solution to all kinds of communities. Thanks to it’s BuddyPress support, your website can now have member profiles, send a private message, create groups and so much more. It is a lightweight, fully responsive, seo-optimised, RTL & translation ready theme. BuddyX provides support for WooCommerce and many other plugins.

It is highly customizable and works perfectly with page builders such as Elementor and Gutenberg. BuddyX is perfect for creating social learning, marketplace and blogging websites using BuddyPress integration. BuddyX is built using the latest best practices for progressive web content and optimization. It is well tested with the latest BuddyPress version and popular BuddyPress addons. It is developed, maintained, and supported by Wbcom Designs.

NewsUp

NewsUp - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Theme Ansar$ 59.00+20.000+4,5/5 (100 ratings)

NewsUp is a fast, clean, modern-looking responsive WordPress theme. It’s great for any newsfeed or magazine style website. The theme is fully widgetized, so users can manage the content easily by using widgets.

It is SEO friendly, WPML, Gutenberg, translation and RTL ready. There are many child themes based on NewsUp,for example NewsTalk, so you have many beautiful pre-made designs to choose from.

Rosa 2

rosa WordPress Theme - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Pixelgrade$ 70.00+900 +5/5 (15 ratings)

Rosa 2 is a freemium WordPress theme designed for Gutenberg, the block editor from WordPress. This makes it very beginner-friendly. The beautiful theme will allow any type of small business, from restaurants, coffee shops, bakeries, beauty salons, hotels, and more, to capture the attention of online visitors. With just a few clicks, you can add a gallery of images, a slideshow gallery to showcase your location’s hot spots, and even a background video on each section of the page. The built-in Food Menu lets you quickly add menu items, highlight the important ones, and display special discounted prices for each item. This saves you a lot of time and makes this theme worth the money. The predefined color palettes from the Style Manager offer a fast way to customize your site’s overall appearance and design. In case you get stuck, you can use the help section to look for the right FAQ or contact the support team directly.

Woostify

Woostify WordPress Theme - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Dylan NGO$ 49.0010.000+5/5 (67 ratings)

Woostify is the theme for beginners who want to start their own online shop in an affordable and easy way. It is a fast, lightweight, responsive and super flexible WooCommerce theme built with SEO, speed, and usability in mind. They offer Add-Ons, so you only pay for the features you really want to use. The theme works great with any of your favorite page builders like Elementor, Beaver Builder, SiteOrigin, Thrive Architect, Divi, etc. Therefore, you can build many types of websites with it.  They also have a 24/7 support ticket system, which will come in handy, if you have any questions or problems with the theme. Woostify is compatible with all well-coded plugins, including major ones like WooCommerce, OrbitFox, Yoast, BuddyPress and Blog2Social.

Inspiro

Inspiro Theme - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
WP Zoom$ 79.00+30.000+4,5/5 (54 ratings)

Inspiro is a professional & lightweight photo and video-focused WordPress theme with a modern design. Of course, it is not only a great fit for photographers and filmmakers, but also for agencies, companies and bloggers who want to make their site more lively and engaging. Packed with features including a fullscreen area that supports Vimeo, YouTube & self-hosted video background, Page Builder integration, Inspiro is perfect for showing off your photography and video portfolio. Moreover, the theme is compatible with WooCommerce and popular Page Builders such as Elementor, Beaver Builder.

ColorMag

ColorMag - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Theme Grill$ 59.00+100.000+5/5 (1.366 ratings)

ColorMag helps you to create your blog or magazine site with ease. Perfect for news, magazine, newspaper and any kind of publishing sites. Fully compatible with Elementor page builder plugin to create any layout imaginable.

It loads in under 1 second, is fully search engine optimized and has been tested with multiple speed testing tools. What is also great about this theme is the many customization options it comes with. You can choose out of many templates and customize the theme with just one click.

The theme is compatible with WooCommerce and many page builders, like Gutenberg, Elementor, Brizy and more.

Kadence

Kadence - - find the best WordPress Theme for You on the Blog2Social Blog
DeveloperPriceActive InstallationsRating
Kadence$ 45.00+100.000+5/5 (145 ratings)

Kadence is a lightweight yet full featured WordPress theme for creating beautiful fast loading and accessible websites, easier than ever. It features an easy to use drag and drop header and footer builder to build any type of header in minutes. It features a full library of gorgeous starter templates that are easy to modify with our intelligent global font and color controls. With extensive integration with the most popular 3rd party plugins, you can quickly build impressive ecommerce websites, course websites, business websites, and more.

Next steps to your website success

Your website just got a successful style make-over, thanks to the amazing theme you picked out. What more is there to do but leaning back and watching the traffic and sales come in?

A lot, actually. A great-looking website alone will not give you traffic and sales. You need to give people the chance to find it in the depths of the internet. For example by improving your visibility in the search engines. This way, people will find your website e.g. by googling “Vegan Food Berlin” or “Dentist in Bristol”. You could create backlinks so people come to your site from related sources or start a social media presence to showcase your services. To do that, of course, you need to create more content: Videos, graphics, blog posts, articles, studies, the list goes on.

Sounds overwhelming? The good thing is, you don’t need to do it on your own. With WordPress, plugins are your best friend and will help you out with all kinds of daily tasks. For example SEO, visuals and even list building and social media marketing!

21 WordPress Marketing Plugins you must have

Download the list

In this list of essential plugins, you will find some real treasures for your website marketing. For example a free editorial calendar for your website or amazing social media buttons and forms. Essential plugins like Yoast, EWWW, Rainmaker, and Blog2Social help you out with SEO, fast loading visuals, email- and  social media marketing.

Additionally, all recommended plugins and themes are highly compatible because all meet the high standards of the WordPress environment.

That way, you can have new website visitors from social media every day and show off the hard work you put into creating your dream website.

Learn more about creating your perfect online presence with WordPress

Daily Social Media Management in 5 MINUTES – How much time can you save using social media automation?

This is how quickly you can actually share posts on multiple social networks.

Sharing content on social media is one of the most important tasks to generate attention and drive more traffic to your website and to your offers. Posting on multiple social platforms and channels consumes a lot of time and work. So, how can you save time on social media?

Social media automation tools promise huge time-savings and more time for the things that are really important to you. You can save time and tedious chores. In this article I will put a social media automation tool to the test and see how much time it can really save. Is it possible to do your social media management in 5 minutes?

The experiment

To compare manual sharing and sharing with a social media tool, I will promote one blog post on my social media channels and compare the times. Let’s see how long it takes to share the post to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Pinterest.

When using social media automation, it is tempting to share the same message to all social networks but social media posts get more outreach and engagement if you customize your posts to each social network and each community. That’s why in this experiment I will be using personal comments, asking questions and adding hashtags. People are more likely to like, share or comment on social media posts with personal comments.

For a quick overview of the results and a look at how I share my posts, check out this video on “Social Media Management in 5 MINUTES”.

The tedious work of sharing social media posts manually on each network

For my self-experiment, I started with the manual work of sharing my blog post separately on each social media account. I wanted to see how much time I actually need for marketing a blog post on each social platform. I  started the stopwatch after publishing my blog post and then I started with the promotional work.

I opened Canva first, to crop the images to the perfect size for each social network. To find out the best image sizes for each network check out the following infographic. Click here to see the current best image sizes for each network.

First, I tackled Twitter, quickly and easily to be done, isn’t it? Just 280 characters to go. The text actually came to me quite easily, putting in hashtags without much hassle. But then the tricky part started: 49 characters left but still no link and no image included. So I opened a new tab, entered the blog URL, opened the post, copied the link and pasted in my Tweet. I wanted to post an image post, so I still had to add the image. 

tweeting manually can take up a lot of time

A quick look at the timer: 12:01 minutes gone for Twitter and cropping my images.

On to the next network!

Let’s turn to Facebook next. For Facebook, there is no character limit. So I added a short introduction to my post, added the image and the link and hit send. 

posting to facebook manually can take a long time

The score: After Facebook the stopwatch shows 16:43 minutes.

No, I will not bore you now with how I worked all networks, but rather highlight what I did. After finishing Facebook, to save time, I copied and changed my comment a bit for the business contacts on LinkedIn.

Now I realize that pasting links and images is most time-consuming. Additionally, I have to open each network in a single tab and switch between tabs to copy and paste texts for re-using them. Blogpost, social networks, image folder, infographics– you can very quickly lose the overview.

Pinterest and Instagram were next in line. In these two social networks you need a key visual to grab the attention. So, to save time, you should make sure to prepare graphics that work on both networks. With Pinterest there is also the choice of the right wall to pin it to. 

After sharing my post on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram I stopped the time again and had a final time of 25:20 minutes.

manual planning can take a long time

At a first glance I thought 25:20 minutes for 5 networks was not bad, but if I want to promote 2-4 posts a day, I am busy for more than 2 hours with just promoting blog posts.

However, I did not even add the additional time I usually need for re-publishing my post also on Medium, Torial, Bloglovin, and Reddit. And, I also did not share my posts on Facebook, LinkedIn and Xing pages and groups as I usually do.

Let’s see how much time we can save using social media automation.

Social Media Automation: Sharing blog posts with Blog2Social

Blog2Social is a social media automation software specially designed for WordPress websites. It is fully integrated into the WordPress dashboard, so you can manage and share all your website content, but also content from other sources on your social media accounts directly from your WP dashboard.

The starting point here is the same: The timer starts after the blog post is published and the promotional work can begin. I go to the WordPress back-end and click on the green Blog2Social button. Of course users who don’t have a WordPress website can use the independent Blog2Social WebApp. This is a great option for scheduling and managing your social media posts if you don’t have a WordPress website.

with blog2social you can easily create social media posts in your wordpress backend

Blog2Social automatically adapts the image sizes to the requirements of each network, so I don’t have to go to Canva and crop my images. Comments fitting the requirements of each network’s space limits are also automatically added from my text.

Since I don’t want to make it too easy for this experiment, I will become more creative and customize my comments for each of my communities. Blog2Social allows me to customize each social media post in one place and one easy workflow, so that I can still save time, a lot of time, compared to manually sharing my posts.

If you want to learn more on how best to share your post on each network, check out the following free complete social media sharing guide.

blog2social adds images and links to your posts automatically and suggests texts

I don’t have to insert the link to my post as Blog2Social inserts it automatically. Also, my keywords are automatically turned into hashtags for networks such as Pinterest and Instagram.

The tool also counts the available characters for me. On top of each editing field I can see how many characters I have available in total and how many I have used up already.

Since all editing fields for all connected networks, profiles, pages, and groups are displayed on one editing page, I save time for switching between the individual tabs.

Blog2Social  also allows me to schedule my posts to be shared at a specific time on each network. I can do this by using a pre-configured best time scheduler or I can edit each time separately for each network. I usually use the best time scheduler and then edit some of the suggested times, if I think it necessary. With this I can save time on scheduling every post individually.

The only thing I still had to do was press the green button “Share.”

sharing with blog2social works quickly and efficiently

Et voilá – all posts have been published or scheduled. By clicking “view social media post” you can take a look at your post to check, if everything is ok.

What can I say? Everything looks great! A glance at the stopwatch tells me: 5 minutes and 5 seconds. Even without a calculator, I know that it was much less than in the first round. Blog2Social just saved me 20 minutes and a lot of sharing pain.

sharing with Blog2Social takes five minutes

The benefits of scheduling social media posts

Blog2Social enables you to share your blog posts on all social media at once or to schedule your social media posts for each or of channels. By sharing your posts at different times the posts are likely to get more outreach and attention. Every network has a specific time when communities are most active and at which posts achieve higher interaction rates. By sharing your post at the best time for each social network your post is more likely to get attention and engagement from your community. By sharing your post at different times across social networks will also extend the lifespan of your post.

Learn more tips and tricks for time-saving social media scheduling here.

Wrap up: Save Time on Social Media Management and Cross-Promotion with Blog2Social

25:20 minutes manual sharing vs. 5:05 minutes automatic sharing. 

You can easily see: Sharing with Blog2Social only took me a fifth of the time that manual sharing costs me. Instead of almost half an hour, I just did my scheduling in less than 5 minutes. Plus, with Blog2Social, all my posts will be published at the best times for each network and I don’t have to worry about the correct image sizes.

And think about this: If you wanted to post to another Facebook page, group or to another Twitter account, and even more social networks like XING, Reddit, Tumblr or Google My Business manually, it could take you over an hour everyday. With Blog2Social you can do your complete scheduling for a week, a month or even a year in a matter of minutes.

Blog2Social can also reshare your older posts on social media automatically. The Blog2Social Autoposter can automatically create and share posts for every new piece of content you publish. This way, you can save even more time!

