Influencer Marketing in Asia: An Interview with Aaron Brooks
Aaron Brooks
April 21, 2017
71% of consumers use Instagram, which makes it an attractive platform to engage with consumers across the globe. And with a global audience using the app across multiple time zones, it means you need to get clever with your content timings.
Much has been written about the best time to post on Instagram, which seems to depend on who you ask (or which website you land on). To help clear things up and give more straightforward guidance, we’ve analysed the top responses on the web to curate answers with the most consensus.
Let’s delve into what we found to uncover the best times to post on Instagram.
Here are the most updated recommendations for the best times to post on Instagram, according to various sources:
These times reflect when users are most likely to engage with content, generally corresponding with breaks in their daily routines (Influencer Marketing Hub) (Sprout Social) (HopperHQ).
Different industries see peak engagement at different times:
By looking at what’s happening right now on Instagram and doing a bit of number crunching, experts have discovered that globally, the best time ever to post on Instagram is:
Wednesday at 11 a.m.
Now that you know Wednesday is the best day to post on Instagram, what about the rest of the week?
Research has shown that Instagram users like to check their feed during work and/or school hours, with most preferring to do so at around lunchtime, in the middle of the week.
Generally, weekends are the worst time to post, as that’s when engagement dips. This is probably because people are out and about, having fun and getting stuff done in the real world.
If you want to post each day, here are the optimum times according to research by Hootsuite:
While Influencer Marketing Hub recommends the morning for Monday posts, or 10 p.m., Hootsuite’s analysts say that noon is the best time to publish on a Monday. This goes to show that figures do vary between countries, sites, and sectors. (More on that later…)
Users are online early on a Tuesday, with many visiting Instagram by 8 a.m. The peak time slot is 8 a.m. until 10 a.m., with 9 a.m. being the sweet spot.
In the middle of the week, Instagram sees quite a drastic peak in engagement at 11 a.m.
Peak engagement on a Thursday is early lunchtime, although the hours of 11 a.m. through to 2 p.m. will yield good results.
Engagement is pretty consistent on a Friday from early in the morning until after lunch. 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. is a good time to publish on a Friday, with 2 p.m. being peak time.
Believe it or not, Instagrammers are awake early on a Saturday and checking in with the platform at 9 a.m.
Sundays are a bit more laid back. No early starts here. Instead, users prefer to scroll at 7 p.m. in the evening, although research shows that use is steady between midday until 8 p.m.
If you don’t have the time or resources to create a lot of Instagram posts, just pick a couple of the best days and times. Not forgetting of course, that Wednesday at 11 a.m. is the time that results in the most engagement.
However, the best time to post on Instagram according to Sprout Social varies depending on which industry or sector you’re in. For example, the best time to post on Instagram for consumer goods brands is on a Sunday between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.. Meanwhile, financial posts perform best on Wednesdays at 6 a.m., while anything to do with education will peak on a Tuesday at 10 a.m.
Later analysed 35 million Instagram posts globally and discovered that the worst time to post on Instagram is Thursday night between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. That doesn’t mean that you should never post then, but you may want to avoid these times for key activities.
The absolute best time to post Reels is Monday to Thursday from 9 .am. until midnight. This says that if you want to maximise engagement on Instagram, you should be using Reels, which are effective content pieces any time of the day.
Data indicates that Reels get up to 300% more engagement than regular Instagram posts. So if you’re looking to go viral, Reels are a must. We have loads more information on boosting Reels if you need it.
Optimum posting times differ slightly from country to country. Note the differences below.
According to Host Reviews, there are two optimum periods for posting during the week – 4 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. On the weekends, the best times are noon and between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Monday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. is the best time to post on Instagram in the USA central time according to Razorpay. In the USA, Sunday is a bad day to post on Instagram, as audiences tend to drop.
If you’re posting for an Australian audience, I Am Famous say that the best times are weekdays between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. Sydney time.
Past wins are key when it comes to planning your social media strategy. What do the stats indicate? Is the content more compelling than other posts you’ve shared? Or have you already hit the best time to post on Instagram for your brand?
Use your Instagram insights and analytics, which are built into the app if you have an Instagram business or creator account. It will show the top locations for your posts, the age range of users, reach, engagement and followers.
t’s worth taking a close look at your competitors’ posts. What time are they posting and which of their posts are doing really well? Once you know that, you can do what they do, only better!
Check out Vamp for business to get the edge on your competitors. You can start using the tool for FREE. Need some inspiration first? Find out how our clients have skyrocketed their Instagram campaigns with Vamp.
So what’s the need for knowing all of this? It comes down to giving the algorithm what it wants to see – engagement.
Engagement should be your priority on Instagram – that means potential customers interacting with your account. Engagement comes in the form of likes, comments, views, shares, and direct messages.
You can increase engagement further by leaning into the platform’s algorithm by sharing Instagram Stories, utilising Instagram Video (formerly IGTV), and, most importantly at the moment, posting Reels.
A sure-fire way of increasing your likes is to ride the rule of recency, which boils down to being as up-to-date as you possibly can, i.e. posting when your audience is likely to be online.
The most recent posts on Instagram get priority. If you post several hours after your target audience has stopped scrolling, you could miss the sweet spot.
Another way to boost your Instagram posts is to do a paid-for promotion. You can increase engagement with ads and/or sponsored posts. With competition for visibility at an all-time high on Instagram, paid for posts can be a useful tool in your marketing strategy. Find out how to boost your paid content on Instagram.
Now that you know the best times to post on Instagram, all you need now is some great content to turbo-charge your social media marketing campaigns. Get started with an Instagram influencer campaign on Vamp.
Instagram’s algorithm determines the visibility of posts based on several key factors. These include engagement (likes, comments, shares, and views), relevance (how much a user has interacted with similar content), relationships (how often a user interacts with a particular account), timeliness (recency of the post), and profile searches (how often an account is searched for). To optimize content for the algorithm, users should focus on creating engaging and high-quality content that encourages interaction.
This includes using captivating visuals, compelling captions, and strategic use of hashtags to increase discoverability. Additionally, posting consistently and at optimal times can help maintain and grow engagement. Leveraging features like Stories, Reels, and IGTV can also enhance visibility since the algorithm favors accounts that utilize all of Instagram’s tools (Sprout Social) (SocMedMan).
The type of content that performs best can vary depending on the time of day and the audience’s preferences. Generally, visually appealing photos and engaging videos tend to attract more attention. During peak engagement times, such as lunchtime or early evening, users may have more time to watch longer videos or engage with carousel posts.
Reels and Stories are particularly effective for capturing quick, casual interactions, especially during shorter breaks throughout the day. For example, during morning commutes, users might prefer quick, digestible content like Reels. In contrast, during evening hours, they might be more inclined to engage with detailed posts or watch longer videos (Sprout Social) (HopperHQ).
Seasonal trends and holidays significantly impact user behavior on Instagram. During holidays or significant events, users’ online activity patterns can shift, leading to different optimal posting times. For instance, during the holiday season, people might be more active on social media in the evenings after spending the day with family or shopping.
Similarly, seasonal changes like summer vacations can lead to increased activity during weekends or specific times when people are more likely to be at home relaxing. To capitalize on these trends, it’s important to adjust your posting schedule to align with these shifts. Monitoring Instagram Insights for changes in engagement during these periods can provide valuable data to refine your posting strategy (SocialPilot) (SocMedMan).
