Posting on social media is a great way to draw attention to your cause and interact with your supporters. It can also be a double-edged sword, however, since there is always the risk that you will post too much, and potentially irritate and drive away some of your followers. If you don’t post often enough, it’s easy for your followers to be distracted and forget about the importance of supporting your NFP’s work.

Finding the right balance of what, where and when to post is usually a process of trial and error. What works best generally differs from one organisation to the next. Each social media channel also has its own specifications that can affect how well a specific type of post will perform.

The following strategies can help you achieve the right mix when it comes to the content you post, and how often you share it on social media.

Use Benchmarks

One way to help you determine if you are posting enough is to look at other nonprofits that are like yours in size and focus. How often are others like you posting on social media? The recently released 2018 Global NGO Technology Report, gives nonprofits an in-depth look at posting statistics for various channels, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Data from this study reveals some surprising statistics. About one-in-four nonprofits with a Facebook profile, for example, post at least once daily, while 15% make less than one post a week.

About a quarter of all nonprofits with a Twitter account tweet two to five times a day. One-in-five send a tweet less than once a week.

These two social media channels seem to be the most popular as well, with 93% of all survey respondents reporting that they have a Facebook page, and 77% have a Twitter account. Numbers fall sharply for other channels. Only half of all respondents say they have an Instagram account and 17% use LinkedIn.

How does your nonprofit measure up in comparison? Do you post more or less frequently than these averages?

Concentrate on Quality When Posting

While you certainly want to post enough so that your cause remains top of mind for your followers, the quality of your content should always be your primary focus.

Facebook Content and Posting Tips

Facebook has long been known as the perfect format for longer articles, but whatever you post, it must remain high in quality and offer genuine value for your followers. Posting low-value content too frequently can be seen as “spammy” by Facebook’s algorithms and affect whether or not your followers are notified of your latest posts.

While some nonprofits post at least twice a day on their Facebook account, it’s okay to skip a day or two if you don’t have anything meaningful to share. You should still aim for at least three posts a week of content that is useful, entertaining, or both so that your followers want to read and react to your content. Whenever possible, make sure that your posts contain a high-resolution image or infographic to stimulate your followers’ desire to click on your post to view more.

Tips to Use Twitter to Your Best Advantage

Twitter has recently increased the character allotment for tweets up to 280. While this change allows for longer comments, make sure that your tweets remain concise. Shorter posts mean that you are less likely to “wear out” your welcome with your followers. Use care when tweeting, and generally post no more frequently than once an hour. The exception to this rule is if you have something truly significant and newsworthy to share, then it would be okay to post more frequently during a specific event.

Keep in mind that tweeting isn’t the only way that you can interact with your followers. You can also like and favourite the tweets of others, comment on them, and share/retweet what others are saying. Don’t count your replies and other actions when you are trying to make a judgement call on whether you’ve posted enough quality content on Twitter for the day or week.

How to Ensure the Quality of Your Posts on Instagram

Around 50% of nonprofits have an Instagram account. To create quality posts for this channel, focus on the visual elements and keep in mind that Instagram was designed for mobile users. Before you post an image, view it through the lens of whether this photo will look great and still create an impact when seen on a smartphone. If not, then your best bet is to skip posting it, even if you must go a half-day or more without a new post.

Your Most Polished, and Professional Posts Belong on LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a social networking site built expressly for professionals. This means that any content that you post there should be crafted in a way that it helps you and your organisation put your “best foot forward” and helps you establish your credibility and leadership in your field. Most social media managers recommend that nonprofits post at least once a week, and up to once each business day, on LinkedIn.

Want to Reach More Millennials? You’ll Need to Switch Channels

Very few nonprofits are using one of the newest social media channels, SnapChat. If you want to target a younger demographic, however, you need to use the channels and apps that they use. This means that you will need to post on newer social media channels and post more frequently.

SnapChat is currently the favourite online destination for millennials and younger age groups. Anything that you post on SnapChat disappears within 24 hours, so you will really need to be on top of your game to reply to comments on your posts before they vanish!

One final thing to keep in mind is that if your content is interesting and relevant to your audience, it will always generate more engagement than stale, boring content, regardless of how often you post, or which social media channel you choose to use!