With all this new free time you have on your hands, you can create more amazing content, interact with your communities, promote your business in any way you’d like or simply take a break.

Voices from Blog2Social Users: “Saves SO much Time!!!”

I am not the only one who finds Blog2Social is a great time-saver. Dena on WordPress is giddy because she doesn’t have to spend hours on social media scheduling anymore.

What’s your experience with Social Media Automation? Please let me know in the comments!

The Complete Social Media Guide and Toolbox

Get the Complete Guide to Social Media sharing & Toolbox for free!

Social media is the most important source for driving traffic to a blog or website and generating reach. Readers and potential customers use social media channels to conduct targeted research, share information and discuss current topics. Click here to get the Social Media Guide

Social Media Video Sizes Cheet Sheet

Video content is all the rage and a highly effective way to gain organic reach on social media. According to Cisco’s 2022 report, 82 % of global internet traffic generated from either video streaming or video downloads. Whether it’s for personal use, brand promotion, or advertising, video content is a powerful tool for engaging with audiences and driving engagement. With the availability of user-friendly video creation tools on various platforms, you can easily create videos on the go without requiring expensive equipment. Social media users value authenticity and vulnerability highly, so have fun and create content without getting too caught up in the technicalities.

With so many different social media platforms available, each with their own unique video specifications, it can be challenging to create content that looks great on every platform. In this blog post, we will take an in-depth look at the video sizes for the most popular social media platforms, including YouTube, Vimeo, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and more. By understanding these video sizes, you’ll be able to optimize your video content for each platform and ensure that your content looks its best and performs well, no matter where it’s shared.

First things first

Social media has various video formats that you may come across, and it is essential to know which formats work best for each platform to ensure your content performs well.

To ensure that your videos are effective, there are a few important things to keep in mind before you start recording:

  1. When producing your video, choose a frame that works well in both landscape and portrait modes. This allows you to share your video on multiple social media platforms.
  2. Turn longer YouTube videos into 15-second snippets to provide a sneak peek on different platforms.
  3. Engage viewers in the first few seconds to keep their attention. This can be achieved through humor or by providing informative content that adds value to the user.
  4. Include a call to action to encourage engagement with your video.
  5. Use a tripod to ensure steady footage.

By following these simple tips, you can make the most out of your videos and increase engagement with your audience.

Why you should use the right video sizes for each platform

Using the appropriate video sizes for each social media platform is essential for several reasons. Firstly, each platform has its own unique specifications for video formats, including aspect ratio, video size, and resolution. Failing to adhere to these specifications can result in poorly optimized videos that do not display correctly on the platform, leading to a reduction in engagement and viewership.

Secondly, using the correct video sizes ensures that your content will be displayed in the best quality possible, which can increase the chances of users sharing, liking, and commenting. When videos are displayed correctly, they are more visually appealing and can grab the attention of viewers more effectively.

Lastly, using the right video sizescan help to increase your organic reach on social media. Platforms like Facebook and Instagram, for instance, prioritize videos that are optimized for their platform, which can result in your content being displayed to a larger audience. By adhering to each platform’s video format guidelines, you can ensure that your videos are displayed correctly and reach the maximum number of users possible.

Get the Cheat Sheet: Social Media Video Sizes!

Download the cheat sheet with all the social media video sizes for the major social media platforms.

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YouTube Video Sizes

YouTube is the world’s largest video-sharing platform, allowing users to upload, share, and view videos on a variety of topics. With over 2.6 billion monthly active users, YouTube has become an indispensable tool for creators, businesses, and viewers alike. From educational content to music videos and vlogs, YouTube offers a vast range of video content that can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection. In this day and age, YouTube has become a cultural phenomenon and an essential part of our daily lives.

It’s a good idea to make your content:

  • Clear, consistent, and representative so that people who find your channel will instantly understand what your videos are all about.
  • As simple as possible. Think of logos or the branding of products you like—they’re likely a singular image or style that sticks in your brain.
  • Something you’re proud of. Remember—your content will become an extension of you, especially if you star in your channel.

https://support.google.com/youtube/troubleshooter/2888402?hl=de&ref_topic=9257782

YouTube Video Guidelines

  • File type: MOV, MPEG4, MP4, AVI, WMV, MPEGPS, FLV, 3GPP, and WebM
  • Resolution: 3840 x 2160 (max)
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1, 2:3 or 9:16
  • Video length: 12 hours (max)
  • File size: 128 GB (max) or 12 hours

YouTube Shorts

When you uploard videos in a 9:16 asprect ratio shorter than 60 seconds, YouTube automatically creates a short from your content.

Things to keep in mind

  • You don’t need any special equipment to get started! You can record, edit, and upload all from your phone.
  • After you get your first upload out of the way, try sticking to a posting schedule you can maintain. Remember, consistency is key!
  • Short videos are fun, and Shorts make it easy for anyone to get started immediately.
  • File type: MP4 and MOV.
  • Resolution: min. 720 pixels and max 1080 pixels.
  • Aspect ratio: 9:16
  • Video length: up to 60 seconds 
Blog2Social: YouTube Video Sizes

Vimeo Video Sizes

Vimeo is a video-sharing platform that was founded in 2004, a year before YouTube. However, Vimeo has distinguished itself by focusing on high-quality, professional-grade videos that are often used by filmmakers, artists, and other creative professionals. Vimeo offers a range of tools and features that allow users to upload, share, and collaborate on videos with ease. With a community of over 260 million active monthly creators and viewers, Vimeo has become a popular choice for those who value quality and creativity in video content.

Vimeo Video Guidelines

  • File type: MP4, MOV, WMV, AVI, and FLV
  • Resolution: 1280 x 720 px up to 8k
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9
  • Video length: 24 hours (max)
  • File size: 500MB per week with the basic free membership, with a total of 5GB storage
Blog2Social: Vimeo Video Sizes

TikTok Video Sizes

TikTok is a social media app that has taken the world by storm since its launch in 2016. With over one billion active users, the platform has become a hub for short-form videos that are often humorous, creative, and entertaining. The app allows users to create and share videos ranging from lip-syncs, dance videos, comedy skits, and more, all set to a background of popular songs and sounds. What sets TikTok apart from other social media platforms is its algorithm that suggests personalized content to users, making it easy to discover new creators and trends. TikTok has revolutionized the way people consume videos and is by far the number one platform that generates the most engagement with users.

TikTok Video Guidelines

  • File type: MP4 or MOV recommended
  • Resolution: 1080×1920 pixels
  • Aspect ratio: 9:16 (1:1 with pillarboxing)
  • Video length: 15 seconds recorded in-app, 60 seconds in-app (4 sections of 15 seconds), or over 60 seconds when uploaded from another source
  • File size: max. 287.6MB
Blog2Social: TikTok Video Sizes

Instagram Video Sizes

Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms that was launched in 2010, initially as a photo-sharing app. Since then, it has grown to over 1.2 billion active users, making it one of the largest social networks in the world. Instagram allows users to share photos and videos, and has become a hub for creative expression and visual storytelling. With features such as Instagram Stories, and Reels, users can share their content in a variety of formats and engage with their followers in new and exciting ways.

Instagram Video Guidelines

  • File type:MP4 and MOV
  • Resolution: 720-1080 pixels
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 1:1, 4:5
  • Video length: 15 to 60 seconds
  • File size: 4GB 

Instagram Reel Guidelines

  • File type:MP4 or MOV
  • Resolution: 1920 px
  • Aspect ratio: 9:16
  • Video length: 3 seconds – 15 minutes
  • File size: 650 MB
Blog2Social: Instagram Video Sizes

Pinterest Video Sizes

Pinterest is a social media platform that has gained popularity as a visual search engine, allowing users to discover and save ideas for everything from fashion and home decor to recipes and travel. Launched in 2010, Pinterest now has over 433 million active users worldwide, making it a valuable platform for businesses looking to reach new audiences. With features such as Pins, Boards, and Story Pins, users can create, organize, and share content in a visually appealing way. 

Video Pin Guidelines

  • File type: MP4, M4V, MOV
  • Resolution: min 240 pixels max 2160 pixels
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1, 2:3 or 9:16
  • Video length: 15-30 seconds 
  • File size: 2 GB (max)

Story Pin Guidelines

  • File type: MP4, M4V, MOV
  • Aspect ratio: 9:16
  • Video length: 15- 60 seconds
  • File size: 16mb Android and iOS, 100mb Web
Blog2Social: Pinterest Video Sizes

Facebook Video Sizes

Facebook is a social media platform founded in 2004. It quickly grew to become the largest social network in the world with over 2.9 billion monthly active users. Users can create profiles, share content, connect with friends and family, and join or create groups to share common interests. Facebook has evolved over the years to include features such as live video, 360° videos, marketplace, and advertising options for businesses. It continues to be a powerful tool for connecting people and businesses worldwide.

Facebook Video Guidelines

  • File type: MP4 or MOV
  • Resolution: 1280 x 720
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9 to 9:16
  • Video length: max 240 minutes 
  • File size: max 4.0 GB

360° Video Guidelines

  • File Type: MP4 container
  • Video dimension for Monoscopic videos: 5120 x 2560 maximum, aspect ratio 2:1
  • Video dimension for Stereoscopic videos: 5120 x 5120 maximum, aspect ratio 1:1
  • Maximum Length: ½ hour
  • Maximum File Size: 10 GB
  • Video with 360 metadata embedded

Facebook Reels and Stories

  • File type: MP4 or MOV
  • Resolution: 540 x 960 (540p) minimum (1080×1920 or greater recommended)
  • Aspect ratio: 9:16
  • Video length: 4 seconds – 60 seconds (Stories 4 minutes)
  • File size: No file size limit
Blog2Social: Facebook Video Sizes

Linkedin Video Sizes

LinkedIn is the largest professional network in the world, offering professionals in various industries the opportunity to connect, explore career opportunities, and expand their professional network. With over 900 million members in over 200 countries and regions, LinkedIn is a valuable platform to connect with other professionals, exchange industry-specific information, and discover professional opportunities. In recent years, LinkedIn has also expanded its features to support multimedia content such as videos. These videos can be an effective way to share expertise, provide insights into work or the company, and position oneself as an industry expert. By using the right video formats on LinkedIn, you can capture the attention of your target audience and advance your professional goals.

  • File type: MP4 or MOV
  • Resolution: 256×144 – 4096×2304
  • Aspect ratio: 1:2.4 – 2.4:1
  • Video length: 10 Minutes
  • File size: 5 GB
LinkedIn Video Specs

Twitter Video Sizes

Twitter is a social media platform that allows users to share and discover information and news in real-time. With over 330 million active users, Twitter is a popular platform for businesses, celebrities, and individuals to connect and engage with their audience. The platform’s unique feature of limiting posts to 280 characters makes it a hub for concise and effective communication. From breaking news to personal opinions, Twitter offers a platform for anyone to join the conversation and stay up-to-date with the latest trends and topics.

Twitter Video Guidelines

  • File type: MP4 or MOV
  • Resolution: min 32 px max 4096 px
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 1:1, 9:16
  • Video length: 140 seconds
  • File size: 512 MB (mobile) 1 GB (web)
Blog2Social: Twitter Video Sizes

Mastodon Video Sizes

Mastodon is a decentralized social networking platform that offers an alternative to centralized social media platforms. Launched in 2016, Mastodon has gained popularity among individuals and communities seeking more control over their online presence and data. Unlike traditional social networks, Mastodon is built on a federated model, where multiple independent servers, called instances, are connected to create a diverse and interconnected network. This decentralized structure allows users to choose the instance that aligns with their interests and values, while still being able to communicate with users from other instances. With its emphasis on privacy, customization, and community-driven moderation, Mastodon provides a unique and user-centric experience in the world of social media.

  • File type: MP4 or MOV
  • Resolution: 1920 x 1200 px 
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3, and 1:1
  • Video length: no limit
  • File size: 40 MB

Discord Video Sizes

Discord is a versatile communication platform that not only allows users to chat and voice call but also supports the sharing of videos. When it comes to sharing videos on Discord, there are a few important specifications to consider for the best experience.

Firstly, Discord supports a wide range of video file formats, including common formats like MP4, MOV, and AVI. This allows users to easily share videos in their preferred format without compatibility issues.

In terms of video resolution and quality, Discord recommends using a resolution of 1280×720 pixels (720p) for optimal viewing. However, higher resolutions are also supported, and Discord automatically adjusts the quality based on the viewer’s device and internet connection.

