This guide tells you exactly how often to post on Instagram and Facebook for organic growth. Perfect for individuals and businesses who are starting from scratch, have few followers, and/or haven’t posted in awhile. This organic growth social media strategy will help you build the target audience you want, while growing your online presence.

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How often should I post on social media to grow my account?

Newbies to social media, small business owners, and even social media managers, all want to know how often to post on Instagram and Facebook for organic growth.

A good place to start is by scheduling 3-5 posts per week. This laidback plan will be easy to follow and will save your sanity in the long run. Posting only 3-5 times may not seem like a lot, but it’s better to start slow with consistency rather than post a lot of content and then stop posting as soon as you lose motivation.

Should I post 3 times per day?

When following your plan on how often to post on Instagram and Facebook, it’s important to keep momentum and be patient. Don’t post less, and don’t feel like you need to post more. People often make the mistake of devising an intense posting schedule they can’t stick to for very long. It’s important to know that deviating from your schedule will hurt your performance with the algorithms.

If you miss 1 or 2 posts, it’s not the end of the world. But when you’re only posting 3-5 times per week, it’s easy to stay on track. Just don’t get discouraged and stick with the schedule you decide on.

Pro tip: Batch and schedule your content 1-2 months ahead of time so you’re not constantly overwhelmed and scrambling to stick to your schedule. Once you’ve done this, if you want to post more frequently, it will be easy to fill in the gaps with more content.

What kind of content should I post?

Make high-quality content for your ideal target audience. Some people get so swept up in the idea of creating content, they forget who they are making content for. One mistake I see often, is businesses accidentally targeting competitors with the content they post. Remember to focus on your audience and put yourself in their shoes. What appeals to them? If you’re having trouble narrowing down your target audience, or don’t know the difference between target market and target audience, you need to figure this out first.

Be sure your content is high-quality and provides value. Don’t copy other people or post something for the sake of posting. Your laidback plan of posting 3-5 times per week means you should have time and energy to come up with quality posts that offer value.

What day and time is best to post on Instagram and Facebook?

The days and times that are best to post on Instagram and Facebook depend heavily on your target audience. To determine who your target audience is, and when they are most likely to be online, check out Tip #1 from this article. Each demographic uses social media differently. A middle-aged man who commutes daily to his 9-5 office job and a stay-at-home mother/homemaker are likely using social media at different days and times.

Should I always post at the same time every day?

It is important to experiment and find the optimal days and times to post. Once you determine when your target audience is most likely to be online, experiment by posting at the same time on the same days for 2 weeks. Then, after 2 weeks, change the time of day you post. After another 2 weeks, change the days of the week you post. By experimenting, you will discover which posts get the most interaction and you can infer when are the best days and times to post.

How do I know if my organic growth strategy is working?

As a social media manager, I typically review my strategy after 1 month and then again at 4 months. If you have a newer account and/or very few followers, I recommend measuring progress after 3 months. There are plenty of third-party apps to track metrics. My favorite is Metricool. However, if you’re not too worried about your metrics and want to track just the basics, the built-in Instagram and Meta Business Suite analytics are sufficient.

After 3 months, you will be able to see which of your posts were successful and which ones weren’t so successful. You will see an increase or decrease in key factors including:

• Followers

• Profile reach, impressions, views, and website clicks

• Content reach, impressions, engagement/interactions

Based on these metrics, you will know if your strategy is working and you will be able to determine how often to post on Instagram and Facebook for organic growth. If you saw the growth you were looking for but feel overwhelmed from your schedule, now is a good time to decrease how often you post going forward.

What if the organic growth strategy didn’t work? Do I need to post more?

Don’t be quick to blame your posting schedule if you’re not seeing growth. Some people feel discouraged by their results and think it’s because they are not posting enough. But first, consider if you:

• Didn’t post high-quality content that offers value

• Did not properly target your ideal audience

• Deviated from your schedule too much

• Didn’t post on the days and times your target audience is online

If you made some of these mistakes, stick with your posting schedule for another 1-3 months and see if there is a positive change in your metrics.

Never feel confused again about how often to post on Instagram and Facebook for organic growth. Stop listening to people who say you need to post 3 times or more per day, and start following the instructions in this guide to see steady organic growth that lasts.

Questions or comments? Let me know in the comments section below! If you need help making a schedule that works for you, content creation, or interpreting your analytics, don’t hesitate to book a free consultation.

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Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links that, at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.