11 Data-Driven Tips to Create Perfect Posts on Social Media

How do you create the perfect posts on social media?

We’ve heard a million answers to this tired question.

There are the typical responses like...

“Be interesting!”

“Be useful!”

Or the dreaded, “Be engaging!”

But the truth is, all advice about crafting the perfect post is just hearsay until you’ve got data to back it up.

At Simply Measured, we’ve done the analysis and have the cold, hard data to back up all the assumptions you have about the “perfect post” across 3 major social media networks.

Let’s dive in and check out what it takes to create this type of post on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

11 Data-Driven Tips to Create Perfect Posts on Social Media

11 Data-Driven Tips to Create Perfect Posts on #SocialMedia - bit.ly/1VCp8Is (by @jadefurubayashi at @simplymeasured)Click to Tweet

How to Create the Perfect Posts on Social Media - Facebook

On Facebook, there are many aspects you need to focus on to be successful.

However, we at Simply Measured have 4 rock-solid and research-backed things you can do to increase your post’s engagement:

1. Pay attention to your character length

The most engaging length for a Facebook post is even less than the maximum 140-character count for a tweet! Hold back on writing a novel.

Posts between 50-99 characters see the most engagement.

2. Time your post wisely

The timing of your Facebook post could be the difference between your post going viral or going completely unnoticed.

Optimal timing for B2B and B2C companies might be very different.

For example, B2B brands can expect to see their engagement lift on weekdays and less so on weekends -- which is likely not the case for B2C companies.

When is your top time to post? Run a free Facebook Fan Page Report to find out!

3. Never forget about visuals

Visual content is the primary driver of engagement on Facebook.

For top brands, 60% of their posts include photos, which make up about 80% of their page’s total engagement.

Again, you can use our free Facebook Content Analysis tool to find your most engaging content type! 

4. Use emoticons!

Emoticons receive 33% more comments, are shared 33% more often, and are liked 57% more than Facebook posts without emoticons (via Pamorama). This is major! 

How to Create the Perfect Posts on Social Media - Instagram

All marketers want to get better at Instagram in 2016. Getting your posts in tip-top shape is a great place to start!

What are the easy tweaks that will take your engagement to the next level?

Check it out:

1. Don't worry about your captions

According to our recent Instagram study, there is no statistically significant correlation between caption length and engagement -- so go ahead and be as long or as short as you like.

Whatever you do, make sure you give your photo enough context to resonate with your audience.

2. Give people shoutouts!

On average, posts that include another user handle in the caption net 37% more engagement than those that don't.

So use this opportunity to shed some light on your brand’s fans, advocates and employees!

You can expect to see your engagement trend upwards as a result.

3. Always add your location

Don’t be a stranger on Instagram -- give your audience as much context as possible and you'll be rewarded.

Posts tagged with a location receive 50% higher engagement than those that don't.

These tips should help you quickly increase your Instagram engagement. If you’re still curious about how your brand’s content is performing on Instagram, you can run a free Instagram User Report here!

How to Create the Perfect Posts on Social Media - Twitter

Twitter is a content distribution hub for brands of all shapes and sizes. So how do you make sure the content you slaved over doesn’t fall on deaf ears?

Craft a tweet that people can’t ignore!

Here are a few things you can do to increase your visibility and engagement:

1. Include photos (duh)

But seriously, the importance of a multi-media experience on Twitter cannot be overstated.

In a recent study of the Interbrand 100, we found that photos made up 55% of all sent tweets, and accounted for 57% of all engagement.

That’s huge! Make sure you take note and apply a similar strategy to your brand.

2. Don’t leave the #hashtag out

When we analyzed the Twitter activity of top brands, we found that their tweets with hashtags averaged 20% more engagement than those without.

So don’t be afraid to throw in a hashtag, or even two!

3. Test your top time to tweet

Do you want to drive engagement or drive traffic? There actually might be two different top times on Twitter to do these things.

What’s the simplest way to find out? Run this test!

4. Keep it positive!

A new study, published by the University of Southern California, says that positive emotions are more contagious than negative ones on Twitter.

According to the USC researchers...

About 20 percent of Twitter users were deemed highly susceptible to what the researchers described as “emotional contagion” – with more than half of their tweets affected. Those users were four times more likely to be affected by positive tweets than negative ones.

So make sure your brand’s voice has a positive tone -- and watch your message spread like wildfire!

Final Thoughts

Well, now that your brain is jam-packed with tips for Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, it’s time to dive in!

Use the data provided in this post to create your best, most perfect posts on social media over and over again!

Want even more data? Just click over to Simply Measured -- and be sure to check out our free tools.

In the meantime, let us know in the comments about your top tips for posting on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!