Creating a content plan takes time. Even with all the tools that are available to make the whole process more efficient! And when you identify two social media platforms that your target audience is active on… It can be tempting to use the same content for both platforms.
Especially when those platforms resemble each other so much (yep, I'm referring to Facebook and Instagram!).
So, is it a good call to be posting the same content on both platforms?
My quick answer: No.
Should you develop a completely different strategy for Facebook and Instagram? Also no.
Sounds contradicting, right?
Well, here’s the sitch. Some things can be repurposed and used as-is for both platforms, but not everything as is!
Here’s a couple of things that differ from one social media platform to another and that you should consider...
Your Instagram audience and Facebook audience might differ from each other.
Believe it or not, the audience you have on Instagram versus the one you have on Facebook has some overlap, but it isn’t entirely the same. Most likely, your audience on Facebook is a bit older than your audience on Instagram. See where I'm going with this?
The baby boomer generation might not have the same interests and preferences as Millenials when it comes to your content, so it wouldn't make sense to have the same content on both platforms.
Not only are they of different age ranges, but your audience on Facebook and Instagram may not have the same activity in terms of what time they are browsing their feeds. Therefore, analyzing data and testing out different times on both platforms is a great idea.
Call-to-actions in captions
When you write a call-to-action on Instagram, the common practice is to direct your audience to click on the link in your bio. Well, on Facebook, users don’t have to go click the link in your bio! You can add a link directly in your post’s caption.
Media type
Your audience on Facebook versus your audience on Instagram may prefer to consume different types of content. Plus, the media dimensions on these two platforms are not the same. Make sure to optimize your videos and pictures so they fit perfectly on both platforms!
Another classic example of this is link content. You can share links to Facebook, but not to Instagram. Instagram cannot populate a link as a media type, and it also does not allow clickable links to be used in post captions. The only exception with using links on Instagram is in Stories, where you can utilize the brand new "LINK" feature! If you don't see this as an option yet, be patient. It's VERY new!
Posting schedule
I talked about audience overlap in my first point, and I’m coming back to that subject now. While there mayne isn’t a lot of overlap between audiences on both platforms, there is a little bit of it. This means that those who follow you on both platforms would be seeing the same piece of content twice, within minutes apart. And that’s IF they go from one platform to another within minutes.
The best thing to do here would be to post the same media (if it makes sense...) twice, but at different times and/or on different days. This way, you can maximize your engagement!
Did you learn anything new from this blog post? Have you been posting the same content on Instagram and Facebook in the past? Let me know!
And as usual, if you have any comments or questions, don’t hesitate to shoot me a text at 216-640-1319!