  • File type: MP4, MOV, and AVI.
  • Resolution: 1280x720px
  • Aspect ratio: 
  • Video length: 
  • File size: 8MB (non Nitro), 50 MB (Nitro Classic) 100 MB (Nitro)
Discord Video Sizes

Publish and share your videos automatically with Blog2Social

Sharing your video content across multiple social media platforms can be a hassle, especially when you have to do it manually. With Blog2Social, however, you can easily automate the process and publish your videos across all your social media accounts straight from your WordPress media library. Whether you want to share your videos on YouTube, Vimeo, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or TikTok, Blog2Social has got you covered.

The integrated video feature seamlessly integrates into your social media scheduling and sharing workflow. All you have to do is upload or select a video from your WordPress media library, add a compelling title and description with relevant keywords, and publish it across your chosen social media accounts with just a few clicks. Streamline your workflow and simplify your content sharing process all in one place.

Blog2Social also imports your video title and description from the meta text in your media gallery and automatically adapts it to the format required by each platform. Plus, you can easily add or customize your title, description, and hashtags for each network individually to ensure your video content is optimized and ready to reach a wider audience.

Get your sneak peek!

Check out our quick tutorial on how to get started with the new video function. Find out how to connect your channels, upload your videos and send them out to your channels to go viral. Make sure to leave your feedback in the comment section and follow for more updates!

Start the free trial today!

Sign up for a free 30-day video trial and experience all the premium features of Blog2Social (no automatic subscription). During your trial, you can upload up to 250 MB of video content per day, with a total limit of 2.5 GB. When you reach the limit, simply choose a premium license and unlock the video add-on.

Wrap-up

Social media video content has become a crucial aspect of digital marketing and personal branding. Understanding the video sizes for each social media platform is essential to create content that looks its best and performs well on each platform. By optimizing your videos for each platform, you can increase your organic reach, drive engagement, and ultimately achieve your marketing goals. Remember to keep in mind the aspect ratios, resolutions, and video sizes for each platform, as well as the recommended video length and content type. With this knowledge, you can create high-quality video content that resonates with your audience and helps you stand out on social media.

Get the Cheat Sheet: Social Media Video Sizes!

Download the cheat sheet with all the social media video sizes for the major social media platforms.

[rainmaker_form id=”88122″]

Must-Have Video Tools for your Marketing: Create, Promote & Share

In our world where video reigns supreme, consumers are hungry for captivating visual experiences to understand products and services. Did you know that users retain 95% of a message when watched on video, compared to a mere 10% when read in plain text?

Now, imagine harnessing this potential as a marketer – effectively informing and engaging your potential buyers. Sounds great, but it can be a struggle to create high-quality, cost-effective, and enjoyable videos on a regular basis, especially for a small business. Fear not! Get ready for your ultimate time-saving video tools for effortless and affordable production and promotion. With these game-changing video tools, you’ll be crafting compelling videos that win over new customers, day after day.

VidIQ

vidIQ is a great tool for video marketing

You know you want to make great videos. You know what your expertise is. Still, you might have no idea what videos you want to make. That’s where VidIQ comes in. VidIQ analyzes your YouTube channel as well as competitors channels, to find you daily new video ideas. It also knows the best keywords for your chosen topic. It shows you the keywords that give your brand the greatest visibility. VidIQ helps you optimize your YouTube channel, analyze the effectiveness of thumbnails, and provides ideas for tags, descriptions, and titles.

VidIQ’s YouTube channel and newsletter also offer tips and tricks to master all types of videos and optimize them for a variety of platforms.

Pricing

VidIQ is free for one channel and includes tracking for three competitors and basic video analytics. The paid services, Pro ($7.50/month) and Boost ($39/month), offer more channels and additional features. A premium version at the mentioned price includes unlimited channels, users, and more.

Canva

Canva is a great tool for video marketing

Now that you have ideas and keywords for your next video, you turn to an old friend: Canva. Previously just a great tool to effortlessly create graphics, the versatile design platform extended its functionality to video editing and customization.

One standout feature of Canva is its ability to remove and change video backgrounds effortlessly. Say goodbye to distracting or unappealing backgrounds that could diminish the impact of your message. With just a few clicks, you can seamlessly replace backgrounds, ensuring that the focus remains on your content and brand. Whether you want to transport your viewers to a stunning location or create a professional studio-like setting, Canva offers the flexibility to transform your videos with ease.

Another game-changing aspect of Canva is its extensive stock video library. Access a vast collection of high-quality videos right within the platform, eliminating the need for tedious searches across multiple websites.

But Canva doesn’t stop at just backgrounds and stock videos. This powerful tool also allows you to add text, graphics, and overlays to enhance your videos further. From attention-grabbing titles to engaging captions, you can easily create visually stunning and informative videos that deliver your message effectively. With Canva’s intuitive drag-and-drop interface, even those without prior design experience can effortlessly craft professional-looking videos that leave a lasting impression.

Pricing

You can use Canva, as well as many of its features, stock images and videos for free. When you use it often, you might consider the pro ($9.15/month/person) or the team ($11.60/month/person) for even more free stock content and more features, for example AI-based design tools.

Motion Array

Motion Array is a great tool for video marketing

Motion Array is the place for unlimited creative assets. This includes stunning stock footage and graphics to add depth and variety to your content. Using Motion Array can bring several benefits to your video marketing efforts. Motion Array also offers a vast library of video templates, motion graphics, and audio tracks. You can easily find and incorporate visually appealing elements that align with your brand and help you create engaging and professional videos.

Whether you need eye-catching transitions, stylish text animations, or dynamic overlays, Motion Array is the place for you. These effects can help make your videos visually appealing and memorable. By incorporating these professional-grade visual elements, you can captivate your audience and leave a lasting impression.

Motion Array also provides a suite of powerful editing tools that can streamline your video production process. With features like customizable video templates and pre-built effects, you can save time and effort by quickly creating visually stunning videos. These tools enable you to focus on the creative aspects of your video marketing campaigns without getting bogged down by technical complexities.

For teams or collaborators, Motion Array offers collaboration features that facilitate teamwork. You can invite team members, assign roles and tasks, and track progress, ensuring smooth coordination and efficient workflow. These collaboration tools enable seamless communication and make it easier to work together on video marketing projects.

Pricing

Your marketing can benefit from MotionArray starting from $19,99/month. Sharing the joy and working as a team, you can save a bit of money, paying $37,50/month for two users.

Synthesia

synthesia is a great tool for video marketing

Don’t feel comfortable in front of the camera? Synthesia is an AI-powered video generation tool that allows you to create realistic-looking videos by using text-based scripts. It utilizes artificial intelligence and deep learning technologies to generate videos with lifelike virtual presenters or avatars speaking the script you provide. Synthesia’s aim is to simplify and automate the video production process, making it accessible to individuals and businesses of all sizes.

With this tool, you cannot only customize your videos and choose your own avatar, it also allows multilingual video production in languages you don’t even speak. Synthesia supports multiple languages, allowing you to easily create videos in different languages and expand your reach to a global audience.

Creating videos this way is, of course, a fantastically affordable and quick way of creating videos compared to filming and editing videos with a real person. However, it is essential to note that while Synthesia provides an efficient and automated video creation solution, it may lack the human touch and genuine connection that can be achieved through traditional video production methods. It is crucial to strike a balance and evaluate whether Synthesia aligns with your brand’s tone, messaging, and target audience expectations.

Pricing

You can start creating your own AI-powered videos for $30/month. This is their personal plan, for bigger teams they offer custom solutions.

Animaker

Animaker is a great tool for video marketing

Animaker allows you to easily create animated videos, without any knowledge on animating at all. This handy tool provides a user-friendly interface and a drag-and-drop editor that makes video creation accessible to users of all skill levels. With its intuitive platform, you can easily design and customize animated videos, explainer videos, infographics, and more.

Animaker offers a vast library of templates, characters, props, backgrounds, and animations that can be easily incorporated into your videos. You can choose from a variety of styles and themes that align with your brand and tailor them to your specific marketing needs.

With Animaker, you also have full control over customizing your videos to align with your brand identity. You can add your logo, choose brand colors, and incorporate your own images and assets. This level of customization helps you create videos that are consistent with your brand aesthetics, reinforcing brand recognition and building a cohesive visual identity across your video marketing campaigns.

Pricing

You can start animating videos with Animaker starting from $10/month. If you need videos longer than 5 minutes, a higher quality or a high amount of videos per month, you can instead choose a starter ($19/month) or a pro ($49/month) package. There are also custom solutions available.

InShot

InShot is a great tool for video marketing

The previous tools are great for editing videos in your browser. If you want to edit videos on the go using your phone, InShot is a powerful and versatile tool that can be highly useful.

Just like Canva and Synthesia, InShot is extremely easy to use. It features a user-friendly interface that makes it accessible to both beginners and experienced video editors. Its intuitive layout and straightforward timelines enable users to quickly navigate the software and start editing their videos with ease.

InShot supports a wide range of video and audio formats, allowing you to import and edit various types of media files. This versatility ensures that you can work with your existing video footage and incorporate different assets seamlessly into your marketing videos. Effortlessly create vertical videos for your stories, square videos for your feed or horizontal videos for YouTube or Vimeo.

With InShot, your videos will never be boring: InShot offers a variety of free-to-use music and sound effects for your videos. Add music to your videos to transform the mood, transport information and connect with your audience.

Pricing

InShot and many of its editing features are available free of charge. If you want to remove ads and watermarks and get access to additional filters, effects and transitions, you can upgrade to pro ($3.99/month).

Blog2Social

Blog2Social is a great tool for video marketing

Now that your video has been edited to perfection, it is time to put it out there! Share your video on social media to reach your audience effectively. Blog2Social is a social media automation tool that is perfectly designed for sharing all your content on your favorite social media platforms. Unlike many of its competitors, it does not only allow sharing text, links and images, it also lets you share videos.

Depending on the platform, you can either directly upload your videos to the respective social media platforms or host them on popular video-sharing platforms like YouTube or Vimeo as well as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest or Twitter. You can also share your video as link posts to all the networks that don’t allow sharing videos directly.

You can easily tailor your social media posts to suit each platform’s specifications. For example, by personalizing the captions and titles of your videos, or adding all your important keywords, as well as hashtags. Each platform has its own unique features and character limits. Blog2Social will help you adapt your descriptions and videos in one single workflow for all selected platforms accordingly.

Make the most of your videos by scheduling your posts at the best times for visibility and engagement. You can schedule each post for the perfect time when most of your audience is online. If you don’t know the best time for your post, Blog2Social will schedule your posts automatically for the best time on each network to maximize engagement.

Pricing

With the free version, you can already tap into basic Blog2Social functionalities and experience the convenience of seamless social media sharing. Elevate your social media game by upgrading to the premium features starting at just $7 per month. This option allows you to share your videos per link post. For your advanced video marketing endeavors, such as publishing, scheduling and sharing your video files from your media library, Blog2Social has got you covered with an exclusive add-on available for just $5.75 per month.

Maximize Your Video Engagement: Harnessing the Power of Multiple Social Platforms

To truly capitalize on the potential of your video promotion, it’s essential to leverage multiple social media platforms. By tailoring your video content for distribution across diverse networks like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, and more, you can maximize reach, foster stronger connections, and drive higher engagement. Let’s explore how you can effectively promote your videos across these platforms with the help of tools like Blog2Social, thereby transforming your video marketing strategy into a resounding success.

Why you should post videos on TikTok

  • Wide reach and engagement: TikTok has gained immense popularity, particularly among younger demographics. It offers a vast user base and provides excellent opportunities to engage with a large audience. TikTok’s algorithm promotes content based on user interests, making it easier for your videos to gain exposure and go viral.
  • Creativity and virality: TikTok’s short-form video format (15 to 60 seconds) encourages creativity and allows you to create captivating and highly shareable content. The platform’s unique features like filters, effects, and music options enable you to produce visually appealing and entertaining videos that can quickly spread across the platform.
  • Trend-driven content: TikTok is known for its trend-driven nature. By participating in popular challenges, using relevant hashtags, and staying up-to-date with trends, you can increase your chances of reaching a broader audience and generating buzz around your brand.

Why you should post videos on YouTube

  • Extensive reach and discoverability: As the largest video-sharing platform, YouTube provides an enormous audience base with billions of active users. It offers excellent discoverability through search results, recommended videos, and suggested content, making it easier for users to find and engage with your video marketing campaigns. Especially YouTube’s new Shorts, that are similar to reels and TikToks, are highly engaging and have potential for going viral.
  • Long-form content and tutorials: YouTube’s platform is well-suited for longer video formats, making it ideal for in-depth tutorials, product demonstrations, and educational content. It allows you to showcase your expertise, build credibility, and provide value to your audience, leading to stronger brand loyalty.
  • Monetization and ad opportunities: YouTube offers various monetization options, such as ads, sponsorships, and channel memberships. This allows you to potentially generate revenue from your video marketing efforts. Additionally, YouTube’s ad platform enables you to reach a highly targeted audience through precise demographic and interest-based targeting.

