Struggling to keep up with the demands of social media content creation? Finding the right tools to streamline your process and maximize engagement can be challenging for small businesses.
Wondering how powerful social media is for businesses?
- Nearly all small businesses (96%) use social media to market themselves.
- Three-quarters of businesses (77%) leverage social media to connect with customers.
- For over 40% of small and local businesses, social media is a key driver of revenue.
As a small business owner, using the right social media content tools is important for a successful social media strategy. These tools can help you streamline your workflow and achieve better results.
In this blog, you'll discover the key benefits of using social media content tools, learn about top tools available today, and find out how to implement them effectively to maximize your business's online potential.
What are Social Media Content Tools?
Social media content tools are applications and software designed to help businesses create, manage, and analyze their social media content. These tools range from content creation and scheduling to analytics and reporting, enabling businesses to maintain an active and engaging online presence.
When to Use Social Media Content Tools?
Small businesses should use social media content tools when they need to:
- Save time on content creation and scheduling.
- Maintain a consistent posting schedule.
- Generate new content ideas.
- Analyze the performance of their social media campaigns.
- Engage with their audience more effectively.
Why are Social Media Content Tools Important?
Using social media content tools offers numerous benefits:
- Efficiency: Automate repetitive tasks like scheduling and posting.
- Consistency: Ensure a steady flow of content to keep your audience engaged.
- Creativity: Access to templates and design tools to enhance content quality.
- Analytics: Track performance metrics to refine your social media strategy.
- Engagement: Tools for responding to comments and messages promptly.
How to Choose the Best Social Media Content Tool?
When selecting a social media content tool, consider the following factors:
- Ease of Use: The tool should be user-friendly and intuitive.
- Features: Look for features that match your business needs, such as scheduling, analytics, and content creation.
- Cost: Consider your budget and the pricing plans available.
- Support: Check if the tool offers adequate customer support.
Best Social Media Content Tools for 2024
To make your social media efforts more efficient and effective, here are the essential tools that cater to the needs of small businesses:
1. Hootsuite
Hootsuite is a comprehensive social media management tool that allows you to schedule posts, track performance, and engage with your audience all in one place.
Price: Starts at $99/month. This tiered pricing offers solutions for solopreneurs to automate tasks, growing teams ($249/month) to streamline collaboration, and larger businesses (contact for custom pricing) to customize a social media strategy.
Ease of use: Very user-friendly with a clean interface
Key features:
- Plan & Schedule: Effortlessly create and schedule social media posts across platforms, with bulk options and best time to post suggestions.
- Measure & Analyze: Track engagement, identify trends, and compare performance with detailed reports and ROI insights.
- Listen & Engage: Monitor brand mentions, track industry conversations, and respond to customer inquiries for proactive social listening.
- Collaborate & Manage: Assign tasks, streamline approvals, and manage projects with a shared inbox to empower your social media team.
Support: 24/7 customer support and extensive online resources
2. Buffer
Buffer simplifies social media management by providing tools for scheduling, publishing, and analyzing all your social media posts.
Price: Start for free and manage your first social media channel! Upgrade for powerful features: Essentials ($49/month) for publishing, analytics & engagement, Team ($120/year) for unlimited users & collaboration, or Agency (free 14-day trial) for 10+ channels ($1200/year).
Ease of use: Simple and intuitive interface
Key features:
- Schedule & Publish: Effortlessly plan your social media content across platforms, with bulk upload, queues, and best time to post suggestions.
- Analyze & Optimize: Track engagement, understand your audience, and generate reports to refine your social media strategy.
- Collaborate & Manage: Assign tasks, streamline approvals, and maintain a shared calendar for effective team collaboration.
Support: Email support and comprehensive help center.
3. designstripe
designstripe is a versatile design tool perfect for creating eye-catching social media content, especially for small businesses looking to elevate their brand presence.
How It Works in 3 Simple Steps:
1. Input Your Brand URL: designstripe automatically generates a brand kit based on your brand's website, capturing essential elements like brand voice, colors and logos.
