Scheduling posts ahead is one of the best habits a small business can have. You plan the week, load it up, and the posts go out on their own. The catch is that "9 in the morning" means very different things depending on where the clock is.
Our team at Balay ni Bruno & Co. works from the Philippines, and most of the people we want to reach are in the United States. When we checked our own social media schedule, we found that a whole catalog of posts had been set for 9 in the morning and 3 in the afternoon Manila time. For someone in Texas, that is roughly 8 at night and 2 in the morning.
Before the fix
- Posts set for 9:00 and 15:00 Manila time
- Landing around 8 at night and 2 in the morning US Central time
- The audience we wanted was asleep or done for the day
- Every post started at an exact round time
After the fix
- Every post set in US Central time
- One post in the morning, around 9, and one in the afternoon, around 3
- Posts reach people during their day
- Start times spread to off-round minutes instead of exactly on the hour
What We Changed
We did not just fix the posts already in the queue. We also changed the settings on the three tools that put posts into the schedule, so new posts are set in US Central time from the start. Fixing the queue without fixing the source would have put the same problem back the next week.
We also set a simple daily rhythm: one post about a tool we work with in the morning, around 9 Central time, and one post about how we work in the afternoon, around 3 Central time.
How We Did It, Step by Step
We pulled the schedule in US Central time, so every time shown was the time customers would actually see the post.
Posts that work on any day could move. Posts tied to a date or featuring a review stayed put.
Each post was replaced in full with only the time changed, so nothing else about it was lost.
We counted the posts before and after. Same number means nothing was doubled or dropped.
Check the schedule in your customers' time zone. Many scheduling tools will show you the times in whichever time zone you ask for. Ask for your customers' time zone, not yours, and the problem shows up straight away.
Leave the Dated Posts Alone
Not every post should be reshuffled. A holiday post or a post for a special occasion only makes sense on that day, so moving it to fill a gap would be worse than leaving it. The same goes for posts that feature a review, which were planned for set dates. We only moved the posts that can go out on any day, and left every dated post on the date it was planned for.
The Trap When You Move Posts in Bulk
A half update can make a copy instead of a move. When we changed only the time on a post, the scheduler did not move it. It made a second copy, so the post would have gone out twice. What worked was replacing the whole post, with the words, images and settings kept exactly the same and only the time changed. Then we checked the total count stayed equal.
If you move posts by hand in a scheduling tool, this is less likely to bite. If someone on your team moves them in bulk, ask them to count the posts before and after. It is a one-minute check that catches a doubled or missing post before your customers do.
Check the Finished Post, Not the Report
The same week, we made a short video for each of the 42 tools on our tools pages, and every one needed music and subtitles. A report saying "done" is not the same as hearing it. So we checked the sound on each finished video file itself, listening to the last few seconds where only the music plays. All 42 had their sound and music in place before they were scheduled.
The lesson is the same for timing and for videos: look at what your customer will actually get. The time they will see, the file they will play. Not the setting you meant to choose.
Common Questions
How do I know if my scheduled posts are going out at the wrong time?
Look at your schedule in your customers' time zone, not your own. Many scheduling tools show times in whatever time zone you ask for, so ask for theirs. If a 9 in the morning post turns out to land at 8 in the evening or 2 in the morning where your customers are, it is going out while they are not looking.
Should I move every scheduled post when I fix the timing?
No. Only move the posts that can go out on any day. Posts tied to a date, like a holiday or a special occasion, and posts that feature a review should stay on the day they were planned for.
Can moving a lot of posts at once create duplicates?
It can. When we moved our posts in bulk, a half update made a second copy of a post instead of moving it. What worked was replacing each post whole, with everything kept the same except the time, and then counting the posts before and after to make sure the number did not change.
Key Takeaways
- A post set for 9 in the morning in the Philippines lands around 8 at night in Texas. Check your schedule in your customers' time zone.
- We moved 337 scheduled posts to US daytime and left 0 of 463 live posts at a bad hour.
- Fix the tools that create the posts too, or the problem comes back next week.
- Leave holiday, occasion and review posts on their planned dates.
- When moving posts in bulk, replace each one whole and count before and after.