Why you should post videos on Vimeo

  • High-quality and professional content: Vimeo is known for its emphasis on high-quality and visually stunning videos. It is a preferred platform for filmmakers, artists, and businesses seeking a more professional and polished presentation of their video content. Vimeo’s focus on quality can help enhance the perception of your brand and attract a discerning audience.
  • Customization and privacy control: Vimeo provides advanced customization options for video embedding, player settings, and branding. It also offers privacy control features, allowing you to choose who can view your videos, embed them on websites, or download them. This level of control is particularly valuable for businesses that want to restrict access to their content or share videos exclusively with specific clients or partners.
  • Analytics and viewer engagement: Vimeo offers detailed analytics that provide insights into viewer behavior, engagement rates, and video performance. These analytics enable you to refine your video marketing strategies, understand your audience’s preferences, and optimize your content for better results.

Why you should post videos on Instagram

  • Visual-focused platform: Instagram is primarily a visual platform, making it perfect for showcasing your video content. You can upload videos to your feed, share them in Stories (up to 15 seconds), or use IGTV for longer-form videos (up to 60 minutes for verified accounts). Instagram’s emphasis on aesthetics and creativity allows you to capture attention and engage with your audience through visually appealing videos.
  • Hashtags and discoverability: Utilizing relevant hashtags in your video captions on Instagram can help increase your content’s discoverability. Users can find your videos by searching for specific hashtags or exploring trending topics, enabling you to reach a wider audience interested in your niche or industry.
  • Influencer collaborations: Instagram is home to a vast community of influencers and content creators. Partnering with relevant influencers who align with your brand can amplify your video marketing efforts. They can create sponsored content, promote your videos to their followers, and help you expand your reach and credibility.

Why you should post videos on Facebook

  • Large user base and demographic diversity: Facebook remains one of the most widely used social media platforms worldwide, offering a massive user base across different age groups and demographics. This diversity presents an opportunity to target and engage with various audiences through your video content.
  • Facebook Watch: Facebook Watch is a dedicated video platform within Facebook that allows users to discover, watch, and engage with videos. It provides an opportunity to showcase your videos to a specifically video-focused audience and benefit from the platform’s algorithms that recommend videos based on user interests.
  • Targeted advertising: Facebook’s powerful advertising platform enables you to create highly targeted video ads to reach specific audiences based on demographics, interests, and behaviors. You can leverage Facebook’s extensive user data to ensure your videos are seen by the right people, enhancing the effectiveness of your video marketing campaigns.

By strategically utilizing each platform’s unique features, you can effectively promote your brand and drive your video marketing success. To do this use video tools and recycle your videos! Though each network has unique requirements for video lengths and formats, there are some overlaps. You can, for example, post the same video as a YouTube Shorts video, an Instagram Reel and a TikTok.

There are also ways to recycle your videos, even if the format does not match. Check out how you can repurpose your videos here.

Get started with your video tools!

The world of video marketing offers endless possibilities for businesses looking to captivate their audience and drive meaningful engagement. With the right video tools at your disposal, you can create compelling visual content, effectively promote your brand, and reach your target audience like never before. Whether it’s leveraging the editing capabilities of tools like Canva and InShot to craft professional and visually stunning videos, exploring AI-driven solutions like Synthesia to automate and personalize your video production or harnessing the power of social media platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook through Blog2Social to amplify your reach, there’s a tool for every need and goal.

Video is more than just a trend. It’s a powerful medium that convey your brand story, showcase your services, and establish a connection with your audience. By incorporating video into your marketing strategy you can create memorable experiences, increase brand awareness, and drive conversions.

Whether you’re a seasoned marketer or just starting out, the possibilities are endless. Start leveraging the power of video today and watch your brand soar to new heights!

Read more

Optimal social media video sizes

How to boost your social media presence using video

Simplify Your Video Marketing: Repurpose Video Content for Multiple Social Media Channels

Today, almost all of the most popular social media platforms support videos: TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, but also Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and Pinterest. They even make them more visible than images or text – videos usually get 48 % more views. In this article we show you how to easily repurpose your video content and to share it accross multiple social media channels for maximum exposure, engagement and efficiency.

video posts usually get 48 % more views than other social media posts

Do you spend countless hours creating top-quality videos that you’re proud of just to share it to a single social media network? You might want to recycle video content for multiple social media platforms. Here are some of the most common reasons:

  • Optimizing your reach: Repurposing video content across various social media platforms enables you to tap into new audiences. This maximizes the effectiveness of your content marketing efforts.
  • Saving time and resources: Repurposing video content eliminates the need  to create entirely new content for each platform. By leveraging existing videos, you can save valuable time and resources that would otherwise be spent starting from scratch when creating social media posts.
  • Boosting audience engagement: Repurposing video content helps you sustain engagement with your current audience, keeping them interested in your brand. By delivering valuable content in different formats, you can maintain a strong connection and encourage ongoing interactions.
  • Enhancing visibility and brand awareness: Extend the reach of your content by repurposing it across different platforms. This strategy amplifies your brand’s visibility and generates greater awareness about your products or services, making it an indispensable component of your marketing strategy.

Would you like to watch this post as a video?

This is a quick tutorial for your new and easy video recycling strategy!

What is video content recycling?

Video recycling or repurposing your videos means more than just sharing the same video across multiple channels. It involves taking your existing video content and transforming it into different formats or adapting it for various platforms. By repurposing videos, you can extract valuable information, ideas, or messages from your original content and present them in new ways to reach a wider audience or extend the lifespan of your content.

There are a variety of strategies you can use to repurpose your videos, depending on the platform and your goals. Some of the most common ways to repurpose include include:

  • Trimming videos to fit different platforms: If your video is too long for a specific platform, consider trimming it down to fit the platform’s requirements. For example, Instagram Reels are limited to 60 seconds, while TikToks can now be up to 3 minutes long.
  • Creating shorter clips or highlights: Instead of repurposing the entire video, consider creating shorter clips or highlights that can be shared on social media platforms. This can be a great way to tease your full video and entice viewers to watch the whole thing.
  • Adding subtitles: Adding captions or subtitles to your videos can make them more accessible and engaging, while also improving your video’s SEO.
  • Posting at the perfect times: To use each platform’s requirements to fuel your success, take a look at user behavior. When are users most active on the platform? Schedule your videos at this time to reach maximum engagement. Social media tools like Blog2Social help you with that by showing you the best times for each network and automatically publishing your videos.

Which social media networks work best for video sharing?

When it comes to repurposing videos, it’s essential to consider the characteristics and requirements of different video networks. Each platform caters to a slightly different target group. While some networks may overlap in their target audience, they often engage viewers in different ways. Here are some of the video networks you should consider for repurposing:

  1. YouTube: Ideal for tutorials, behind-the-scenes content, and in-depth dives into topics.
  2. YouTube Shorts: Allows for quick glimpses into your content, suitable for capturing viewers’ attention.
  3. Vimeo: A platform known for high-quality and professional videos, appealing to a sophisticated audience.
  4. Instagram (Reels): Perfect for short, entertaining, funny, personal, and educational videos.
  5. TikTok: Popular for short, trendy, creative, and educational videos.
  6. Facebook: Offers visibility to a wide range of video content, appealing to millions of users.
  7. Pinterest: Emerging as a great platform for video content, especially for DIY, inspirational, and instructional short videos.
  8. LinkedIn: A professional networking platform where video content can help you reach a business-focused audience.
  9. Twitter: Allows for sharing videos, capturing attention in a fast-paced environment.
  10. Mastodon: An open-source social network that supports video content sharing and an alternative to Twitter.
  11. Discord: While Discord is primarily known as a communication platform for gamers, it can also be used for video marketing to engage with specific communities and target audiences.

The perfect format for each network

To ensure your repurposed videos align with the requirements of each platform, it’s important to consider video resolutions and aspect ratios. Different platforms have specific dimensions for optimal viewing experiences. For example, vertical videos with a 9:16 aspect ratio are suitable for Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Pinterest. Square videos with a 1:1 aspect ratio work well on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Mastodon, Discord and LinkedIn. Horizontal videos are typically associated with YouTube or Vimeo.

Remember, not all videos are a perfect fit for every platform. If you have a long, twenty-minute video on YouTube, you’ll need to make alterations to share it on platforms like TikTok or Instagram. However, when repurposing videos, the easiest approach is to share them on social networks with similar requirements. For instance, you can repost TikToks to Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.

formats for social media videos: horizontal, square, vertical

Understanding the video networks, their formats, and requirements allows you to effectively repurpose your videos for different platforms, maximizing your content’s reach and engagement. By adapting your videos to the characteristics of each platform, you can create a more cohesive and appealing experience for your audience, increasing the chances of attracting and retaining viewers.

Your video reporposing strategy

Create a horizontal video

To create videos that are easily repurposable, it’s advisable to start by creating a horizontal video. Film your video as you normally would and upload it to YouTube. To ensure your video is convincing and engaging, always keep the viewer in mind, taking them on a journey and delivering the information that interests them.

Post the video on YouTube and Vimeo

When you upload your video on YouTube and Vimeo, optimize its visibility by adding an attention-grabbing headline, a captivating caption, and relevant tags.

Shorten your Video

Next, consider shortening your video to three minutes or less. Alternatively, you can create multiple snippets, focusing on the most interesting, entertaining, or funny parts of the video.

Create a square video

Utilize these clips to create new videos in a square format. Use your preferred video editing tool to place your video on a square canvas, adding a solid-colored border to the top and bottom.

recycle horizontal videos in a square format

Add a headline and subtitles

Enhance the square video meme by incorporating a catchy headline and subtitles. Place the headline in the border at the top of the video and the subtitles in the lower border. The subtitles are especially important because 85 % of people watch social media videos without sound. This ensures your message can be understood even without audio.

Post the square video

Now, share your square video on various social media platforms! Square videos tend to perform exceptionally well on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn. You can also share them on Twitter or Mastodon for wider reach.

Create a vertical video

For platforms like Instagram, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Pinterest, create a vertical video. Use your horizontal video clips and add larger borders at the top and bottom to maintain a 16:9 ratio, perfectly formatted for these platforms. Similarly, customize the headlines and subtitles for each social media network, introducing variation and catering to their unique audiences.

recycle horizontal videos in a vertical format

Speed up the process with Blog2Social

To streamline the process, leverage tools like Blog2Social. This platform allows you to tailor your social media posts to meet each platform’s specifications. You can personalize captions, titles, and add important keywords and hashtags. Blog2Social simplifies the adaptation of your descriptions and videos, enabling a single workflow for all selected platforms.

To maximize visibility and engagement, make the most of your videos by scheduling your posts at optimal times when your audience is most active online. If you’re unsure about the best posting times, Blog2Social can automatically schedule your posts for the ideal times on each network, ensuring maximum engagement.

Tips for maintaining quality and engagement when repurposing videos

While repurposing your videos can save time and effort. It’s important to maintain quality and engagement to keep your audience interested. Here are some tips for maintaining quality and engagement when recycling video content:

  • Maintain brand consistency: Ensure that your repurposed content maintains a consistent brand voice and message across all platforms. This creates a cohesive experience for your audience and strengthens brand recognition.
  • Optimize thumbnails: Select captivating thumbnails that accurately represent your content when repurposing YouTube videos. A compelling thumbnail can attract viewers, while a subpar one may deter them from clicking.
  • Include a call-to-action: When repurposing videos, incorporate a clear call-to-action to prompt viewers to take the desired action, such as visiting your website, subscribing to your channel, or following you on social media.
  • Engage actively: When repurposing your YouTube videos, actively engage with your audience on each platform. Respond to comments, pose questions, and foster discussions to keep your audience engaged and foster a sense of community around your content.

Get started with your time-saving video strategy!

Repurposing your videos for multiple social media channels is a powerful strategy that can significantly expand your brand’s reach and engage diverse audiences. By leveraging the right tools, such as Blog2Social’s new video sharing feature, you can streamline and automate the process, saving valuable time and effort while ensuring consistent promotion across platforms.

Here’s your checklist for effective video recycling: Save it for later and just follow the steps whenever you want to promote your video and repeat as many times as you want.

Understanding the unique requirements of each social media platform and employing creative repurposing strategies are key to effectively promoting your videos. With Blog2Social, you have the ability to tailor your video content to suit each platform’s specifications, ensuring optimal visibility and engagement.

