Social media marketing tools are useful for a number of reasons. First, they help you manage multiple accounts from the same place. Rather than launch Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Snap and other social platforms to post content, you simply open one portal and get it done. This saves time and allows you to reach your goals much faster. In addition social media marketing tools provide you with valuable insights through built-in analytics.
With social media now leading the way in lead generation for most businesses, social media marketing tools have become invaluable to business. But, the market is crowded and it isn’t exactly easy to choose a social media marketing tool.
In this article, I hope to make it easier for you by providing you with some quick information on five awesome social media marketing solutions to incorporate in your social media marketing strategy.
1. HootSuite
HootSuite is, without a doubt, one of the pioneers of social media marketing having been launched in 2008. It has thousands of users which is a testament to its clear benefits. It’s a comprehensive suite that offers plenty of features to manage your social media campaigns on several social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, YouTube, and WordPress.
Some of the posting features offered by HootSuite include:
- Post scheduling
- Post to multiple social media channels
- Post character counts
- Shorten URLs
- Attach images
In addition to great posting features, HootSuite has some pretty powerful analytics.
You can also manage your social media campaigns right from a mobile device using the HootSuite mobile app that’s available on the Android and App Store.
HootSuite offers a free 30-day trial pack to test out the premium features.
2. Buffer
Buffer is one of the simplest social media marketing tools. One of its best features is auto-scheduling. With a free account, you can auto schedule ten posts to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+ and LinkedIn. A premium account that starts at $10 a month allows you to auto-schedule 100 posts.
In addition, to its auto-scheduling feature, Buffer also has some nifty analytics that among others help you determine the most optimum time to post content and the content that performs the best. You can also re-buffer content that performs well at the click of a button or even automate the re-buffering process by integrating Buffer with another tool such as HiPlay.
3. Sprout Social
Sprout Social is used to manage, publish and promote social media posts and connect multiple social media accounts from one platform. Sprout Social makes it easy to connect with followers and customers.
With Sprout Social’s Smart Inbox feature, you and your team can easily manage communication from followers and customers so that you never miss some important communication.
With its powerful publishing tools, you can enjoy seamless communication across all devices and networks.
Its analytics go beyond simple stats to more in-depth data on engagement and responsiveness.
4. Postplanner
Postplanner’s slogan is “Smarter content. Better posts. Mind boggling results.” And, looking at the inner workings of the application, one would be hard-pressed to find any fault with the slogan. The application has an interesting feature that allows you to find the best content for your audience by browsing recommended feeds in your industry and according to your interests. You can also discover new content by keyword, hashtag, Facebook page or Twitter handle and gather your favorite content in one place.
The applications powerful analytics take the guesswork out of post performance by pre-validating and star ranking content that’s guaranteed to succeed.
So, if you don’t want to spend hours planning your day, Postplanner is definitely the social media marketing tool for you.
5. SocialFlow
SocialFlow increases the distribution of owned and earned content across social media platforms. Their algorithms analyze user behavior and optimize posts based on real-time data. The result for clients is a massive increase in user engagement in addition to gaining insights on content performance that help to plan future campaigns.
Some of the detailed features of SocialFlow include:
- Release posts at the most optimal time.
- Pinpoint the best performing posts to amplify with ads.
- Integration of amplified posts into platform-specific advertising mediums.
- Establish a continuous feedback loop by analyzing responses.
Conclusion
While there are several dozen social media marketing tools, I can say without fear of contradiction that these five are definitely amongst the best. Your choice will ultimately depend on the social media networks where your followers and customers are most active because each tool tends to work best with one or two of the main social media networks.