The Best Time of the Day to Post on Steemit

in steemit •  7 years ago 

  

So you’ve spent over 3 hours on an absolute masterpiece of a post and can’t wait to immediately post it to Steemit for rave reviews and maximum rewards. But when you finally post it, you notice that for the first 5 minutes, the only upvote on the post is yours. So you keep refreshing the page in the hopes of seeing a change in your views. Regardless of the number of times you refresh your page and close your eyes before checking your earnings, the number of views doesn’t change nor do the earnings. Eventually after 20 minutes, some votes start trickling in, but since they’re from minnows, your earnings remain at a few cents. Hours go by and the post that you basically poured your heart and soul into creating largely goes unnoticed and unappreciated. 

  

But you know what the real issue was? You posted your blog at THE WRONG TIME!    

What? There is a right time and a wrong time for posting your blog?   

Exactly right my friend! Your success on Steemit not only depends on your current reputation score but also hinges heavily on the time you post. Thus if you post your blog at a time when most Steemians are asleep, then there is a significant chance that your blog will definitely go unnoticed and unread. And if no one reads your blog the first day, chances are especially high that you won’t be earning many upvotes nor much in author rewards for the rest of the week.   

  

This is a very important revelation – you will receive the maximum amount of upvotes and rewards in the first 24 hours! After the first day, your post will get heavily buried under tons and tons of other posts, which will also be put to the same test in their first 24 hours.    

The equation however changes quite a bit for a post coming from a dolphin or whale since within minutes, their posts will accrue tons of upvotes, rewards and even resteems and will almost certainly land on the Trending page. Once a post reaches the Trending page, the good times will continue for the rest of the week until payout.   

  

However, I am not writing this post to address the inevitable success of higher-level dolphins and whales on Steemit. I am specifically reaching out to all of you minnows out there who are having a tough time generating enough views and upvotes on your posts. Your troubles often will have little to do with the quality of your post and will have nearly EVERYTHING to do with your reputation score and the time you posted to Steemit!   

Why does your reputation score affect the success of your post? Quite simply, most people will be upvoting your post just by looking at your reputation. If you are at least Level 60 or higher, most folks will not even read your post and will simply upvote it after 15 minutes in order to get a share of the curation rewards. If you are at Level 70 or higher, then the quality of your post will have little to do with anything – the upvotes will start piling up from the moment you hit POST. It’s very unfortunate that so many quality posts from minnows get cast aside simply based on reputation, but this is a reality of life in general.   

  

If there is a job opening and only two people are in the running for it, who do you think the employer will choose – an upstart talented newcomer or a seasoned veteran with decades of experience? Just as experience wins out in the real world, your reputation score guarantees the majority of your success on Steemit.    

Nonetheless, there are several whales and higher-level dolphins in our community who are always committed to finding those high-quality diamond-in-the-rough posts from minnows and fairly rewarding them. So please continue to produce high-quality posts without worrying about rewards – hard work never goes unpaid so your recognition will come soon!

Now the subject of this particular post is when you should post during the day in order to maximize your upvotes and rewards. Especially important for minnows, the time of your post will definitely dictate the number of people who view and inevitably upvote your post. If you choose to post at a time when most people are asleep, your post will not be read that same day and will most likely be forgotten for the remainder of the week. Also if you post your article at a time when there is a lot of traffic to the site, then you will be forced to compete with highly reputed Steemians and once again your post will get unnoticed and forgotten.   

  

So wait a minute – I can’t post too late at night nor can I post it during ‘rush hour’? Then when is the best time to post already?   

Since a majority of Steemians are from the USA and Western Europe, you must try to post when those users are usually online and active on Steemit. Based on my own personal experience, the best time to post appears to be between 1 pm and 7 pm EST from Monday to Thursday. This will ensure that your post is read by the maximum number of Steemians in the Western Hemisphere, especially on the East Coast of the United States.   

  

It is usually around this time from Monday to Thursday that most people are still pretending to be working while they are actually just counting down the remaining hours in the day. And what better way to pass the time than by chilling on Steemit? It is also during this same time frame that users in Western Europe are winding down their day (6 pm – 12 pm) and more than likely, these users will be sneaking in a few more hours on Steemit before slumping off to bed.    