Imagine the time and energy you can save by recycling video content instead of creating entirely new videos for each platform. Blog2Social’s capabilities enable you to efficiently repurpose your videos, reaching audiences on popular platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Vimeo, Facebook, and Pinterest.

By embracing the art of video repurposing, you can maximize the potential of your video content across the digital landscape. Extend the lifespan of your videos, captivate audiences in various formats, and witness the growth and impact of your brand. 

The Complete Social Media Guide and Toolbox

Get the Complete Guide to Social Media sharing & Toolbox for free!

Social media is the most important source for driving traffic to a blog or website and generating reach. Readers and potential customers use social media channels to conduct targeted research, share information and discuss current topics. Click here to get the Social Media Guide

Navigating Twitter’s New Terms of Service: How To Stay Connected via Blog2Social

Twitter recently changed its terms of service for all third-party applications such as social media tools. Twitter’s new policies affect the way these applications interact with the platform. As part of this change, Twitter is gradually suspending all current Twitter connections.

In essence, Twitter has transitioned from a free service to a subscription-based model, ranging from a limited free plan to a comprehensive, volume-based paid plan. Please be aware that this situation affects all third-party tools that interact with Twitter. Many tool providers have since completely discontinued their support for integration with Twitter.

To overcome these new obstacles and to provide our users with a better solution for Twitter posts, the Blog2Social team is currently implementing a new option that will enable you to fully leverage Twitter’s features for sharing your content through Blog2Social. These modifications will be implemented with the Update 7.2 by July, the 24th. We will keep you updated on this post, so make sure to check back soon!

Keep Tweeting with Blog2Social Using Your Unique Twitter API

With the upcoming Blog2Social update you will maintain the ability to connect and share your content on Twitter. This will be achieved by assigning each user a unique Twitter API key, providing a direct and exclusive connection from Blog2Social to Twitter. An API, or Application Programming Interface, is a secure conduit that enables software applications to interact and safely exchange data.

We will provide you with detailed instructions on how to get your own Twitter API key and how to set up a new Twitter connection with Blog2Social shortly. After completing these steps, you will be able to re-establish the connection to your account and to leverage Twitter’s features with Blog2Social along with your needs.

» Learn how to get your unique Twitter API

How to Connect Your Twitter Account with Blog2Social

Once Twitter has provided you with your unique API key, you can enter this key in your Blog2Social settings to establish the connection to your Twitter account and use the service with Blog2Social.

» Here’s how you set up your Twitter API in Blog2Social

Impact on Previously Scheduled Tweets

With the suspension of the current connections by Twitter, any scheduled posts that were prepared via that connection will unfortunately not be able to be posted as planned.

Once the new connection is established, you will be able to schedule tweets as usual for any time you wish with just a few simple clicks.

Understanding Twitter’s New Plans

As part of their new terms of service for third party tools, Twitter introduced plans that offer different options, rules and regulations. These plans aim at improving the user experience, facilitate moderation, and enhance the overall ecosystem on Twitter. Let’s explore the details what this means for you:

Twitter offers different subscription plans for sharing tweets via the Twitter API, each catering to specific needs and requirements. 

  1. Free plan: basic access with a limit of 1,500 tweets per month
  2. Basic plan: offers access to 2 apps, allowing for up to 3,000 tweets, priced at $100/month
  3. Pro plan: offers access to 3 apps, allowing for up to 300,000 tweets and is available at $5,000/month
  4. Enterprise: individual setup 

Note that these Twitter plans apply to a single Twitter API each. You can manage multiple Twitter accounts with one API. In this case, the posting quota applies to all linked Twitter accounts. However, you can also apply for a separate API for each account and choose the appropriate Twitter version for each.

With a Blog2Social Premium Pro license, you can manage multiple Twitter APIs and assign them to the respective Twitter accounts.

All users operating under a Blog2Social license share the same Twitter API linked to the respective Twitter account. If a team is managing your Twitter presence, inform them about the specifications of each API version to ensure smooth operations.

The Best Times to Post on Social Media [2024]

When is the best time to post to social media? The answer to this question might easily be considered the Holy Grail of social media knowledge. Good thing is we’re here to share that knowledge with you! So get ready to unlock the potential of perfect timing for your social media success.

Table of Contents

 

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The Best Times to Post on Social Media
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Why is posting to social media at the best time so important?

Picture this: You worked hard to create a great post. Your copy is near perfect, your hook is a banger and your CTA is irresistible. It’s packed with highly relevant and impactful information for your audience. Excitedly, you post it, and… crickets. People barely engage with it and your post gets lost in the throes of the algorithm.

It’s easily one of the most demotivating and disappointing things to happen, right? Right.

This is why posting at the best time on social media can significantly impact the success of your posts (and your strategy overall). It should never be just a mere afterthought but a careful consideration and observation. A well-timed post has the potential to reach a larger audience and drive engagement. Many social media algorithms consider early engagement on a new post to decide whether or not it should be pushed to more people. Posting at just the right time ensures that your audience sees and interacts with your content. Early engagement then leads to the algorithms showing your post to even more people.

This is why it’s crucial for you to know your target audience’s preferred social networks and the peak hours of their online activity. Getting them to see your content will not only drive engagement and promote your post. It will, ultimately, help you form meaningful connections with your audience, grow brand awareness and loyalty, and convert them from fans to clients.

What is the best time to post on social media?

As convenient as it would be to have a universal best time for all social platforms, the solution isn’t that simple. Each social media site caters to different audiences with different interests, preferences, and active hours. Therefore it’s best to look at each network individually to determine what posting time works best.

However, the easiest way to find out what the best time to post on social media is to take a look at your account insights. Every social media network offers business and creator accounts the option of monitoring their engagement. That includes an overview of your audiences’ peak hours and most active days.

So to get the best results, study your insights, experiment to see when you get the most engagement, and develop your own schedule.

If you’re new to social media and are still growing your account, it’s difficult to determine the best times and the active hours of your audience. On most platforms, you need to hit a certain amount of followers before you get shown data on it. This is why the times below are a good starting point.

Now let’s take a look at the best posting times on each network!

The best time to post on Facebook

The best time to post on Facebook is Mondays through Thursdays, 8 am to 1 pm. Those are the days and hours with peak engagement.

best time to post on facebook

Facebook in numbers:

These numbers prove that Facebook provides an immense reach that – with a solid strategy – can boost brand awareness and visibility. With a variety of content formats, including text, images, videos/reels, stories, and live streams, Facebook allows for versatile marketing approaches to build and foster community engagement.

Tip: 1.8 billion people use Facebook groups each month. Consider engaging in a group or even building one up yourself for your community. It can help build a long-lasting relationship with your audience, grow trust, and thus drive revenue. Groups have their own insights helping you to determine when the best times and days are to post.

The best time to post on Instagram

The best time to post on Instagram is Mondays through Wednesdays and Fridays between 10 am and 12 pm.

Instagram in numbers:

The key to success on Instagram is understanding how its algorithm works. Posting at the right time is only one aspect that you need to consider. But don’t worry! Our blog post about the Instagram algorithm will help you set up your strategy and grow your account easily!

Tip: Posting consistently will help your growth. Instagram offers a great variety of content types to engage with your community and draw in more people. But how often should you post these different post types? Here’s a quick overview:

  • Stories: 2-8 per day
  • Reels: 1-3 per week
  • Carousels: 1-2 per week
  • Single post: 3-5 per week

Like the best posting times, these numbers are relative. Find a schedule that works for you and always keep in mind: quality before quantity! It’s better to post one or two high-quality pieces of content per week than to post inconsistently or a lot of irrelevant information.

The best time to post on LinkedIn

The best time to post on LinkedIn is Tuesdays through Thursdays from 10 am to 12 pm. Considering that LinkedIn is a business network, the worst days to post are the weekends. So be sure to share your content during weekdays at the peak times.

LinkedIn in numbers:

LinkedIn is perfect for business networking, lead generation and industry-specific insights. With its focus on B2B marketing, you can easily reach business professionals, decision-makers and key stakeholders by sharing your expertise and driving engagement with thought leadership. This helps you build trust and credibility.

The best time to post on Pinterest

The best time to post on Pinterest is Wednesdays through Fridays between 12 pm and 3 pm.

Pinterest in numbers:

Pinterest is a search engine for images and an idea catalog that people often use as a scrapbook (Pinterest boards) to collect inspiring, creative, or helpful content. Therefore, it is the ideal social network for businesses and brands to inspire and engage their audience visually. Through visual storytelling, DIY projects, How-To guides, and lifestyle content you can connect with your audience on a personal level. You can easily use Pinterest to turn inspiration into action and drive engagement.

Tip: Pinterest’s image and video sizes are unique to the social media landscape. Check out our cheat sheet for the different social media image sizes to create the perfect pins for your boards!

The best time to post on Twitter (now X)

The best time to post on Twitter (now X) is Tuesdays through Thursdays from 9 am to 2 pm.

Twitter/X in numbers:

Despite recent changes, Twitter/X remains a social network predominantly for short messaging. Due to its dynamic nature, Twitter/X is perfect for quick, concise communication, such as sharing updates, promotions, and otherwise engaging and informative content. Hashtags as well as trending topics help with discoverability and staying up-to-date with niche-specific content. Twitter/X is about real-time engagement and participation which allows you to stay close to your audience and communicate with them immediately. This in turn grows your relationship with them, effectively building your community.

The best time to post on TikTok

The best time to post on TikTok is Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2 pm to 5 pm.

best time to post on tiktok

TikTok in numbers:

TikTok has taken the social media world by storm and only keeps gaining traction. With the right strategy, you can easily market to a younger demographic by showcasing products, services, and brand personality with the diverse and creative editing option TikTok offers. Engage, interact with, and reach a wider audience by using the duet and stitch features, participate in popular TikTok challenges, and make use of the template and music integration to craft compelling videos.

The best time to post on YouTube

The best time to post on YouTube is Thursdays through Saturdays from 3 pm to 9 pm.

YouTube in numbers:

YouTube is not only one of the most popular social media networks. It’s also the second most popular search engine after Google. The platform acts as a media library, which means that videos remain relevant and visible months and even years after their upload. YouTube’s versatility allows different types of content to thrive. Connect with your audience with videos with immersive storytelling experiences, guide them with tutorials, or introduce them to a new addition in your portfolio with a product showcase, to name a few ideas.

Tip: YouTube takes 2-3 hours to index your video after you’ve uploaded it. Only then will it be suggested to watchers and appear in searches. So upload your video a few hours before peak active hours on YouTube to ensure that your audience sees it.

The best time to post YouTube Shorts

The best time to post YouTube Shorts is Fridays and Saturdays from 4 pm to 12 am.

YouTube Shorts in numbers:

YouTube launched Shorts, their own vertical video format, in July 2021. Like reels and TikToks, YouTube Shorts provide you with the chance to cater to a mobile-centric audience and engage them with snappy and entertaining content. Including YouTube Shorts in your strategy allows you to tap into YouTube’s already immense potential. Reach a broader audience and lead them to your long-form content by capturing their attention with YouTube Shorts.

Tip: YouTube Shorts can be up to 60 seconds long. This makes them different from reels and TikToks. Check out our handy cheat sheet for the different social media video specs and never fuss with the details again.

The best time to post on Telegram

The best time to post on Telegram is Mondays through Fridays from 10 am to 12 pm and from 5 pm to 7 pm.

best time to post on telegram

Telegram in numbers:

With features like encrypted messaging, large group capacities, and multimedia sharing, Telegram offers a secure and engaging environment for connecting with your audience. Creating and promoting your own channels allows you to get in direct contact with your audience, thus building a dedicated community and growing brand loyalty. Telegram’s file-sharing capabilities make it a great tool for sharing your content. Customizable bots help you to streamline your customer service and engagement strategies.

The best time to post on Reddit

The best time to post on Reddit is Saturdays through Mondays from 6 am to 8 am.

Reddit in numbers:

Users on Reddit participate in various niche communities (subreddits) which provides you with the unique chance to tap into specific demographics and interests. Up- and downvotes by users determine which content is shown at the top. This allows you to conduct informal market research while engaging with your audience at the same time. Participating in discussions and building a community on Reddit can help you establish credibility and trust, share your expertise, and create a genuine connection with your audience. Its user-driven nature makes it a great network for user-generated content as well.

The best time to post on Google Business Profile

The best time to post on Google Business Profile is Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 1 pm to 2 pm.

Google Business Profile in numbers:

  • Almost 80% of local searches on mobile turn into purchases.
  • Users are 2.7 times more likely to believe your business is reliable when your Google Business Profile is complete.
  • Google Business Profile can generate up to 35% more clicks from qualified leads.
  • 87% of people use Google to search for local businesses.

