Shorter Facebook Posts Get Higher Engagement Rates
A report from Buddy Media Platform titled “Strategies for Effective Facebook Wall Posts: A Statistical Review” highlights some findings about what works well for Facebook posts. Among the findings are that shorter posts get higher engagement rates, full-length URLs work better than shortened URLs and posts outside of business hours get better engagement rates.
After examining all Facebook posts made via the Buddy Media Platform during a two-week period in January and February, the company found that Facebook posts with 80 characters or less have, on average, a 27 percent higher engagement rate. However, posts of this length accounted for just 19 percent of all Facebook wall posts.
Buddy Media Platform also found that posts including a full-length URL saw engagements that were three times higher. “If you do need to shorten a URL, try a brand-specific shortener,” the report recommends. This will help the likelihood that users will click on the links and will help to keep posts shorter.
An interesting finding from the survey is that brands that posted outside of business hours (i.e., in the early morning, at the end of the work day and late at night) had engagement rates about 20 percent higher than average.
“This reflects the importance of having a Post appear at the top of fans’ News Feeds during the times of day they are most likely checking their Facebook Pages,” the report remarks. “By posting within business hours, brands miss the critical opportunity to get the visibility they need for maximum engagement. So, schedule Posts to appear early in the morning or late at night. Don’t publish Posts simply because you’re in front of your computer.”
When it comes to days of the week, engagement rates on Thursday and Friday are 18 percent higher than they are on other days of the week. Meanwhile, engagement rates for posts published Monday through Wednesday are approximately 3.5 percent below average.
Industry also matters for engagement rates on certain days of the week. For example, the entertainment industry gets the most engagement Friday through Sunday, though brands are not actively posting during those days. For the media industry, Saturday and Sunday have the best engagement rates, but brands are not actively posting on those days. Mondays have the most noise and, consequently, the worst engagement.
According to the report, keeping follow instructions simple is the way to go for brands. For “likes,” the top keywords are: like, take, submit, watch and post. For comments, the top keywords are: post, comment, tell us, check and like.
When it comes to promotional keywords, “softer sell” keywords work best. Fans engage well with words like “events” and “winner” and “offers,” but don’t engage so well with the likes of “limited,” “exclusive,” “free,” “discount” or “coupon.”
Also included in the report is that posts ending with a question have a 15 percent higher engagement rate.
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