2. Create and Customize: Create unique content and captions that align with your brand's aesthetic using our AI-powered social media content creation tool.
3. Finalize and Share: Take advantage of the smart in-browser editor to customize fonts, design elements, and text. Then, effortlessly resize your designs for multiple social media platforms in one click.
Price: Try it Free for 7 Days! Access all features to create stunning social media posts, eye-catching illustrations, and professional branding materials. Monthly Billing - Pay a flat monthly fee of $39 for continued access after your trial.
Ease of use: Intuitive interface with advanced AI features
Key features: Why designstripe is a Great Tool for Social Media Content Creation:
- Automatic Brand Kit: Instantly create a brand kit from just a URL, capturing your brand's unique colors, logo, and style.
- AI Image Generator: Generate unique images tailored to your content.
- Custom Illustration Maker: Create personalized illustrations that align with your brand.
- Mockup Generator: Produce realistic mockups for various products, perfect for showcasing designs.
- Multi-language Support: Design and create posts in multiple languages.
- Smart In-Browser Editor: Easy-to-use editor with automatic resizing for different social media platforms.
- AI Caption Generator: Create engaging captions with the help of AI.
Support: 24/7 email support and live chat.
4. Sprout Social
Sprout Social offers powerful social media management features, including scheduling, monitoring, and analytics, tailored for small businesses.
Price: Sprout Social offers tiered pricing plans starting at $249 per seat/month, with Professional and Advanced options for additional features, and a custom Enterprise plan available upon request.
Ease of use: Highly intuitive with comprehensive dashboards
Key features:
- Listen & Analyze: Track brand mentions, industry trends, and competitor activity to gain audience insights and manage brand reputation.
- Measure & Report: Analyze campaign performance across platforms with detailed reports on engagement, website traffic, and ROI.
- Optimize & Improve: Gain actionable insights to refine your social media strategy and boost audience engagement.
Support: Excellent customer support and detailed help guides
5. Later
Later is a visual content calendar tool that simplifies Instagram scheduling and helps you plan your posts for maximum engagement.
Price: Free plan available, paid plans start at $12.50/month
Ease of use: Visual interface makes scheduling easy
Key features:
- Visual Planning: Drag-and-drop calendar to plan and schedule social media content across various platforms.
- Performance Insights: Track and analyze engagement, reach, and website traffic to measure success.
- UGC Management: Discover and leverage user-generated content to boost engagement and build stronger connections.
- Streamlined Workflow: Bulk scheduling, collaboration tools, and additional features for efficient social media management.
Support: Email support and extensive online resources
6. CoSchedule
CoSchedule is a comprehensive marketing calendar that helps you organize and manage your social media, blog, and other marketing content.
Price: Free: Manage 1 channel & publish to all platforms. Upgrade for powerful features: unlimited scheduling, team tools ($19/user/month), or all-in-one content calendar (call for pricing).
Ease of use: Drag-and-drop calendar interface
Key features:
- Unified Content Calendar: Visually plan and manage all your content (blog posts, social media, emails) in one place with drag-and-drop and collaboration tools.
- Streamlined Task Management: Break down projects, define dependencies, automate tasks, and prioritize your workload for efficient content creation.
- In-Depth Analytics & Reporting: Track performance, measure ROI, identify trends, conduct A/B tests, and generate custom reports to optimize your content marketing strategy.
Support: 24/7 customer support and detailed help center
7. SocialBee
SocialBee offers robust scheduling and content recycling features, making it ideal for businesses that want to maintain a consistent posting schedule.
Price: Start simple and grow big with MobileMonkey! Basic tools for solopreneurs are $29/month. Upgrade for teams & agencies to manage social media effectively ($49 & $99/month).
Ease of use: User-friendly with a focus on efficiency
Key features:
- Content & Engagement: Craft personalized content, manage social conversations, and schedule/publish posts across platforms.
