There’s a lot of science to create well-performing social media posts, and a significant contributing factor is how long the post should be.
While it might seem like writing a lengthy post on social media might help you get your point across or tell your story better, it turns out that keeping your posts and captions on the shorter side will undoubtedly create better engagement. While some social media sites will limit the character count on your posts, and some might not, it is vital to use a limited amount of characters whether or not you’re being forced to.
But why does it matter? Do Instagram and Facebook filter your content if there’s too much to read? Is character count a part of the algorithm? Well, not exactly. Social media sites won’t scan your content and not serve it to others simply because it’s too long, but you’ll often find that a post with a lengthy Instagram caption doesn’t get as much attention as a post with something more short and sweet. Why? Because it’s all about how long you can hold someone’s attention.
Creating Engaging Social Media Posts
As our Social Media Department Head, Kellie Hack, would say, “When people are scrolling through social media, they have a short attention span, and they just want to keep scrolling or close a post if they see something more than just a few lines. Get to point quickly—keep it short and simple for the best chances of getting more people to interact with your post.” So, if you’re writing for social media, you might be better off saving your words and time for a nice long blog post rather than writing a lengthy essay in your Instagram comments.
According to multiple sources like Fanbooster and Hootsuite, here are the optimal lengths to write for each social media platform:
- Facebook Ads – 5-word headline, 14-word main text, and an 18-word description
- Facebook (organic) – between 40 and 80 characters
- Instagram (sponsored) – under 125 characters
- Instagram (organic) – under 150 characters
- Twitter – between 70 and 100 characters
- Pinterest (description) – around 200 characters
- LinkedIn – under 140 characters
- YouTube (Video title) – under 70 characters
Sometimes you might feel like you need a bit more copy in your ad or social media posts. In that case, you can follow in the footsteps of our Paid Ads Department Head, Gillian Ponce, who suggests using bullet points to keep more extended captions both engaging and concise.
Captions Complimenting Content
How can you be sure that your point is getting across with so few characters to work with? But that’s the beauty of posting engaging content! With very few exceptions, posts with videos, pictures, graphics, and links are often viewed as more interesting because they stand out from other posts that only contain text. In summation, it’s best practice to create engaging content that you can easily complement with a simple text caption that’s still relevant and grabs your audience’s attention.
REVITY Marketing Agency for Social Media Marketing
Are you ready to take your social media posts to the next level? REVITY is a digital marketing agency with years of experience in creating engaging posts that are sure to drive revenue for your business. If you’re looking for social media marketing experts, we’ve got you covered. We serve clients worldwide, so contact us today for a free proposal and learn more about our digital marketing services!
