Tried posting at 6am for a week and my engagement tanked

I saw all those posts saying early morning is the best time to post on Instagram, so I shifted my schedule from evenings to 6am for 7 days straight. My reach dropped by 40% compared to the week before, even though my content was the same type of stuff. I think my audience is mainly night owls, and they just weren't seeing it in their feeds when they woke up. Has anyone else found that the 'best time' advice backfired for their specific followers?

2 comments

2 Comments

henderson.vera22d ago

People always want a one-size-fits-all answer for things that are COMPLETELY personal. It's like when everyone said you should post three times a day on Facebook or you're doing it wrong. Turns out, my uncle posts once a week and his gardening group eats it up. Real life works the same way. Your grandma might love phone calls at 8am, but your college roommate sleeps until noon. The internet is just a BIGGER version of that. Your specific followers have their own habits and rhythms. The real trick is testing what works for YOUR people, not copying what worked for some random guru.

emery_lopez22d ago

Honestly @henderson.vera you're spot on, my buddy swears by posting cat memes at 2am and his followers love it.