With a variety of social media networks out there to choose from, many people may find it hard to find the time to post on them all. Cross-posting was the easy solution to this; you create one post and have it sent out across all the platforms. While this is extremely convenient as it saves time and gets you exposed to the biggest audience possible, it can't be a bad thing, right?
Truth is, with each network being unique with their own algorithms and different audiences, cross-posting to your audiences may actually be doing more harm than good.
Hashtags don’t always work the same across social media
Hashtags started mainly on Twitter as a way to easily connect with others in a conversation. They turn words and phrases into clickable links where you can find others involved in that topic. On Instagram, hashtags help people find your images. Facebook’s hashtags don’t quite operate the same way as they do on Twitter and Instagram, although this seems to be slightly changing. Too many hashtags on Facebook and the post looks spammy. Marketers suggest 1-2 hashtags only as research has shown that anything more has a drop in engagement. When you cross-post from Instagram to Facebook and include all those hashtags, it won’t do you much good on Facebook.
Facebook have been encouraging the use of hashtags lately, but while it' still trying to find it's feet in the hashtag game, it's suggested to try only 1-2 of popular hashtags/topics to see how you get on.
Different audiences deserve different messages
Different platforms will have different people active on them. Those who are active on Facebook may not necessarily be as much on Twitter or Instagram. You should tailor your content to each audience on each platform (Sounds, laborious, I know! But get tour core content and tailor as necessary and it will pay off!).
It looks robotic
The best thing you can do for your brand is put some personality in it. Social media is abotu being social - people connecting with people. So, humanize your brand and let people know there is a person behind the scenes aiming to connect with them. When you cross-post, this isn’t always the message people get. If you have followers on Twitter who only see half a post with a link back to Facebook each and every time, that will turn them off of the brand as it looks robotic and spammy.
Tagging doesn’t work the same
If you are tagging people and places into an Instagram post, those tags won’t hold up on other platforms. They will only appear and as “@username.” That pretty much screams "I'm not present on this platform".
Tagging people, places, and organizations wisely into posts (as in, when it is appropriate to do so and not spamming them) can help your reach, and by cross-posting, you may be missing out on that extra reach.
What to do instead
The first thing to consider is where your audiences are. You shouldn’t put time, effort, and possibly money into a social media platform where the majority of your audience isn’t at. Don’t worry about cross-posting onto platforms you’re not mainly using as again, this just comes off as robotic.
Dedicate time each month/week to create content for each audience and schedule it in. Your post should be optimized for each individual platform it is going on, with different pictures and wording as appropriate. If you encourage your audiences on one social media network to follow you on another, then you will want to make sure they get different posts and not see the same things again. Otherwise, there is no point for them to follow you on multiple networks.
Also, consider posting at different times on each platform. People may use Twitter at different times to Instagram and Facebook. Be aware of when is the best time per network. For example, many people tend to scroll Instagram during their lunch and spend more time on Facebook later in the day.
It;s okay to post the same image and similar message across the platforms but only if it is appropriate for your audience on that platform as part of a social media strategy. Keep testing and see what people respond to the most. It is about trial and error!
Let us handle the content for you
If you find creating content difficult and time-consuming, leave it to the social media specialists. Digital Flamingo work with your brand to deliver the best message possible to your audience on the appropriate platforms. With different solutions available, we have something to suit all businesses, leaving you to spend time on other things. Get in touch to discuss how we can develop a plan that suits your business needs.