Google is the most visited website worldwide. Having an optimized business profile ensures that people searching for your business online will find all the information they need. More importantly, it helps display your business prominently in the SERPs. Inform users about essential details such as business hours, contact information, reviews, and images. Moreover, share news from your website, update offers, or invite visitors to events. A Google Business Profile helps users find your business quickly and easily while supplying them with enough information to follow up on their inquiries.

Is there a tool that can help me manage and schedule posts at the best times?

With the variety of best times to post on social media, it can become tricky to keep track of it all. Even with cheat sheets and reminders you still need to pull up the file or document, double check and put it on for every single network you want to share content on. Tedious, isn’t it?

Blog2Social’s Best Time Manager can take this painstaking task off your hands and save you not only time but nerves as well. This feature comes pre-programmed with the best times for each social media network. It allows you to schedule your posts for just the right moment with just a few clicks. Better yet: you can edit and save any other times convenient for your audience in the manager to automatically apply for your posts.

Why deal with the hassle of manual settings when you can save so much time and energy with Blog2Social?

Blog2Social Free 30-Day-Trial

Wrapping up

On social media, you’re always in competition with others who want your audience’s attention. This makes it all the more important to stand out to stop the user’s scroll and to make them engage with your posts. But it’s not just your content that matters. Timing is another important aspect you have to consider when you want to grow on social media. You can only start growing relationships with your audience when they see you. So posting when they are online is a crucial step toward more awareness, reach, and visibility.

Social media automation tools like Blog2Social can help you manage your best times to post on social media. This way, you can save them in one place and simply schedule all your posts for the right time with a single click. Save time and resources by managing your social media schedule in one spot.

Keep in mind that fluctuations are normal and that sometimes a post shared at the right time might not get the response you hoped for. Don’t be discouraged by that! Continue sharing high-quality content, engage with your community, keep a close watch on your metrics, and always stay up to date with new developments, and your social media marketing efforts will pay off.

 

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The Best Social Media Image Sizes for 2024: Cheat Sheet

The images featured in your social feeds are the first things your target audience sees and as we all know, first impressions count. Each social network offers different ways to post images. As social networks evolve, image formats continue to change. To make sure that your social media visuals stand out in the best way possible it’s worth taking a look at the image sizes that work best for each social network. The cheat sheet features the best image sizes for all relevant social networks – Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, LinkedIn and Google Business Profile. This way you have all the information about current guidelines and image sizes at a glance. You can optimize the planning of your social media posts and generate more reach and engagement.

Why are the right image sizes for your social media posts so important?

Social media platforms are important channels to communicate with your customers and target groups. The number of social media users has increased substantially in recent years. Among the mass of posts out there, it is important to stand out. On all social networks, image posts generate a much higher interaction than simple text posts. Posts with images on Twitter get almost 3 times as many interactions. So, images in your social media posts are literally eye-catchers and ensure that you get more reach. Following the ideal image sizes for social media will ensure that your images are displayed in the best way.The aspect ratios, image sizes and posting options vary across the many social media platforms. They offer you several options to spread your content and optimize it for the specific social media channel.

Download the best image sizes now!

The ideal social media image sizes
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The right image sizes help you avoid the following situations:

  • Your images are blurry or out of focus
  • The edges of your images are cut off
  • Your images are not displayed in the correct format
  • Your images are not displayed at all

The best image sizes for your social media  

What are the image formats in social media? 

There are different image formats in social media that you will encounter repeatedly. The aspect ratio, image size and posting options vary across the many social platforms. They offer several options to spread your content and optimize it for the specific social networks.

Images for your social media account

Profile pictures

A profile picture is a great way to directly show what your profile is about. It displays your trademark on your social media channels, because all the activities you perform will show your profile picture. Whether you chat, post, or comment, your profile picture appears everywhere and is an important image. This is how your profile becomes recognizable. Even people who never go to your profile might see your profile pic in their feed, so make them curious to learn more.

Cover Images

In addition to your profile picture, you can also add cover images to many of your social media accounts. Unlike your profile picture, the cover image is only displayed on your profile. It is located at the top of your profile on most social media. With the cover image, you have the opportunity to let your profile shine in the look and feel of your corporate identity or corporate design. You can place additional or newsworthy information about your company prominently and use all the display options of your profile. Choosing the right image size for your header is crucial for the success of your profile.

Post images for your social media posts

Post images are displayed in your social media posts. There are two ways to include images in your posts: image posts and link posts.

Image posts

Image posts support your content visually. When you click on the image in the feed, it enlarges. If you upload an image in a post, it will automatically be added to your image gallery or photo album. This way, your images and graphics don’t get lost in the fast-paced social media realm and remain visible and accessible to your followers. Not every social media platform has an image gallery.

Link posts

A link post, as the name suggests, contains a link that redirects to a website, store, blog post or landing page. Social networks automatically generate a link preview when you include a link in your posts. A well-chosen thumbnail allows you to visually reinforce your content for your followers, giving them more incentive to go to your website. Clicking on the thumbnail will forward directly to your landing page instead of enlarging the image. Some content works better as an image post, some as a link post. Therefore, test both formats regularly and optimize your social media strategy. By combining link and image posts, you can extend the lifetime of your social media posts and have more variability on your channels.

What are the best image sizes for Facebook?

Facebook is still the #1 social network with 2.96 billion monthly users. Among them are also about 200 million businesses that address their target audience through profiles, pages, groups and ads. Facebook offers entrepreneurs, self-employed and private individuals a large potential reach to spread their topics, content, news and events. You can post images as image posts and link posts in your newsfeed. When posting an image, your image will be added to your photo album on your profile at the same time.

These are the best image sizes for Facebook

  • Cover image: 851 x 315 px
  • Profile picture: 170 x 170 px
  • Image post: 1080 x 1350 px
  • Link post: 1200 x 630 px
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1 (square), 4:5 (portrait) or 1.91:1 (landscape)
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for Facebook
Best Image Size for Facebook

 

What are the best image sizes for Pinterest?

This is why Pinterest is an important social media for you 

Pinterest, unlike other social media, works like a search engine and online pinboard. The platform is designed to redirect to your websites, which is why many bloggers and businesses post blog articles, information about products or infographics on Pinterest. Companies use Pinterest for their e-commerce to offer their products and services. With 450 million monthly active users, Pinterest is a traffic generator that is becoming more and more important for many companies and self-employed people. Posts, profiles and pins also rank well in Google searches and generate good visibility. Video pins, story pins and collection pins offer new opportunities to present your offerings comprehensively and vividly.

These are the best image sizes for Pinterest

  • Cover image: 800 x 450 px (at minimum)
  • Profile picture: 165 x 165 px
  • Pin: 1000 x 1500 px
  • Story Pin: 1080 x 1920 px
  • Aspect ratio: 2:3, 16:9 (for cover image), 9:16
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for Pinterest
Best Image Size for Pinterest

 

What are the best image sizes for Twitter?

Why Twitter is an important social medium for you 

Twitter is a fast-moving social network that focuses on the ongoing flow of information. According to Twitter’s internal data, people are three times more likely to engage with a tweet when it contains an image. Through short and concise tweets, companies and self-employed people can position themselves well on current topics and contribute to discussions that are relevant to you and your target group. There are even corporate influencers from companies who share personal experiences and adventures from their everyday work. The success is also reflected in the user figures. With 556 million monthly active users worldwide, Twitter continues to be one of the most popular social media networks.

What are the image sizes on Twitter?

As with all social media, the profile and header image play an essential role on Twitter. There are also link and image posts on Twitter. You can upload your tweet with a matching image, which increases in size when clicked. In a link post, the image size refers to the thumbnail of a shared link. For example, if you link to a blog post, the post image will be displayed, as well as the title and description. Since 2021 Twitter shows in-feed images in full without cropping them. You don’t have to painstakingly make sure that the preview image shows what’s most important anymore. However, stick to the recommended sizes as aspect ratios for the best Twitter experience.

These are best image sizes for your Twitter posts

  • Cover image: 1500 x 500 px
  • Profile picture: 400 x 400 px
  • Link and image post: 1200 x 1200 px (for 1:1 ratio), 1200 x 628 px (for 1.91:1 ratio)
  • Aspect ratio: 3:1 (for cover images), 1:1, 1.91:1 (landscape)
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for Twitter
Best Image Size for Twitter

What are the best image sizes for Instagram?

Instagram has been part of Facebook since 2012 and, with around 2 billion monthly active users, is the third largest social media network worldwide. As a visual network, Instagram’s focus is on videos and images. Many companies use Instagram for their corporate communications to generate more awareness for their products and services.

These are the best image sizes for your Instagram posts

In the gallery view on your profile, all images are displayed square, so pay special attention to the resolution of your image and check whether the correct section of your images can be seen. Above the feed, your Story posts are accessible. Instagram Story uses the entire surface of your smartphone. Instagram specifies a square format for post images, with aspect ratios of 1:1. You can also upload rectangular images. For Instagram Stories, a portrait format is suitable for your images.

  • Profile picture: 320 x 320 px
  • Image post: 1080 x 1080 px (square), 1080 x 1350 px (portrait), 1080 x 566 px (landscape)
  • Story: 1080 x 1920 px
  • Live & Reels: 1080 x 1920 px
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1 (square), 4:5 (portrait), 1.91:1 (landscape), 9:16 (reels/stories)
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for Instagram
Best Image Size for Instagram

What are the best image sizes for LinkedIn?

LinkedIn has 930 million registered users worldwide. This is mainly because LinkedIn is available in 200 countries and regions and can now be used in 26 languages. LinkedIn is the social media to familiarize your business contacts with your brand. On LinkedIn you will find private profiles, company profiles, various groups on different topics, advertisements for job offers and many online events and seminars for which you can register directly via LinkedIn.  The business network has been part of Microsoft since 2016 and is becoming increasingly popular.

These are the best image sizes for LinkedIn

The profile picture has a special significance on LinkedIn. Since LinkedIn is primarily used for networking with business contacts, your profile picture is like a job application photo. Regardless of whether you are actually applying for a job or trying to acquire new customers, your profile picture is the first impression your business contacts have of you. On your profile page, you can also choose a cover photo on LinkedIn that, in the best case, represents you as a person or your brand. In addition to the profile pictures, there are the pictures that are displayed to your followers and contacts in the feed. Here, we also distinguish between image and link posts. Your page can quickly appear unserious due to distorted images or incorrectly displayed graphics. A real no-go in business networks. Therefore, pay attention to the optimal image sizes for LinkedIn. For image posts, a square image format is optimal for posting on LinkedIn. For link posts, make sure that you choose a landscape format.

  • Cover image: 1128 x 191 px (for companies), 1584 x 396 px (for personal profile cover images)
  • Profile picture: 400 x 400 px
  • Link post: 1200 x 627 px
  • Image post: 1080 x 1080 px (square), 1920 x 1080 px (portrait)
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1 (square), 9:16 (portrait)
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for LinkedIn
Best Image Size for LinkedIn

What are the best image sizes for Tumblr?

Tumblr is a blogging social media site that focuses on sharing text and content. On your profile, you can create new blog posts and add post images and infographics, as well as videos and audio files. As of June 2020, there are about 502 million blogs on Tumblr. This makes Tumblr an interesting social media for businesses and entrepreneurs, such as bloggers to showcase your content, services and products and provide content.

These are the best image sizes for your Tumblr posts

On Tumblr, a portrait format is optimal for your posts. You can also share square images with a 1:1 aspect ratio.

  • Profile picture: 128 x 128 px
  • Cover image: 3000 x 1055 px
  • Post image: 1280 x 1920 px (in feed view: 540 px in width)
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for Tumblr
Best Image Size for Tumblr

What are the best image sizes for Google Business Profiles?

Granted, a Google Business Profile isn’t really a social media network, but it’s still a tool where you can use impressive visuals to generate more reach for your business. A Google Business Profile is a business listing for your company and is the direct way into Google’s search index. In addition, your Google Business Profile entry is displayed in Google Maps. With the new features of Google Business Profile and Google Posts, you can publish your blog posts, pictures, videos, news, events and announcements directly through Google and place them prominently on Google Search. With active use and regular posts, your site will rank for your relevant keywords on page 1 at the top right of Google. This makes your Google Business Profile an important part of your website marketing and complements your marketing activities via Google Adwords. A Google Business Profile is available to you free of charge.

