When to Post on Social Media

By Dr. Isaura Gonzalez , Guest Blogger

Have you ever wondered when to post on Social media? Well, you are not alone!  This is a conundrum that many entrepreneurs face on a daily basis and through Sharon Lechter’s mentoring program, in which I participate, social media comes up quite frequently. There are so many questions to ask:

• What campaigns should I run?
• What are my best strategies?
• Is there a best approach?
• There are so many platforms…Which ones are best for me?
• Am I posting too much or too little?

As you can guess, the questions are endless and the answers will vary depending on whom you ask.  As a successful entrepreneur, I have learned the importance that social media has played in the growth of my online presence and here is my take on what you need to know:

Understanding Social Media

Like all communication, there are guidelines to effectively enhance your brand and your business through social media.  If you are able to follow these best practices, then you should know whether you are oversaturating your audience or giving them appropriate valuable content. But, how easy is this?

How to Best Communicate with Social Media

When we communicate face-to-face, 7% of what we say with words and 93% with body language and tone of voice helps us to be understood.

So, without body language and tone, how do you communicate, then, with social media? In my private practice, my patients know that I respect words and their power. You will often find me pausing to find just the right word, just like a person who is at a store looking for just the right gift for someone. I can assure you not everyone does that in day-to-day interaction. And this is less so in a world driven by the speed of social media. But, I will tell you, intentionality matters.

So, What are the Rules?

Looking at social media communication through the lens of a developmental process, just like in the world of parenting, there is no rulebook, per se. You create rules as your children grow and your family continues to grow. As any parent knows, since no two children are alike, and no two families are alike, it is hard to transfer hard and fast rules and expectations. In the social media realm, this can create an anxiety over posting, or should I say, overposting. And, just when we think we have discovered the rules of the social media game, those rules seem to keep changing. This reminds me of sound guidance offered to me on multiple occasions by Sharon Lechter- find the right experts who stay up to date on the rules and can point you in the right direction.

Building Relationships

With the various platforms, I see opportunity to fine-tune your brand and expertise to the platform you choose to nurture and create a relationship with. Yes, I said relationship. Because, just as we create relationships with our children, family members, friends, and colleagues, we do the same with our social media platform and the audience we are trying to reach.

Back to Basics

So to understand when to post on social media, or if you are posting too much, we need to go back to basics. To properly understand your needs for your business, there are six fundamentals areas that you need to address. They are the Who, What, When, Where, How and Why of social media, which I will dive into on my next guest post in Part II of this blog on May 20, 2016.

Dr. Isaura Gonzalez is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and Executive Coach.  She is the Founder of LIA (Latinas in Action) and Co-Founder of LEO (Latinos Empowering Others) part of the Latino Leadership Alliance.  She is, also, the Founder of Latina College Corner, an organization geared toward the professional and personal development of students of all ages.  Dr. Gonzalez has been Adjunct Faculty for the last 20 years within the NY Tri-state area.  She has contributed to “Being Latino”, an online magazine, a guest speaker on National Public Radio (NPR) and her articles have been featured as a LINKEDin contributor.