Social media is one of our specialties — and we LOVE what we do! But for many business owners, social media feels overwhelming, and even stressful. But using a social media scheduling tool can help.

(If you’re just starting out and aren’t sure what to do first, download our Beginners and Basics Social Media 101 guide!)

Our work involves creating content calendars, developing social media strategies for clients, generating content, and posting accordingly. But let’s be real, keeping track of it all can be a lot to take on, especially for business owners who don’t know much about social media.

The secret to staying keen and organized when managing your social accounts is to use a scheduling program. 

A social media scheduling tool lets you control all your social media accounts from one place, and you can schedule your posts ahead of time, which will save you lots of time in the long run.

Although there are a wide variety of scheduling programs to choose from, we’ve compiled a list of our favorites.

Buffer

Buffer is a great place to start if you’re new to social media management. They offer a simple and easy to use program to schedule in your posts and check your accounts’ analytics. Buffer offers four plans: 

• Free: 3 social media accounts, up to 10 scheduled posts, and 1 user allowed
• Basic: *$15/month, 8 social media accounts, up to 100 scheduled posts, and 1 user allowed
• Premium: $65/month, 8 social media accounts, up to 2,000 scheduled posts, and 2 users allowed  
• Advanced: $99/month: 25 social media accounts, up to 2,000 scheduled posts, and 6 users allowed

*Buffer offers a nonprofit discount, so if you have proof of nonprofit status, you’ll get 50% off any plan.

Hootsuite

Hootsuite is another great platform to manage your social accounts. You can schedule in your posts, answer messages and DMs from your accounts, check your analytics, and scan what others are saying about your company.

Because Hootsuite has many features, you can take their certification class to familiarize yourself with the program. Enrolling in the class is free, and taking the certification exam is $99 (but most folks won’t need an actual certification). Hootsuite offers 3 plans, or you can request a custom demo―

• Professional: $49/month, 10 social media accounts, unlimited scheduling, and 1 user allowed
• Team: $129/month, 20 social media accounts, unlimited scheduling, and up to 3 users allowed
• Business: $599/month, 35 social media accounts, unlimited scheduling, and over 5 users allowed 

Sprout Social

Sprout Social is similar to the other monitoring programs in that it lets you schedule posts ahead of time, provides analytics, allows you to answer messages, and tracks users who mention your company.

Although Sprout Social is definitely the most expensive of the bunch, if you’re really looking to dig into social media, it could be the right plan for you. They offer three plans with unique features in each:  

• Standard: $99/month, 10 social media accounts
• Professional: $149/month, 10 social media accounts 
• Advanced: $249/month 10 social media accounts

If social media management still feels overwhelming, no worries. Contact us today to book a one-on-one consultation!

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