Could you annoy people by posting too much on social media?
I was inspired to write this and share tips by a client of ours (his name is Scott!) who recently wrote, worried about overdoing it on social media! He said:
“Have a question. I watch your video and read your posts as I find them really engaging and it’s my way of learning. I am unsure if you have ever created a post about ‘overexposure’ through any medium, whether its Facebook, LinkedIn or other. It would be great if you could share something about this subject to help me guide myself and others on reaching that balance.”
My response:
Who’s annoyed?
Now, let’s imagine that someone is going to be annoyed because you’re posting daily on Instagram (recommended for businesses). Let’s accept that some people get annoyed easily. They allow life’s day-to-day minor setbacks to become bigger in their heads, and the focus they give to these transforms into annoyances. The person in front of you at the queue taking too long, the tube being crowded, being interrupted at work – these things are potential annoyances.
Others experience the same but don’t let it annoy them.
So, if someone gets annoyed with you because you’ve been in their social feed, then maybe it’s more their approach to life than anything about you!
And – there are lots of people in the world who won’t approach your updates with annoyance, more likely they chose to follow you for a reason!
Posting too much
If someone is worried about posting too much on social media, I would of course check if their feed is excessively active and usually I would say “Not usually. Not really. Not enough.”
Frequency-wise, you can safely post 1 post a day on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook. That’s actually a healthy pattern of activity. Lots of accounts do this, from small mommy bloggers like Carly Helfrich to major brand accounts.
But there are some guidelines you must follow.
Avoid posting annoying content: The trick is to not be boring, pointless or repetitive.
Spin it: There is always a way to write and share things to show more of the positive and less of the negative/awkward/overly personal. It’s fine to leave some things out, if the root of the story is interesting/useful.
Giving value each and every time: Instead, each post should educate, entertain, show insight, or show personality – or all of the above.
Only the best: Internally with your team – run an ideation session to brainstorm ideas – then streamline down to only the best!
Be honest about your design: If you are not a professional designer, ask a couple who can give you objective feedback – the standards are high nowadays!
How we can help
We’ve done content marketing strategies and workshops for businesses of all shapes and sizes, in various industries – property, law, consulting, entertainment, charity, education, logistics, health, travel, education – even a shamanic healer – so we know there is no shortage of ideas, if you ask the right questions.
We help with headline writing, caption writing, and design of images.
If you would like to experience a taster FOC ideation session, big or small – get in touch and we can set it up.