These are the image sizes for Google Business Profiles

Similar to other social networks, you can add a profile picture or logo on your Google Business Profile, as well as a supplementary background picture, which is similar to a cover image. As a profile picture you should choose your company logo. The background image can be found at the top of your profile and should contain additional content about your business. Google may not display your background image as the first image. Using the new Google Business Profile features, you can now post image posts, videos, news, blog posts, events and announcements. You can upload different image posts and highlight different aspects of your business that will appeal to your customers and provide information. According to Google, this is the best size for your images:

  • Image post: 720 x 720 px
Blog2Social Infographic: Best Image Size for Google Business Profiles
Best Image Size for Google Business Profiles

How to optimize your images for your social media posts

90% of information processing takes place via visual impulses.

Why visual content is so important
Let’s get visual

To help you take advantage of visual content for your content marketing on social media, here’s an overview of how to optimize your images :

  1. Choose images with strong visual language
  • Pay attention to a good image quality and the optimal image sizes on social media
  • Choose image elements with a recognition value
  • Add a watermark or your company logo
  • Add your most important keyword in the image description
  1. Use different image media and formats
  • Create graphics for statistics, processes and workflows
  • Add supplementary images of products and processes at the right place
  1. Share your content as a link and image post
  • With a combination of link and image post you create more variability
  • The lifetime of your posts is extended
  • Analyze what content link posts work better for and what image posts work better for
  1. Use the optimal image size for social media
  • each social media has a different focus on images
  • each social media gives different ways to post images and specifies different formats and sizes
  • Make sure that no information is lost
  • download and save this infographic..

How can I create images with optimal image size for social media?

There are many tools you can use to create images and graphics for social media. One advantage of using such tools is that the optimal image sizes for social media are already stored and predefined. You can also crop your existing images to the perfect size. Here you can find an overview of the most popular tools for images and image editing:

Canva

Canva is particularly well suited for creating post images. The tool offers many good and useful templates, so you can create your images quickly and easily. In addition, you can also upload your own graphic elements to Canva and incorporate them into your graphics. You can crop images, put a filter over them and create collages. The basic version of Canva is free.

Piktochart

Also similar to Canva, Piktochart is a tool to create images. With Piktochart, you can create infographics in particular. There are a variety of templates from which you can choose your favorites. You can customize and edit the template according to your needs. Piktochart is also free in the basic version.

Venngage

Venngage is suitable for creating infographics, presentations and other visual designs. There are hundreds of customizable templates, charts, icons and design elements that you can use. With just a few clicks, anyone can create beautiful graphics for their personal blog. Venngage comes in a free and various premium versions.

Giphy

With Giphy you can easily and quickly create animated GIFs and memes. Also GIFMaker.me is a good alternative for short animations.

Pixlr

With image editor tools like Pixlr you can scale or crop images to fit the image sizes of blogs and social media networks.

EWWW

Image size is a crucial aspect for the correct display of your images on social media. Don’t forget to optimize your images for your visual content marketing with an image compression tool like EWWW to reduce the image size and thus increase the loading speed. Want to learn more about how you can use visuals for your marketing? Read our blog post “The power of visuals” now.

Tool tip: Share posts and images from the WordPress backend directly on social media channels

The Blog2Social social media automation plugin allows you to share your blog posts and images using different images from your blog post. You can choose various link post or image post formats for the different networks and communities. The plugin automatically converts your post into an optimized text and image format for each network. Optionally, you can choose different images via the network preview, change the comment fields, add #hashtags or emojis and choose the best times to post on the different networks. Blog2Social automatically links the social media post to your blog post.

Download the best image sizes now!

The ideal social media image sizes
[rainmaker_form id=”87925″]

The Instagram Algorithm, and How to Make Use of It

Instagram has grown into one of the most popular social media networks out there. Its 2 billion monthly active users spend 15 hours and 50 minutes per month on the platform. So, Instagram has become a major tool for businesses and brands to connect with their target audience. A whopping 90% of Instagram users follow at least one business. Getting in touch and engaging with your audience has never been easier, and Instagram proves to be an ideal social network for that.

To be successful on Instagram, you need to to understand how the platform works. Instagram has recently made changes to its algorithm, or rather algorithms. In 2022, the focus was on video, messaging, and creator monetization. The focus shifted to engagement, connection, creativity and discovery in 2023. In 2024, Instagram tweaked its reels recommendations algorithm to favor original content creators over reposted content. How that looks exactly, and how you can use it to grow your audience, we’re going to show you in this article.

Free 30-Day-Trial Blog2Social Social Media Automation

Table of Contents

Understanding Instagram’s Algorithms

The Instagram algorithm(s) is a system of rules and signals that ranks content. It does so by taking into account metadata such as captions, hashtags, location and engagement metrics. That way the algorithm determines which content shows up on Feed, Stories, Explore or Reels. Each of these parts of Instagram have their own algorithm. Each one works to show you the content that you will most likely enjoy and interact with.

To achieve that, the Instagram algorithm doesn’t only look at the content that’s being posted. It also analyzes each users’ activity, preferences, previous interactions and engagement respectively. That way it ensures that the content they see aligns with their interests. The goal is, ultimately, to give users the best possible experience on the app. And this is where the different algorithms come into play.

Each of Instagram’s algorithms’ goal is to provide you with content relevant to your interests. But their purposes are different. People look for their friends in Stories, they use Explore to discover new things, and Reels to find entertainment. So in each of these parts, you find exactly what you are looking for: content catered specifically to the purpose and interest of your inquiry.

But how do these different algorithms work, and which signals do they look at to rank content?

The Instagram Feed Algorithm

The feed is your unique “home base”. This is where you end up upon opening Instagram and where, arguably, the most of your activity happens. It shows content from accounts you follow, recommended posts, and ads. Posts on your feed are ranked based on the following factors:

  • Your activity and interaction history. The Instagram algorithm looks at your past activities and interactions to understand which content you have engaged with. It considers what you liked, commented on, shared or saved. Other signals include the amount of times you scroll the app, session time, and how often you interact with how many posts. Another aspect that factors in is how interested you are in a particular account by analyzing whether you engage with their posts.
  • Information about the post. How popular is the post? How many likes has it and how quickly did it receive likes, comments, saves and shares after being posted? But also when was it posted? Information about location and post type (carousel, video) factor in as well. For videos, their length is another signal that informs the algorithm.
  • Information about the account that posted. How many people have interacted with the account in the past few weeks? How often does it post? Do other users comment and like the posts often? These signals help the algorithm determine how interesting the account might be to you.

Based on these factors, the Instagram algorithm makes predictions about which posts and accounts might be interesting enough for you to interact with. The higher the chance that you might engage with the content, the higher it is ranked and so shows up higher on the feed.

The Instagram Stories Algorithm

The stories of every account you follow show up at the top of your feed. Stories create a space for interactive engagement through polls or questions. They allow businesses to get in touch with their audience easily while driving engagement. The ranking system in Stories works similarly as in Feed. The Instagram stories algorithm then looks at these signals:

  • Your viewing history. Stories from accounts you view often are prioritized as the algorithm assumes those are the ones that you wouldn’t want to miss.
  • Your engagement history. This signal considers how often you engage with an accounts’ stories by either liking them or even sending a DM response.
  • Your closeness to the creator of the story. This signal looks at your overall relationship to the story’s account. It then determines how likely it is that you’re interested in watching their stories.

Based on this information, the algorithm then predicts which stories you are most likely to view and engage with. It puts these further up the story line-up at the top of your feed.

The Instagram Reels Algorithm

The reels feed mostly includes reels from accounts you don’t follow. This allows you to find new creators and content that’s interesting and entertaining to you. For reels, the focus is on entertainment. The most important aspect that factors into ranking them is how likely it is that you’re going to watch a reel until the end. For that the Instagram algorithm looks at:

  • Your activity. Which reels have you liked, commented on, shared and saved in the past? This information helps the algorithm understand which reels could be relevant to you.
  • Your past interaction with the account that posted. As mentioned, the reels feed consists mostly of content from accounts you don’t follow and may have not heard of before. The algorithm looks at your past interactions with content from individual accounts. It then determines how relevant to your interests their posts are.
  • Information about the reel. The algorithm considers markers such as audio track and the content of the video based on the caption and hashtags, as well as overall popularity.
  • Who posted it: Does the account that posted the reel have a constant (high) level of engagement? How many followers do they have? Signals about popularity factor in as well to allow the algorithm to find a variety of content for you to enjoy.

In April 2024, Instagram announced a few changes to its reels algorithm to focus on and boost original content creators over reposted videos. This specifically affects surfaces and spaces within the app where it shows you recommendations.

Before, reels shown in surfaces with recommended content were ranked based on how that account’s followers have engaged with it. Meaning an account with a large following would have a bigger reach.

Instagram is now changing this so that smaller accounts have an equal chance to get their content seen by a wider audience.

Instagram Algorithm Update 2024
Image Source: Instagram.

Additionally, Instagram favors original over reposted content. This means that if Instagram finds two (or more) identical pieces of content, they will only show the original in all its surfaces with recommended content, giving the creator more exposure.

The Instagram Explore Algorithm

The explore tab is where you’re shown photos and videos from accounts you don’t follow (yet). It is thus not only the best place to find new content but to also gain new followers for your own account. To decide which content to show you, the Instagram algorithm takes into account your past activity and interactions. It then ranks the posts by how likely it is that you will engage (by liking, commenting, sharing or saving) with them. In particular, the algorithm considers:

  • Information about the post. How many people like the post and how quickly do people engage with it after being posted? Simply put: is a new post popular? Such signals weigh far heavier in Explore than they do in Feed for example.
  • Your niche and engagement. The algorithm looks at what kind of content you’ve interacted with most in the past by liking, commenting, sharing or saving it. It also considers what post type (photo, video) you tend to engage with more and then tries to show you more of that.
  • Your history with the account that posted. For the most part, Explore shows you accounts that are new to you and that you don’t follow. But if you have interacted with an account before, it helps the algorithm understand what kind of content is compelling to you. It then might push more from that account if it fits your interests.
  • Information about the account that posted. These signals also look at, for example, how many people have interacted with the account over the past few weeks to gauge if the content they put out engages people.

As you see, engagement is the driving force behind the Instagram algorithm. The more people interact with your content, the better it gets ranked across all of Instagram and the more people see it. This is how the algorithm works and what you as a marketer need to understand to use it to your advantage.

But how do you get more people to see your content to start working the algorithm in your favor? Let’s take a look at what you can do to optimize your posts and grab the attention of your target audience.

Tip: Get more Instagram insights with the Social Media Report 2024: Monthly Active Users. Get the latest Instagram numbers and find out why you should keep an eye on the amount of monthly active users, how they can help inform your social media strategy, and what they tell you about the network itself.

Monthly Active Users in Social Media in 2024

Set Your Stage

Instagram SEO

Like with search engines, you can influence the ranking system by optimizing your social media content with SEO. It helps the algorithm categorize your content and show it to your target audience. Using Instagram SEO for this is the first step to help your posts get delivered to the people you want to reach.

Keywords & Bio

First things first, though. Start by selecting five to six keywords that define your niche and the content that you create. Then optimize your Instagram bio by including these keywords. This not only helps the algorithm but also new users who visit your profile. Your bio is the first thing they see. Using keywords helps them quickly understand what you’re all about and what they can expect from you.

Copies

Next, use this set of keywords in your copies much in the same way you would use them for a SEO’d text on your website. Be descriptive and accurate when crafting your captions. This ensures that the Instagram algorithm understands your content quickly. That’s why keyword optimized copies help you widen your reach and visibility, and why such posts tend to perform better.

Tip: Keyword-optimized copies don’t only give you an edge on Instagram but on all other social media networks as well. However, crafting compelling social media SEO content takes time and effort. Cross-sharing your content helps you to extend the reach of your valuable work.

Social media automation tools like Blog2Social can help you cross-post your content to all your social networks at once. Simplify your workflow by keeping your social media marketing in one single place: your Blog2Social dashboard. Adapting your already keyword-optimized copy for each of your networks is easily and quickly done in one single workflow. This saves you a lot of time.

Alt Text

Add an alt text to your images. Now this feature in Instagram is not actually meant to boost your post’s visibility. It’s a function for accessibility that helps visually impaired users understand your images. It’s unclear whether it will increase visibility (within the algorithm) on your post. Still, by adding an alt text, you’re making your post accessible to everyone on the network and that’s always a plus.

Hashtags

Optimize your hashtags. Although hashtags aren’t as relevant for finding (new) content on Instagram anymore, they help in categorizing your posts. However, if you decide to rely on hashtags, be sure to use them smartly. Use three to five hashtags per post and avoid using the same ones every time. Instead, find a few niche hashtags fitting your content that have between 30,000 and 300,000 entries, and add those. You can use “big” hashtags, too, of course. Just know that the likelihood of being discovered through them is far less than using niche ones.

