Everyone asks this question. How often can I post? How often should I post? Can I post too often?

The answer is, “It depends.”

It really does. Each channel has a different audience. People are there for different reasons. And there are differing etiquettes. I’ll cover the big channels with my suggestions.

Facebook

Creating posts one to three time a day is good. Facebook users don’t want to be inundated. Remember content balance. One to three posts a day means you can post one thing about yourself and share one or two good articles from somewhere else. One to three times a day doesn’t count commenting on other people’s posts or responding to comments on your posts. Do that as often as needed. We won’t mind.

Twitter

Five to ten a day.

Yes, that’s a lot. But remember. Twitter is like a running river. If you only post a couple of times a week, you’ll get lost in the rapids. Twitter users expect that you’ll post frequently, and we’re okay with it. Otherwise we won’t see you.

Blogging

One to five time a week.

Among other things, blogs help you in search engine optimization. SEO is beyond the scope of this article, but it’s important for you to know that search engines like fresh content just as much as your audience. One to five times a week will keep your site updated and on the radar of search engine spiders.

Your readers also like fresh content. So give it to them. Less often than once a week, and we’ll forget about you. More often than once a day, and we’ll all be overwhelmed.

Remember to check back frequently to respond to comments. Two to three times a day is good, unless you are lucky enough to have a very high traffic blog. We like to know you are listening to us, but we also know you need to get work done, so we’ll forgive you if you don’t respond immediately.

LinkedIn

I mention this one because it’s important. LinkedIn users do not want to be inundated with status updates from other sites. Do not link your Twitter account to LinkedIn! You will overwhelm your connections, and they may drop you from their contact lists.

Keep LinkedIn updates for the really important things. Landing a big contract. Earning a certification. That sort of thing.

Make sense?

Social media is like a conversation with a lot of people participating at the same time. Think of it like the big table at a family reunion. You know the one I’m talking about. It’s loud, and you can’t hear what the person two plates down is saying because you have Auntie Ruth embarrassing you with stories from when you were two and running around her backyard in your birthday suit.

To the newcomer, social media can seem just as loud and overwhelming as the big table. But remember that, unlike the table, you can drop in and out of the conversation whenever you like. Interested in what @beyourboss is talking about? No problem. Notice that a friend on Facebook is starting to talk about something funny? Not a problem. Unlike the big table, you can easily drop into and out of any conversation. Because it’s all saved in your stream, you can listen in to what people were saying while you were sleeping.

Can this still lead to overwhelm? Sure. And if it starts to feel like too much, you can always pull back for a bit until you’re recharged and ready to go.

Using lists and groups can help you focus the conversation so it’s not quite as loud. But definitely take advantage of joining conversations you couldn’t get to at the big table.

And if Auntie Ruth is still telling the embarrassing stories? Well, there’s always the “Unfollow” button.