Reason #9 Why Your Social Media Sucks: You're Posting Too Often

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The Problem

In a recent survey among Facebook users who have un-liked one or more Pages, the third-most popular reason cited was "Information was published too often."

No matter how much people like you (and that's "like" as in the emotion, not the Facebook activity), it's quite possible to overdo this social engagement thing.

So, as much as you're tempted to share your daily specials, your employee of the week, a funny video on YouTube, and a top-10-tips blog post all on the same day on every single network, you could be treading very dangerous waters.

The Solution

Of course the problem of over-posting isn't limited to Facebook—it's universal, although the Facebook audience is probably one of the most sensitive to it. The reason is that when people check their feeds, they want to hear voices from all across their network, not just yours over and over again.

So just to be on the safe side, I'd advise you to limit your Facebook posting to once a day and your Tweets to four or five times a day (though not all at once, please!). Believe me, that gives you plenty of opportunity to engage your audience, and your posts will actually have greater impact when you focus on quality over quantity.

Turnaround Tips

• Remember that not everything has to be shared as it's happening.
• Make sure that each post has a solid reason behind it and that it's firmly rooted in your audiences interests (See Reason #10: "It's All About Me"-ism).
• Watch your auto-post settings. It's easy to forget, for example, that you set up Facebook to automatically feed into Twitter, and that could result in duplicate postings. I recommend avoiding auto-posting altogether, but if you must use it, do so with care.
• As always, ask your audience for feedback on your posts, including their frequency.

So, what are your thoughts on the best ways to avoid over-posting on Facebook, Twitter, and other networks? Tell us in the comments—we'd love to hear from you!

Read earlier posts in the series:

• Reason #10 Why Your Social Media Sucks: "It's All About Me"-ism

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