social media toolbelt francis-moran dot comWhen it comes to social media marketing one typically has a 3-pronged purpose: connection, content, and commerce. You may find yourself focused on only one of these elements or any combination of them, but the reality is that companies use social media marketing to build business. However, social media marketing is an investment of time and resources, so it is important to make the best use of the time spent getting the job done, click here for tailored advice relating to specific sites.

Making it easier and yet effective to do social media marketing has resulted in a variety of tools designed with that purpose in mind. These tools allow you to schedule your social media posts, as well as help you find posts that work for your industry. If you are still trying to build your social media strategy, then you could take a look at this article about designing a social strategy from a design agency persepective to give you some inspiration and pointers. In addition, to help you become more productive, here are some of the most popular tools for social media marketing.

7 Tools for Social Media Marketing

1. Canva – If you do any type of web related work, chances are, you have heard of Canva. This tool is great for creating custom images that look like they were done by a professional. There is a free plan, as well as a paid plan, so you are sure to find something that works for your budget.

2. Buffer – Does your company have multiple social media accounts? If so, then Buffer is the ideal tool for managing posts on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Google Plus. It too, has a free option that allows you to manage up to 5 pages or various paid ones.

3. Brand24 – Ever wonder what your competition is saying about you? This tool sends you real-time information about what is being said, making it easier to effectively respond.

4. Edgar – This tool will look for relevant information, then help you categorize your posts so that you can easily find what content you may want to use.

5. Quuu – Content curation can be a time consuming activity. Quuu is designed to content based on the parameters you set up. It then connects with Buffer so that in no time at all, you have social media content that is both interesting and engaging for your followers.

6. Social Rank – This is the easiest way to identify, organize, and manage your followers on Twitter and Instagram. Social Rank sorts your followers based on Most Valuable (highest profile followers), Most Engaged (frequency of retweets, mentions, and replies), Most Followed, and Best Followers (followers who have engaged most recently with you). Social Rank also has filters to help you find followers based on keywords, geographic location, interests, and activities.

7. IFTTT – An acronym for “If this, then that” IFTTT is the multi-tool of the social media marketing world. You use it to plug-in your parameters (“if this” happens, “then that” is to follow). It can be used on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Tumbler, and more than 300 other platforms from business to sports to hobbies and lifestyle. A simple example of a parameter, referred to as a recipe, might be “If an image –you will provide it- is made to Twitter then it will also be saved in Dropbox.” IFTTT also works with Buffer, to make scheduling easier.

Social media marketing is a big part of developing the face of your business. It requires a commitment to promoting your company without being pushy, a focus on being people friendly rather than sounding stiff and robotic, and overall, must be consistent with who you are as a company. The Alpine Communications team understands this, and is here to help you. We can help you construct a strategy that is the right balance between connecting and content so that your commerce can increase. Give us a call today.