  

A special caveat to weekday postings – you should generally avoid posting from 5 – 6 pm EST as this is when you will be competing with posts from whales and higher-ranked Steemians. Since you already know that it is unwise to drive during rush hour, consider this time period as the “Rush Hour of Steemit” and opt to post a little later after 6 pm but before 7 pm.    

  

Notice that I have excluded the weekend because the hours of highest Steemit activity will accordingly change. It is definitely more variable from Friday to Sunday since most people are outside enjoying their weekends with family and going out at night with friends. But in general, the best time to post on Steemit from Friday to Sunday is between 1 pm – 4 pm EST – a much smaller window as compared to the rest of the week.    

  

Of course, if you are already a whale or a higher ranked Steemian (at least Level 66), you can be rest assured of posting at any time during the day or night and receiving enough upvotes, resteems and rewards to stay full and satisfied. That is because people (and their bots) will already be jumping on your posts and trying to scoop up as many curation rewards as they can. Don’t hate the game, hate the player!   

So when do you like to post on Steemit? Have you had a different experience with posting times? Let me know in the comments below and enjoy the rest of your evening! 


Image Sources:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Until next time, keep acing life!   

 

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I had inferred, and assumed much of this. I was thinking about writing an article on this myself; you beat me to it; and had several ideas I had not thought of as well. Thanks!

You're welcome

You're very welcome @surfyogi!

Hi what's your summary on the timing ? Time that could generally work for everybody! !

Then everybody followed the advice and every hour on Steemit became a rush hour. XDD Sorry, couldn't resist.
Thanks a lot for this post, this is just what we needed. I'll definitely use this info in the future.

It is like when everyone decides to go to job 15 minutes earlier to avoid traffic jam and you end up in a trafic jam
perfect

I have definitely been the victim of writing a post and posting it immediately during the wee hours of the morning.
Despite knowing what I was doingbwas wrong. It was hard to fight off the temptation.
I think that you gave great advice here.

Darryl

I find it especially helpful to plan and write my posts beforehand and then post them between 1 - 7 pm EST during the work week. Or I start writing my post a good 3-4 hours before 7 pm to give myself enough time to write and double check everything before posting. Thanks Darryl!

I LOVE this idea. Absolutely. I typically write at night before I go to sleep. And I get so darn impatient about posting it haha . . I want it to be shown to the world right now Patience has a tendency to pay off though.

Haha I know that feeling. For my introductory post, as soon as I finished editing my video, I decided to post it right away - at 3 am. Needless to say, it was barely even seen but I certainly learned my lesson that day! Patience usually pays off in the long run - it sure helps a ton on Steemit!

Thank you very much, for new users like myself this info is pretty valuable.

You're welcome @dineroconopcion!

  ·  7 years ago 

Thank you so much for the great advice. I knew that timing would make difference. But didn't know that the ranking also matters. Will continue to work on my post even though they are still unnoticed most of the time. Hopefully it can get me to higher rank soon. Thanks

This post is a+..but 88 votes??and just about 6$?oh men..its very informative.unlike the post of others with a high rep.just posting a photo and theyll have about hundreds of upvotes..posting a nonsense.theyl get thousands.i am not against anyone anyway..steem on!

Thanks for reading and appreciating my post @iamkunaning!

This is an extremely valuable post. Thank you so much to gathering and presenting vital metrics on when to post for optimal returns. I also liked the section on the importance of your reputation score. I had not thought of it in the manner. So Full-STEEM ahead for us guppies & minnows to earn higher scores in order to swim with the dolphins & whales!

You're welcome @suzique! Thanks for reading and appreciating my posts - STEEM ON!

Informative article, loved it and thanks! :)

Thanks @classydapper - I'm glad you found it informative!

WOW, Thank you for this. I knew there was some kind of science to posting time. I will remember this moving forward. And I will resteem this to my followers so they know tooo.

Awesome thanks @davidmendel! Just learning with everyone else - anytime I make a new discovery, I'll be sure to share it with all of you!

Great. I too will help as I grow in the steemit world.

