It's the question we hear most from owners: how often should I actually be posting? The honest answer is less often than you think, but more regularly than you probably do now.
The short answer
For most local businesses, two to three posts a week is the sweet spot. It's enough to stay in front of the people who follow you, and it's few enough that every post can be a good one.
What matters far more than the number is that you keep going. A page with ten posts in one week and nothing for two months looks closed. A page with two posts every week, month after month, looks like a business that answers the phone.
A simple schedule by platform
You don't need to treat every network the same. Here's a starting point that works for plumbers, dentists, salons, cafés and most other local services:
- Google Business Profile: once a week. Offers, seasonal reminders and recent jobs.
- Facebook: two to three times a week. Tips, your team, reviews and local news.
- Instagram: two to three times a week. Photos of real work, before and after shots and carousels.
- LinkedIn: once a week, and only if you sell to other businesses.
If that still feels like a lot, start with Google Business Profile and Facebook once a week each. Consistency first, volume later.
Why posting more isn't always better
Posting every day sounds keen, but for a small business it usually goes one of two ways. Either the quality drops and the page fills up with filler, or the owner burns out after three weeks and the page goes quiet.
Followers notice both. Fewer, better posts get more comments and shares, and they give people a real reason to call.
What to post so you never run out
The trick to a steady schedule is having a few kinds of post you rotate through. A good mix for a month looks like this:
- Helpful tips that answer questions customers ask you every week
- Proof, like a five star review or a photo of a finished job
- Seasonal reminders, such as getting the heating checked before the first frost
- Your team and your story, because people buy from people
- An offer, but not every week, or it starts to feel like an ad
Rotate through those and two or three posts a week is easy to keep up.
Pick your days and stick to them
Choose two or three days and a time, then keep to them. Mornings on weekdays work well for most local services, and you can adjust once you see when your own customers react. The point is that posting becomes a habit rather than something you remember on a Sunday night.
The easy way to keep it going
If finding the time is the hard part, that's exactly what Porchlight is for. You paste your website, it writes and designs a month of posts in your style, and you choose how often they go out: every day, every other day, twice a week or once a week. You keep the ones you like, and they're spread across your calendar for you.
You can try it on your own business with the Free plan, no card needed.