Build Your Instagram Content Strategy

Adam Mosseri, CEO of Instagram, conceded that Instagram overfocused on video in 2022. He stated that Instagram has since course-corrected, focusing equally on video and photo. Still, videos remain the most popular type of media on Instagram. They get three times more engagement than single image posts in both likes and comments.

However, this doesn’t mean that you have to churn out one video after another while disregarding image posts entirely to be successful on Instagram. As with everything else, quality is the most important factor here. And let’s be honest – not everything works as a video. Which is why it’s important for you to look at your own branch. Reels work way better for e-commerce or comedy. Carousels and image posts are better for educational content.

Before we take a closer look at the advantages of videos and carousel posts respectively, let’s talk about what kind of content works best on Instagram and what you need to focus on to capture your audience’s attention to get ranked better.

What type of content should I post?

In December 2022, Adam Mosseri addressed some of the changes that would come to Instagram in 2023. He explained the network would focus on engagement, creativity and discovery. The goal is to create value for people. Be it by letting them discover something new every time they use the app, or by bringing them together over things they love to create connections.

So focus on creating engaging content that drives interaction and conversation. It will boost your posts and your growth on Instagram. The cherry on top is that you build a relationship of trust with your community, and this trust will drive your revenue.

Usually the best performing content belongs to at least one of these categories:

  • Entertainment
  • Education
  • Inspiration
  • Thought-provoking content

You can combine two, three or even all of them if you can but be sure to include at least one. When you create content, always have your target audience in mind. What entertains them? What inspires them? Which helpful and unique tips can you share with them that can help them solve a problem? Challenge their perspectives with thought-provoking ideas and invite them to engage with you on it. Always consider that your audience should stand to gain something from your content.

 

What Content to Share for Each Post Type on Instagram

Videos

There are different video types on Instagram that you can use to engage your audience:

  • Stories. Stories can be a maximum of 60 seconds long. If they are longer, Instagram will automatically split them up into 60 second installments. They work best to drive engagement and interaction with your followers. You can conduct polls, do AMAs or use any of the other interactive features that stories allow.
  • Live videos. You can go live for up to 4 hours at a time. Live videos allow you to interact with your audience in real time. Instagram allows you to invite up to 3 people to participate in your live. This gives you the chance to conduct real time interviews with collaborators, for example. Make it interactive by allowing questions from the viewers. You can save live videos for later use as well.
  • In-feed videos. In-feed videos can be as long as 60 minutes. Whether you want to release long-form videos on Instagram is up to you. Keep in mind that there are better platforms out there for such types of video. Instagram users prefer short, snappy videos.
  • Reels. As of July 2022, every video that is under 15 minutes long is posted as a reel. However, your reel is only eligible to show up in Explore or as a recommendation if it’s 90 seconds or less. Reels are the most popular type of video on Instagram which is why we’re going to take a closer look at them.
Tip: Instagram isn’t the only social network that allows you to upload short, vertical videos. Do you want to share your video on TikTok or as a Short on YouTube?
Find out how you can share your (vertical) videos to all your social media accounts at once. Reach more people, increase your visibility and save time on your video marketing with minimal effort.

Reels

Short form videos such as reels work best to drive lead generation and engagement. As mentioned, reels that are 90 seconds or less are being pushed to a wider audience by the Instagram algorithm.

Reels between 3 and 15 seconds can help boost your visibility. Short reels will be looped and each loop counts as a view. This does not only signal to the Instagram algorithm that your video has been watched all the way. It also signals that a user watched it many times.

Of course this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t create reels that are longer than 15 seconds. Try out different lengths to see what your audience responds best to. Then use these results to craft your reels. Be sure to make the first 3 seconds of your reel as captivating and compelling as possible so as not to lose viewers.

On-Screen Captions

Another way to improve the performance of your reel is by adding on-screen captions. 92% of viewers prefer to watch social videos without sound. So including on-screen text will help them understand the video regardless. Videos with on-screen captions perform better (in impressions, views and likes) than those without.

Video Quality

Make sure to upload your videos in the best possible recording quality. Your video should have a resolution of (at least) 1080 x 1920 px. Be sure to remove any watermarks of other networks from your video if you are reusing it. Instagram decreases visibility for videos with low resolution or watermarks.

Reels Trends

Instagram offers creators a nice hack to find new ideas and get inspired for new reels. In your professional dashboard, go to Reels Trends to see currently trending hashtags and sounds. This helps you jump on the trends as they’re happening and allows you to use their impact to boost your reach. Now you don’t have to painstakingly research what people are currently enjoying. Instead use this neat trick to save yourself a lot of time and energy.

Instagram Reels Trends
You can access Reels Trends through your professional dashboard. Image source: Meta.

Carousels

After reels, carousels is the post type that gets the most engagement on Instagram. They’re a great way to deliver educational content, tips and tricks, or comparisons, to name a few examples.

Carousels provide the unique advantage that your post is shown twice to a user. If the user doesn’t engage with your carousel the first time it appears on their feed, then Instagram will show them the second slide the next time they’re online. So when you create your carousels, make sure that your first two slides show attention-grabbing content to draw your audience in.

Image Size

Instagram offers different image sizes for your posts. However, it’s best to use the portrait format (4:5 or 1080 x 1350 px) for your carousels (and single images). That way, your post takes up more space on the users’ screen and thus is visible for a longer time. It allows your content to grab your audience’s attention more easily. Be sure to place your text and graphics in the middle of the canvas as the typical Instagram grid previews posts as squares.

Caption

We’ve talked about optimizing your caption for Instagram SEO. But this isn’t the only thing you can do to give your posts a boost.

Start your caption off with a strong, irresistible hook that stops viewers from scrolling past. Using emojis can help with that as well. Users clicking on “read more” to see your full caption help you get ranked better. It signals to the algorithm that readers are interested in your posts.

As for length, captions perform best when they’re either short with up to 20 characters, or very long with over 2,000. But as with reel length, it’s best to experiment to see what works best for your own posts. A longer caption for reels can help boost your rank. When a user reads your copy, the reel is being looped in the background in the meantime. This signals the Instagram algorithm that your video is being watched all the way through many times.

Which Content Works Best in Your Niche

The Instagram algorithm doesn’t only help you get your content out and seen. It also helps you understand what kind of post type works best for your audience and your niche.

Your explore feed is the best place to start. Search for one of the keywords you have picked out as part of your Instagram SEO strategy and navigate to the “For You” tab. Study the feed: which types of posts is it predominantly made up of? Single image posts, carousels, videos?

Instagram Explore Carousels Instagram Explore Reels

If it is mostly made up of reels, focus your Instagram strategy on reels (with occasional image or carousel posts if need be). If it’s carousels, focus on crafting compelling carousels. Either way, don’t forget to adapt your content for each post type specifically to ensure it’s exactly what your audience is looking for.

Take a closer look at the posts in your “For You” tab as well. What hooks work for your niche? How are the captions structured; how long are they? If there are videos in there, how long are they? Check all this information and take it into account when you create your own content. This will help you understand your niche and your audience better. It helps you to tailor your posts for maximum exposure on Instagram.

As with reels, check if there are current trends or popular memes. Then use them for your own posts as these will give your visibility and reach another push.

How and When to Post to Instagram

There are varying opinions about how often you should post on Instagram. For ideal growth on Instagram, however, you should post at least four times a week.

Still, you should always consider quality before quantity. If you don’t have the resources to post four (or more) times per week, decide how often you can and want to put out new content. Then focus on creating top notch posts. The key is to post consistently.

Tip: You’ve had a busy week and didn’t manage to create new content for Instagram (or any of your other social media channels)? Use social media automation to your advantage! Recycle your existing content by quickly and easily resharing it. That way you can keep amazing older content alive and give it a new boost. At the same time, you’re keeping your social media feeds consistently fed without having to produce new content for every new post. And the cherry on top: you’re saving yourself lots of time that you can invest in creating engaging new content.

Consistency in posting not only keeps you visible to your audience. It can also lead to a delayed boost in reach. Once the Instagram algorithm has ranked you, your older posts will show up on users’ explore feeds. This gains you even more visibility.

Tip: It’s easier to keep a consistent schedule when you have an overview of your social media activity. Blog2Social’s social media calendar helps you keep track of that.

Blog2Social Social Media Calendar
The social media calendar helps you keep track of your social media activity. You can filter to see all, only scheduled or only posted posts.

Best Time to Post

It is important that you always publish new posts when your audience is the most active on Instagram. Your account insights are a great way to find out when the best time to post is.

FInd out when your Instagram followers are the most active and post at the best time. FInd out when your Instagram followers are the most active and post at the best time. FInd out when your Instagram followers are the most active and post at the best time.

Scroll to the bottom of your total follower count to access the most active time of your followers.

 

Josh Ryan recommends posting your content 30-60 minutes before your audience is the most active. This helps push early engagement. Early engagement is an important signal the Instagram algorithm considers when ranking your post.

Tip: With Blog2Social you can schedule your posts for the right time with the Best Time Manager.

Blog2Social Best Time Manager for Instagram
Set up the best posting time for your Instagram account with the Best Time Manager.

Building Relationships

As mentioned, Instagram wants to foster connection and community. That’s why the main factor in ranking is engagement. But it’s not only the relationship to your followers and your audience that’s important. Nor is it only them engaging with you.

You should also work on building relationships with accounts from your niche. Interact with their content. Comment on a particular juicy bit of info they shared. Drop a like on one of their updates. DM them if you have an idea for a collaboration or even save one of their posts that can be helpful to you later.

Don’t forget to engage with people who have interacted with you either. Answer comments and respond to DMs. It shows your audience that you pay attention to them. Make them feel seen and they will keep coming back to you. Build trust.

Another important aspect is who you follow. Make sure that you exclusively follow accounts from your own niche. Build relationships with them. This is another way that can help you widen your reach. Because if a user follows an account you’re “friends” with, your account will pop up as a recommendation for who else to follow.

Notes and Broadcast Channels

Instagram has introduced two new features within the last few months. They are Notes and Broadcast Channels. Both of these are designed to get in touch with people, though in very different ways.

Notes

Notes are a sort of static status update on Instagram. They appear at the top of your inbox in little bubbles above the account’s profile picture. Like stories, they remain there for 24 hours. But notes are only visible to followers who you follow as well, or people on your “Close Friends” list. So keep that in mind when you create a note as your audience is limited here.

Notes are an easy and casual way to share your thoughts and start a conversation with your mutuals. Your followers can reply to your note directly by clicking on it. That way you can dive into a discussion straight away.

Keep your notes concise and to the point – you only have 60 characters for it.

Broadcast Channels

Instagram has rolled out Broadcast channels worldwide in June 2023. They are a one-to-many public messaging tool. Like notes, broadcast channels appear in your inbox along with other message threads.

To see the channel’s content, your followers have to follow it first. Here’s how they can join:

  • One-time notification. Your followers get a one-time notification when you first create a channel. They can choose to follow it right then.
  • Story sticker. You can create a sticker in your stories that, by clicking on it, allows the viewer to join your channel from there.
  • Pinned link in your profile. You can pin a link to your channel in your profile, so people can see you have one (or several), and join it.

Instagram Broadcast Channels
Instagram’s broadcast channels. Image source: Meta.

Anyone can find your broadcast channel; however, only followers can join it. Creating a channel is another way that can help you gain followers. Once a follower has joined your broadcast channel, they will receive a notification whenever you post an update.

As a creator or a brand, you can share news and updates, or create polls in the channel. Followers cannot reply or post themselves, but they can react to your messages and vote in your polls. Despite the limited interaction, broadcast channels are a great way to keep your audience updated about exciting new things in your pipeline.

You may consider reserving your broadcast channel for exclusive content as only your followers have access to it. You can also give your new posts a boost by notifying your channel followers about them.

Wrapping Up

Instagram is an ever evolving social media network that offers your brand a huge opportunity for growth. As a marketer you need to be aware of the ins-and-outs of the platform, newest developments and exciting new features. But especially how to use them to your advantage.

With Instagram’s shift to engagement, discovery, connection and creativity, it’s more important than ever to focus on creating engaging content. Engagement is key. It gets you out in front of more people, it grows your reach, and thus helps you to keep building your brand or business.

This means that now more than ever you need to know what is relevant to your audience. Create content that draws their engagement to stand out in the sea of other brands.

Blog2Social can help you maintain not only your Instagram activity but your presence on all your social media accounts. Manage your images and videos, captions and hashtags, and automate your posting schedule from one single place – your Blog2Social dashboard. Simplify your social media workflow with smart social media automation. Save yourself a bunch of time, reach more people and gain more visibility. Use the time you save for building your community. Use it to engage with your audience. Or simply create captivating new content that will leave your followers clamoring for more.

 

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