Sweet and just like that, the Steemit community grows even faster as it skyrockets to the moon!

Hold on tight as we take off.

Ready for lift off! :)

This is something I always suspected but was never sure. Thank you for confirming my guess. Great post.

Thanks for reading @discernente!

Thanks, friend, for this outstanding analysis...

I'm certain that it will make the lives of many minnows much happier! :D

😄😇😄

@creatr

Thank you so much @creatr! I'm always happy to help in any way that I can while learning the mysteries of this great platform too, one day at a time!

Ive noticed that. I think I made a unique post and I'm wondering what you think of it. https://steemit.com/technology/@tombot/can-biohacking-double-lifespan-1-0

Thanks @tombot, I'll check it out!

Good info on timing posts, where did you get the info about upvotes and reputation scores over 60?

It is based mainly on experience and my daily observations on Steemit. Reputation scores are definitely very important on Steemit! Thanks for reading @aboutyourbiz!

Not sure what experience you mean since your score is not yet there for what I would think of as experience, but I figured it was observation like you said. Must admit I was kinda hoping you might have found an inside source though ;)

Definitely, experience is built every day through constant observation as well as trial and error. Cheers!

Good Point!

Thank you good sir!

Fantastic post! I can tell you put in some serious time to create this post. I think it's valuable info. It's certainly something to hit send and stare, refresh, refresh. I was cracking up at that. I'm resteeming this post.

Thanks @karencarrens, I appreciate the resteem! Haha yea we've all been there before with the constant refreshing, including me! ;)

@cerebralace well done! You raise a lot of valid points. I have noticed similar things about posting times. This article showed me that I definitely need to change when I submit the post.

Even if I write a post late at night, or in the morning, it is beneficial to wait to publish it until peak times. The chances of more exposure are much higher at that time. You use logic to prove your point.

And some humor haha "most people are still pretending to be working while they are actually just counting down the remaining hours in the day." So true!!

Resteemed! Hopefully many others will heed your advice.

Thank you very much @shawnfishbit! Though I do a lot of my writing at night, I usually wait until peak hours to publish my posts in order to gain maximum exposure. I really appreciate the resteem and I'm glad you also found my explanations humorous too. If I can educate and make my fellow Steemians laugh at the same time, mission completely accomplished! ;)

Very good advice @cerebralace, thank you! I have also posted at the wrong time and got the post buried, very discouraging when that happens!

Don't worry, just plan to write a little ahead of time so that you can try to publish your post at peak times. You're very welcome @almvide - Steem On!

Good article..

Thanks @secter!

Very informative post. I realised a while ago that there is an optimum time to post. Trial and error I guess . Now that there are so many new steemians joining us on a daily basis the posts disappear quickly.

Yup I've learned plenty on Steemit through trial and error. While it's great to see so many new users joining our community on a daily basis, you're right about posts disappearing relatively quickly depending on the time of the day. Hope we are getting closer to determining the best time to post for maximum exposure!

Loved your posts! I was wondering about timing for a while and you answered my questions. Thanks @cerebralace:)

Thanks @esterlindsey! Always happy to help my fellow Steemians in any way that I can! ;)

Great post @cerebralace! I'll be testimg this theory today onwards ^_^

Thanks @dreamiely! It definitely helps to plan and write your posts beforehand and then simply post them between 1 - 7 pm EST. Let me know how it works! I imagine a new rush hour hitting Steemit tomorrow lol.

@cerebralace, certainly a very useful and informative article and analysis-- especially for our newer members! Well done!

I'll tell, you, though... I still find little rhyme or reason to which posts "get legs" and run, and which do not... even one of my good friends here who's rep score is in the mid-70's doesn't predictably earn on his posts. But hey, every little piece of information helps!

Definitely it's not a very exact science but I hope it is still accurate than meteorology lol. I imagine the tags associated with the post also make a difference (e.g. Steemit tagged posts earning more than those with Pokemon tags). Thanks for the kind words @denmarkguy!

Thank you for this, have just been thinking about posting times today!

You're very welcome @aubreyfox!

So, shouldn't the question be asked whether time should have such an influence on a post's success?