- Teamwork & Planning: Collaborate with your team, get approvals, and leverage AI assistance for strategic planning.
- Performance Tracking: Monitor your social media results through detailed reports and analytics.
- Streamlined Workflow: Integrate with other tools and automate tasks for efficient social media management.
Support: Excellent customer support and extensive resources
8. Agorapulse
Agorapulse combines social media scheduling, monitoring, and analytics into one powerful tool that helps small businesses manage their social media efforts.
Price: Start with 10 profiles for $49/user/month (billed annually). Upgrade for more features like advanced reporting and team collaboration (plans start at $79/user/month).
Ease of use: Clean interface with powerful features
Key features:
- Unified Inbox: Manage all your social media messages and comments from various platforms in a single, centralized location for streamlined social media communication.
- Effortless Scheduling & Publishing: Schedule and publish social media posts across platforms with ease, including features like bulk scheduling and best time to post suggestions.
- Content Creation & Reporting: Craft captivating social media content and track its performance with detailed reports on reach, engagement, and ROI, allowing you to refine your strategy based on data.
- Team Collaboration: Assign tasks, collaborate with team members on content creation, and manage social media projects effectively within the platform.
Support: 24/7 customer support and comprehensive help guides
9. MeetEdgar
MeetEdgar is an automation tool that allows you to recycle your social media content, ensuring your posts get maximum exposure over time.
Price: Start simple with the Eddie plan ($29.99/month) for basic scheduling. For advanced features and team collaboration, upgrade to the Edgar plan ($49.99/month).
Ease of use: Easy to set up and manage
Key features:
- Automate & Schedule: Effortlessly manage your social media with a single dashboard for planning, creating, and publishing content. Free yourself from daily posting with unlimited scheduled content.
- Evergreen Content Library: Never run out of things to share! Edgar automatically reposts valuable, timeless content from your library, keeping your audience engaged.
- Track & Improve: Gain valuable insights into what content performs best, allowing you to refine your strategy and make data-driven decisions for future posts.
Support: Email support and helpful resources
10. Zoho Social
Zoho Social offers a range of tools for social media scheduling, monitoring, and analytics, ideal for small businesses and agencies.
Price: Start for $15/month. Upgrade for advanced features like team collaboration and in-depth analytics (plans start at $40/month).
Ease of use: Intuitive interface with comprehensive features
Key features:
- Effortless Scheduling & Planning: Schedule posts for optimal engagement times, visualize your content pipeline, and ensure consistent posting with a user-friendly calendar.
- Real-Time Social Listening: Monitor relevant conversations, respond swiftly, and stay engaged with your audience through a comprehensive monitoring dashboard.
- Actionable Social Analytics: Gain deep insights into your audience demographics and engagement with pre-built reports or custom analytics to understand what truly resonates.
Support: 24/7 customer support and detailed online resources
Other Alternative Social Media Content Tools
There are many other alternative social media content tools available in the market that can help you plan, create, manage and curate engaging content for your audience. Here are some of our top picks:
11. PromoRepublic: Advanced scheduling and content creation.
12. Loomly: Easy content calendar and collaboration features.
13. Tailwind: Specialized for Pinterest and Instagram.
14. Sendible: Customizable dashboards and robust analytics.
15. Planoly: Visual planner for Instagram and Pinterest.
16. ContentCal: Collaborative content calendar with approval workflows.
17. Crowdfire: Content curation and social media management.
18. Post Planner: Content discovery and scheduling tool.
19. RecurPost: Schedule and recycle your social media posts.
20. SmarterQueue: Content recycling and powerful analytics.
21. Iconosquare: In-depth analytics and management tools, helping you optimize your social media strategy.
Your Turn
Choosing the right social media content tools can significantly impact your small business's online presence and engagement. These tools help streamline your content creation process, maintain consistency, and measure your success.
Now it’s your turn! Which social media content tool will you try first? Share your experiences and let us know how these tools have transformed your social media strategy.
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