Many small and big businesses alike have been using a social media management tool. With millions of users, platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter have a high reach. It allows small businesses to reach out to customers on a global scale.

Synergy is very important when it comes to all marketing communications for maximum impact. This is why multiple platforms are used in today’s digital world. However, managing multiple social media accounts on different platforms can be an absolute nightmare. 

This is where the importance of social media management tools comes in. Read on to know more about the different types of social media management tools in India and why they are important. 

Why do you need Social Media Management Tools? 

Before getting into the importance of social media management tools, let’s have a look at what social media management tools are. 

Social media management tools are software that allows you to publish, monitor, and manage your social media networks from a single dashboard. This makes content management easier and also streamlines the process of multiple teams working on one or more accounts. 

Let’s have a looks at why social media management tools are important and why you should consider them as an investment –

• Manage Multiple Accounts

As you begin to grow your presence and also your accounts, it can be difficult to monitor all your networks. Multiple login details and different user interfaces can get quite complex. Hence, it is advisable to invest in social media management tools so that you can consolidate all data with a single user interface. 

• Never miss out on Notifications

With so many accounts, it is a human tendency to miss out on certain notifications. It can be anything from a message to an important comment. The social media management tools will help you manage these notifications in one place so that you do not miss out on anything important.

• Analyze Results Effectively

It is important to keep analyzing your marketing efforts to understand how you can improve. This can be done through trial and error with different content formats, post timings, etc. Most social media management tools have the option of analytics where you can check which posts performed best. 

You need to understand the numbers and optimize your strategy accordingly. Check out this short Google Analytics online course to understand how analytics work. 

• Helps with content curation

Content is king. However, constantly producing content that is engaging and impactful can be very challenging for any brand. Curating content produced by other people can be a good option. This will reduce the load of creating new content off your shoulder and also increase shareability. 

A social media tool to send you RSS notifications for related content topics will make your life much easier.  

• Online Reputation Management

Online reputation management is very important. It is how others perceive your brand. A negative comment or review can be harmful to your company’s reputation. Hence, a social media management tool for online reputation management can be helpful.

• Scheduling Social Media Posts

With many teams working on the same account, it is advisable to invest in scheduling management tools such as Hootsuite or Sprout Social so that the other team is aware of the posts scheduled in line. This also increases productivity as the resources can focus on other tasks at hand. 

• Consistent Posting

With a dedicated space to monitor all your posts and comments, it is easier to post with consistency and a social media tool will definitely help. 

List Of Top 10 Social Media Management Tools 

Here’s a list of the top free and paid social media management tools in 2021 – 

1. Buffer

Buffer is one of the best options for small businesses that wish to manage their social media without paying a hefty fee. 

It offers a 14-day trial with which you can schedule posts, shorten links and optimize hashtags and tags.

2. Hootsuite

Hootsuite is a good option for analytics and tracking. It lets you understand social media trends as well as engagement in real-time. From social media ads to posts – you can use their analytics for both. 

It comes with a 30-day free trial and unlimited scheduling, a social inbox, a publishing calendar, and many more tools. 

3. Sprout Social

Sprout Social is user-friendly, has good publishing features, and offers analytics across most social media platforms. It has a free 30-day trial to offer and you can manage up to 10 social media accounts from one dashboard – pretty cool isn’t it? 

It includes a content calendar, web analytics reports, hashtag tools, and more. 

4. Semrush

Semrush is a great tool for finding keywords and optimizing your SEO strategy. It provides you with all the information you need to improve your search engine rankings, and therefore increase your conversions. 

5. HubSpot

HubSpot is a great tool for scheduling posts and also understanding audience behavior. When is the most optimal time to post, when are users most active, etc. can really help with engagement rate? 

It also offers analytics and reports and marketing automation.

6. Sendible

Sendible is a great tool that has a lot of platform options integrated. With about 17 options to choose from, it is quite a comprehensive tool. Facebook. 

You can integrate your account with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, WordPress, Canva, YouTube, Google Analytics, Google Drive, and more.

7. Crowd Fire

Crowd Fire is a virtual social media manager that offers its services online and can operate all social media accounts, analyze performances and share analytics and reports with you in detail. Interesting, isn’t it?

Check out how artificial intelligence and digital marketing go hand-in-hand.

8. Zoho Social

Zoho Social is a renowned social media management tool for businesses. You have the option of choosing a custom dashboard where you can see multiple posts and how they performed.

9. MavSocial

One of the trusted social media management tools, MavSocial helps you manage both organic and paid social media activity. You can also view the comments and replies on the Social Inbox instead of jumping from post to post. 

10. Agora Pulse

Last but not the least, we have Agora Pulse which is an extremely popular social media management tool. It is useful especially if you have a large and growing social media team. 

There were some of the best social media management tools for individuals who have little or no idea about social media tools. 

Top Features to Look for in Social Media Management Tools

We advise you to be selective when it comes to picking social media tools. There are many factors to take into consideration, here are some of the top features you should look for in social media tools whilst choosing a particular tool –

• Social Media Monitoring

Social listening and monitoring help social media specialists to track and review the buzz around your industry and competition. You can pick up on trends and also look for opportunities to promote your product. 

• Analytics and reports

Make sure that the tools provide you with relevant reports and analytics that can help improvise current campaigns and help strategize future campaigns. 

• Post scheduling

Ensure that the social media management tool has a scheduling dashboard for multiple platforms. This will streamline all your posts in one place.

• Notifications

Make sure your social media tool has the option of alerts for being mentioned in a comment, post, or story. This will also ensure you don’t end up missing out on important messages. 

• Social Media Integration

At the very least, your selected social media tool should be able to integrate all your social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to make it easier for you to post and monitor the posts, once published.

FAQs – Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What are social media management tools?
Ans: Social media management tools are software that allows users to monitor, schedule, and manage all social media activities.

Q. What are 3 social media tools?
Ans: Buffer, Hootsuite, and HubSpot are 3 popular social media tools.

Q. What are the four main types of social media tools?
Ans: The 4 main types of social media tools include –

• Content curation tools
• Social media post scheduling
• Social media analytics tools
• Graphic design tools

To know more, check out these top digital marketing tools.

Q. What is good social media management?
Ans: Good social media management is understanding how to connect with audiences, engage with them, and monitor and schedule posts. It also involves analyzing these posts to align the insights with the brand’s end goals.

Conclusion

We hope you enjoyed reading our blog on social media management tools. Let us know which tools are your favorite and how you use them to your advantage in the comments below. If you’d like to master these tools along with some strategies and optimization hacks, register for this Online Social Media Marketing Course. 

In addition to such short courses, IIDE also offers an online comprehensive digital marketing course for anyone who wants to take up a crash course in digital marketing but learn everything there is. 

For postgraduate level studies, we also offer a Digital Marketing MBA​ that is specially designed for professional candidates.