Social Media — Knowledge Base
v1 — verify/expand. Practical 2026 best practices per platform. For visual/motion effects per platform (the S and R channel picks, specs, trending effects), see
../effects_matrix.md→ "Social by platform" + "Social (S) — top picks" + "UGC (R) — top picks". This doc is strategy/cadence/format; don't duplicate the effects matrix.
The 2026 reality
- Reach is mostly interest-based, not follower-based. Every major platform serves content to non-followers via recommendation. Hook quality and watch-through matter more than follower count.
- Short-form video is the default unit across IG, TikTok, YouTube, even LinkedIn. Carousels still strong for saves/dwell.
- Watch time, saves, shares, and comments outrank likes as ranking signals. Optimize for "send to a friend" and "save for later."
- Native > repurposed-with-watermark. Reupload natively per platform; strip competitor watermarks (TikTok logos suppress reach on Reels, etc.).
- Authenticity/UGC outperforms polish in feed; keep brand-system polish for ads and pinned/hero content.
Platform-by-platform
- Cadence: 3-5 feed posts/week + daily Stories. Reels carry reach.
- Formats: Reels (reach), carousels (saves, dwell, educational), Stories (community/CTA), photo dumps (authenticity).
- What performs: strong 1-2s hook, on-screen captions/text, trending-but-relevant audio, native cover frames. Carousels: value-dense, "swipe to see" payoff.
- Hashtags: modest role now (3-5 relevant, not 30); keyword-rich captions matter more for search.
TikTok
- Cadence: 1-2/day for growth; quality bar still applies. Consistency compounds.
- Formats: native short video, trending sounds, text-on-screen, "POV"/story formats, tutorials.
- What performs: hook in first 1-2s, fast pacing, captions, replies-to-comments as video, series/episodic. High watch-through % and rewatches drive the FYP.
- Cadence: 3-5/week, weekdays.
- Formats: text + single image, document/carousel PDFs (high dwell), native video (rising), polls (use sparingly).
- What performs: first 1-2 lines before "see more" are the hook; personal/POV + specific lessons + numbers; comments in first 1-2h boost reach. Avoid outbound links in-post (or put them in first comment) — external links suppress reach.
X / Twitter
- Cadence: multiple/day; it's high-velocity.
- Formats: text hooks, threads, native images/video, quote-posts.
- What performs: strong standalone opening line, threads for depth, replies/engagement. Links demoted — lead with value, link later/in reply.
YouTube (Shorts + long)
- Shorts: discovery + top-of-funnel; hook fast, loop-friendly.
- Long-form: depth, SEO (titles/thumbnails/chapters), evergreen search traffic. Thumbnail + title is the click; first 30s is the retain.
- Cadence: steady weekly pinning; it's a search/discovery engine with long content half-life.
- Formats: vertical pins (2:3), idea pins, fresh creative on evergreen topics. Keyword the title/description/board. Great for ecommerce, recipes, home, beauty, B2C how-to.
Threads / Bluesky
- Emerging; conversational, low-polish, fast. Cross-post text-first content; community + replies. Lower priority unless audience is there.
Hooks (the single highest-leverage lever)
The first 1-2 seconds / first line decides reach. Patterns that work:
- Curiosity gap: "Nobody told me this about X…"
- Specific outcome/number: "How we got 40 leads from one post"
- Contrarian/POV: "Stop doing X. Do Y instead."
- Problem-callout: name the audience's exact pain in line 1.
- Visual pattern interrupt (video): motion, text, or face in frame 1.
Mistake: burying the hook behind a logo intro, slow build, or "Hey guys, welcome back."
CTAs
Every post should have a purpose. For Salvo Software (house rule): every post needs a CTA via the 3-step ladder — service page > trusted primary source > blog post pitch. Generally: save/share asks, comment prompts, "link in bio," or a clear next step. Don't stack CTAs.
Cadence summary (starting points, not gospel)
| Platform | Posts/week | Primary format |
|---|---|---|
| 3-5 + daily Stories | Reels, carousels | |
| TikTok | 7-14 | Native short video |
| 3-5 (weekdays) | Text+image, doc carousels, video | |
| X | 7-21 | Threads, text hooks |
| YouTube Shorts | 3-7 | Short video |
| YouTube long | 1+ | Long-form + SEO |
| 5-10 pins | Vertical pins |
Consistency > volume. Better to sustain 3/week than burn out at 14.
Common mistakes
- Cross-posting with another platform's watermark (suppresses reach).
- Weak/slow hooks; logo intros.
- Outbound links in-post on LinkedIn/X (demoted) — use first comment.
- Optimizing for likes instead of saves/shares/watch-time.
- No CTA / too many CTAs.
- Ignoring native captions (most video watched muted).
- Treating every platform identically — repurpose with platform-native edits, not copy-paste.
Quick checklist (per post)
- Hook lands in first 1-2s / first line
- Captions on video (muted-viewing default)
- Native upload, no foreign watermark
- Correct aspect ratio (9:16 vertical video, 2:3 Pinterest, etc.)
- One clear CTA
- Optimized for save/share/comment, not just likes
- Effects/motion picked from effects_matrix S/R lists
- Links in first comment (LinkedIn/X) if needed, UTM-tagged