A post shouldn't be so ethereal, should it? Quality content should be quality content regardless of timing, shouldn't it?

Yup I agree completely - quality should supersede everything including reputation and posting time. Thanks @somethingsubtle!

The two best times during the week are 10:00 am EST and 6:00 pm EST. By 10am, the east coast has finished their email and incoming snail mail and want to see what's happening on steemit. Western Europe is winding down their day, yet haven't left work, maybe.

6 pm EST, east coast US is home from work, or nearly, and western Europe is still on the interwebs.

4pm-5pm EST is the absolute worst time to post. Commuting on the US east coast. nuff said.

On the weekends, material has to be out by 1:00 pm EST or you're writing for crickets.

Excellent point, thanks @wakeupsheeps!

Interesting. This helps a lot. Thanks. 😊

You're welcome @robiney!

Good advice! I've had some posts gain a lot of traction within minutes, and some that never amounted to nearly as much. This must be why! Thank you for sharing :)

You're welcome @ceciliakeirstead - thank you for reading! :)

This is exactly what I was looking for! Thanks so much for sharing your experience @cerebralace!

You're very welcome @wisdom7!

Yes, you are obviously right, if your post is in English those are definitely the times to post, I for my part usually post in the early afternoon and evening, my time is -6 UTC, of course I have the problem of just being level 56 and it gets more difficult to reach the higher levels as you advance so to get to 60 for me will take some time, once there I will hopefully get more votes.
Now for people who speak another language I am speaking mostly of Asian languages like Korean, Mandarin or Japanese their best posting times will of course be different.

Definitely, the ideal posting times for Asian speakers will be different due to a difference in time zones. And naturally, writers will also want to target their posts toward readers speaking the same language. Fortunately, we are rapidly gaining new users from around the world on a daily basis. When we reach that magical 50 million user mark, I hope that we will all achieve the same amount of success regardless of the time we post. Thanks @gduran!

Good to know! Was wondering what happened to my posts, now I know.
Thanks for the info!

You're welcome @akinsource! Just keep posting during the work week between 1 - 7 pm EST and see if you notice a difference. Nice Batman avatar!

There is no good time. If you are a whale or famous any time is good. So it is really hard somewhat.

Yup any time is party time for whales and highly reputed users!

@cryptopie got you a $0.01 @minnowbooster upgoat, nice!
@cryptopie got you a $0.01 @minnowbooster upgoat, nice! (Image: pixabay.com)


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awesome post!!! I do try and think about what time I post things, but I have just been blindly guessing what is good and if I am going to post twice a day I try and do one in the morning and one evening.... but really great that you have actually got some hard times there!!!
I will be mindful of this in future, thanks for the tips @cerebralace :)

You're very welcome @hannahlicious! Always happy to help! :)

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Resteemed. Thank you. Please keep more like this coming.

Thank you very much @shyne07!

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Fantastic post full of great tips thank you

I remember a Steemian doing an experiment on this, posting the same picture at different times of the day for a week. Can't remember the findings or username currently though!

That's really cool. I would be interested in knowing the results of that experiment for sure!

I had a search this morning. Seems there are many in progress right now!

Helpful info.

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Thank you for your post. Had wondered if time and traffic made a significant difference . 🐓🐓

They most certainly make a difference for minnows on Steemit. You're welcome @mother2chicks!

thnx forgiving the advice..

Thanks @simkaur!

Let's not forget the irony here. Right now you have 92 upvotes and only $7.09 ($7.11 after my vote) which means users ACTUALLY LIKE this post, and yet you're not getting properly rewarded; which you should considering your analysis of this problem is spot on.

Thanks @burstbubble! Post earnings will continue to decrease until payout due to the low price of Steem and SBD and a depleted rewards pool. But what I appreciate the most are insightful and excellent comments like yours! ;)

I stupidly submitted a post at like 2 in the morning. I'm a vampire. :P

Haha I posted my very first Steemit post at 2 am too. Lesson learned ;)

Thanks for this. Helping out us noobs :)

Just when I think of a question you have the answer . My friend you saved me an hour of research.

You're very welcome @topslim!