How Often Should a Local Business Post on Social Media?

Most small business owners either post in frantic bursts and then vanish for months, or freeze entirely because they don't know how often is "enough." Here's a real, practical answer — not a made-up rule copied from a marketing course.

The honest minimum, by platform

Platform	Minimum cadence	Why
Google Business Profile	1x/week	Highest direct impact on local ranking — this is the one to never skip
Facebook / Instagram	2x/week	Enough to stay visible in feeds without becoming a full-time job
LinkedIn	1x/week	Lower volume, more business-facing — quality over frequency here

Why consistency beats frequency

A business posting twice a week, every week, for six months will outperform a business that posts daily for two weeks and then goes silent for a year. Both algorithms and human trust respond to consistency — a stale profile (we've seen plenty sitting untouched for 2, 4, even 6 years) actively signals "maybe this business isn't around anymore," which is the opposite of what you want a potential customer to think.

What actually happens when a profile goes dormant

We regularly audit business profiles that haven't posted in years — and it's more common than most owners realize. The business is often still fully active and doing great work; the online presence just quietly stopped getting attention. The fix isn't a dramatic relaunch — it's picking a realistic cadence and actually sticking to it, starting now, rather than trying to "catch up" all at once.

Don't know what to post? Start here

• A recent completed job or client win (with permission)
• A quick tip related to your service
• Behind-the-scenes — what a normal day actually looks like
• A seasonal reminder relevant to your industry
• Answering a question you get asked often by real customers

None of these require a professional photographer or a marketing degree — they require picking a day each week and just doing it.