With so many different social media outlets available, it can be overwhelming to think about managing all of them for your business. Luckily, there are a plethora of social management platforms designed to help you manage multiple social profiles in one place, schedule posts in advance, plan out your content, track analytics, and much more.
Simplify your marketing strategy with these free social media management tools:
Hootsuite
Hootsuite is one of the most recognizable social media management platforms out there. The free Hootsuite plan allows you to manage 3 social profiles in one place, schedule 30 posts in advance, cross-promote content, and generate leads with social contests. You can also track basic analytics like followers, growth, and contest statistics. This plan also comes with two RSS feed integrations. Hootsuite is compatible with a variety of social networks, including but not limited to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook Pages, LinkedIn Profiles & Pages, WordPress blogs, Tumblr, Flickr, Mailchimp, and Vimeo!
Hootsuite’s weekly reports are beneficial to exclusive users. They provide a solid idea of where traffic is coming from, who your top referrers are, what your most popular links are, and the number of clicks you are getting. Users receive free reports each week to gain a basic understanding on what is working and what may not be working so well.
UNUM
Instagram aesthetic is #major. Users can get an idea of who you are as a brand by just looking at your feed. This is why establishing some a theme is helpful and having a sense of organization and flow is essential. If you are looking for an app that you can use to plan out your feed, UNUM is free to download and join. You can plan up to 3 different Instagram account feeds at no cost! Not only can you visualize in advance what your Instagram grid will look like, you can even have captions pre-written out for each photo or video. When it’s time to share content, all you have to do is post! Another practical feature UNUM offers is analytics on best posting time, top posts, and followers.
Buffer
Similar to Hootsuite, Buffer enables users to manage multiple social profiles easily. Many of its features overlap with Hootsuite, but it also provides unique perks. These include suggestions of best posting times based on follower activity, and the ability to schedule content while browsing the Internet with their Chrome extensions. Buffer has several packages for businesses of all sizes, but the free plan may suffice depending on your needs. The free plan allows you to manage 3 social profiles, schedule up to 10 posts, shorten and track links, and create and schedule content using their image creator.
IFTTT
This app is very powerful in automation. Download it onto your phone for free, and you will be able to promote your business and content very efficiently. Let IFTTT take care of your social media needs, so that you can spend your valuable time working on your business. For example, if you are a blogger, you can set it up so that IFTTT will send out a Tweet or Facebook post automatically when a new blog post goes live. There are many other combinations you can arrange with IFTTT. The options include:
- Tumblr
- Blogger
- WordPress.com
- And more!
Depending on the kind of business you run, you may or may not use all of these social media platforms. However, it is a good idea to have as many registered/set up as you can, so that people are able to at least find you if they decide to look you up on these channels. Being able to automate posts allows you to push content out to all of these channels without actually needing to individually log into each of them and create posts and updates manually. You never know where your customers are coming from, so the more active profiles you have, the more people you will reach!
TweetDeck
If your business is highly active on Twitter, TweetDeck may be a game changer for your social media strategy. Twitter users can schedule tweets, create and manage multiple Twitter lists & searches, and add team accounts for free! It is not an all-encompassing platform like Hootsuite, Buffer, and IFTTT, but is a great tool for Twitter marketers to tweet, retweet, favorite, reply, and send direct messages from multiple accounts, all in one interface.
Facebook Pages Manager
Many businesses today have a Facebook page to support their offerings. If you are one of them, you may find Facebook Pages Manager (iOS / Android) to be a valuable tool for managing activity. Similar to TweetDeck, it is not an all-in-one platform, but is ideal for companies who spend a lot of their time on Facebook marketing. Easily automate Facebook posts so that you stay consistent, reach multiple time zones, and best of all, get more free time to do other important things!
With a Facebook Business Page, you can also set up and automate ads. Drive more direct action for your company without spending too much time setting it up. Automated Ads run continuously to learn what performs best for your company. Unlike a regular ad, you won’t be able to set an end time, but you can always pause or delete your Automated Ads anytime.
Final Thoughts
The nature of your business will dictate which social media channels you need to capitalize on, and which tools you will utilize to best maximize your online presence efficiently. We hope you find these social media management tools useful for creating content on-the-go, and ultimately growing your business! Is there a social media app that you particularly love for creating, editing, and publishing content? Share them in a comment below!
Looking to further streamline the social media aspect of your business? Our team at CACIA creative would love to come up with a unique package that’s just right for you.
