When Should Your Fashion Brand Post on Instagram?
For years, I have poured over the timing of seemingly mediocre business decisions.
What’s the best time of day to send an email to my list?
When’s the best time to post on social media?
Which month is the best for launching…?
I was in the middle of one of these dilemmas when a Factory45 alumni told me about a book by Daniel Pink called When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing.
Without giving the whole book away, the findings of just the first chapter are fascinating.
Scientists have studied thousands of women of all races, socioeconomic backgrounds and life experiences, and we all share the same general “emotional schedule” — even when we don’t consciously realize it.
Every day, we wake up on an emotional high with feelings of hope and positivity in the first few hours of the morning.
At first this did not resonate with me — watching my toddler throw oatmeal on the floor at 6am is not my idea of “hope.”
But I’ve noticed that once we have time to wake up, get into our routine and consume some coffee (by me, not my kid), there is a steady rise in our happiness level.
And that’s the case for everyone in the study.
But here’s where it gets interesting.
Right around mid-morning, emotions shift.
There is a dip around 10am and then a slow climb until about noon, or lunchtime, when we get a refuel of energy, social interaction with our co-workers… and we peak at a happiness high for the day.
But with every peak, comes an inevitable descent and levels of happiness plummet from 1-3pm.
It’s so bad, claims Pink and the scientists, that we shouldn’t make any decisions in the afternoon.
(He has some really interesting anecdotes about catastrophic events that have been the result of bad timing in decision making.)
Surprising no one, happiness levels reach an all-time high around 8pm — right around the time we’re cuddled up on the couch, most likely.
So what does this tell us?
Well, there are two takeaways for me:
- How can I use the knowledge of these highs and lows to create my own daily schedule?
- How can I use this knowledge to control when potential customers are interacting with my brand?
I won’t answer those questions for you, but I will say this:
Every marketing decision you make dictates, in some way, how your customers feel about your brand.
And feeling is everything.
If you know that their happiness levels are already at a low at 10am and again between 1-3pm, then that’s a pretty good indication to avoid brand engagement during those times (I know this gets complicated with time zone changes).
On the flip side, the book’s findings also indicate that these same hours may not be the best times for you to be writing or creating marketing material that will go out to your following.
Again, why choose these times when you’re at a “happiness low?”
Is it possible to do this perfectly? No — we all have other scheduling obligations and existing time parameters.
I simply bring this up because it inspired me to look at my own work schedule in an effort to be more conscious about which tasks I accomplish and when.
Even the fact that I’ve always sent my Wednesday emails out at 10am ET was a great realization to move the send time to earlier in the morning.
Wherever you are in your entrepreneurial journey, there’s always room to look for opportunities to maximize your productivity, find your flow and make your day work for you.
I’m right there with you.
