A new study by Sign-Up.to of tweets sent and tracked through its marketing tools finds that click-through rates (CTR) on links contained within those tweets are higher on the weekends than during the week, echoing January research from HubSpot’s Dan Zarrella, but contrasting later findings from Bit.ly. The Sign-Up.to research found that the average CTR ranged between 1.49% and 1.76% during the weekdays, but jumped to about 2.5% during the weekend.
The average CTR during the January 1 – July 31 period was 1.64%. While the sample analyzed was relatively small (“tens of thousands of tweets”), it adds to a growing list of studies looking to identify the best times to tweet links.
CTR Higher in the Late Afternoon
The Sign-Up.to study also finds a clear discrepancy between click-through rates in the mornings and in the afternoons. Between 7AM and 4PM, the average CTR ranged between 1.38% and 1.94%. Aside from a measurable increase in rate between 7AM and 11AM, there appeared to be no other trends within that 8-hour period.
There was a definite peak in activity at 6PM, though, with an average CTR of 4.25%. The next-highest rate was an hour earlier, at 5PM (2.16%). For the rest of the evening, the average rate was 1.99%.
More Followers Means Lower CTR
It’s difficult to engage all those followers, finds the study. While those with 50-1,000 followers sported the highest percentage of clicks (6.16%), after that there was a significant drop-off, with that downward trend continuing alongside higher follower count. That is: those with 1-5,000 followers had an average CTR of 1.45%; those with 5-10,000 followers averaged an 0.55% CTR; and those with more than 10,000 followers saw a CTR of 0.45%.
