7 top social media management tools for small businesses
Social media management is a cost-effective way for small business owners to showcase their brand, promote products and services, and build a community around their company. This simple guide to social media management for small businesses is crafted to help you manage your socials in the most effective way, saving time on content creation, scheduling, and more. It offers practical strategies and tips tailored for the most popular social media platforms.
Alongside exploring effective strategies, we’ll delve into an array of tools — from content creation apps to social media management packages designed to meet the unique needs of small businesses.
What is social media management?
Social media management is the process of creating, scheduling, analyzing, and engaging with content posted on various social media platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and more.
Typically, when we think of social media management, the image of creating entertaining content and posting it to company profiles comes to mind. However, it encompasses more than just that. Effective social media management also involves engaging with your audience, tracking your success, adjusting your strategy, and identifying new opportunities to increase reach and visibility.
The perks of social media management for small businesses
If you’re just starting a business and your team consists of only a few people, it’s likely that you have smaller budgets and fewer resources to promote your products or services. This is where social media become invaluable. It offers a cost-effective way to connect with customers, build brand awareness, and develop a unique voice that resonates with your audience.
As a small business, you have the advantage of adding a more personal touch to your social media strategy. Therefore, aim to engage on a more personal level, respond quickly to customer inquiries and feedback, and share content that genuinely resonates with your audience. Doing so can help you build loyal customer relationships.
Social media management strategies for various platforms
Each social media platform has unique features that we need to take into account when building a strategy. Let’s explore the specifics of major social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Pinterest, and LinkedIn to build an effective social media management strategy for your business. Practical tips included!
Instagram is a visual-centric platform perfect for showcasing products, behind-the-scenes content, and storytelling through appealing images and videos.
What works for Instagram:
- High-quality, visually appealing photos and videos.
- Using relevant hashtags to increase visibility.
- Engaging with followers through comments, Instagram Stories, and direct messages.
Practical tips:
- Use Instagram Insights — a social media management tool that can help you track performance and understand your audience better.
- Collaborate with influencers in your niche to reach a broader audience.
- Use Instagram Shopping features if you sell products directly from IG.
Pro tip from VistaCreate: Instagram carousels (posts with up to 10 images) show better results in engagement rate because they enable your post to show up in user feeds more than once.
TikTok
TikTok is a short-form video platform with a focus on creativity, trends, and music. Choosing TikTok as a platform to promote your business means engaging with a highly active audience, as 49% of users have purchased a product after seeing it advertised on TikTok.
What works for TikTok:
- Participating in challenges and trends relevant to your brand.
- Authentic, behind-the-scenes content or humorous takes on your industry.
- Using popular music and hashtags to gain visibility.
Practical tips:
- Make engaging TikTok videos: use the vertical format, keep your content short (approximately 15-30 seconds), and add music and hooks such as video titles, fast pace, jumpcuts, and more.
- Encourage user-generated content through challenges or branded hashtags.
- Analyze trending content and adapt it to your brand’s message. Use the trend discovery tool to find top-performing songs, hashtags, creators, and videos.
Pro tip from VistaCreate: Use hashtags with between 300K to 2M views; otherwise, your videos might get lost.
X (formerly Twitter)
X is a text-based platform created for sparking a conversation. It’s great for real-time engagement, news, and customer service. What’s also interesting is that 77% of users on Twitter prefer brands that are community and society-focused.
What works for X:
- Timely, relevant content that adds value or commentary to current events.
- Engaging with customers through replies, retweets, and direct messages.
- Short, catchy tweets with a clear call to action. Polls, questionaries, memes, and similar content are particularly popular on this platform.
Practical tips:
- Focus less on impressions or follower count, and more on engagement rates and clicks on your tweeted links.
- Host Twitter chats or Q&A sessions to increase engagement.
- Diversify your tweets: mix videos, images, emojis, infographics, and GIFs. Post threads (long reads divided into several tweets) once a week.
Pinterest is a visual discovery and bookmarking platform relevant for lifestyle, DIY, and product discovery.
What works for Pinterest:
- High-quality, vertical images that stand out visually.
- Detailed descriptions with keywords for SEO.
- Boards that reflect your brand’s aesthetic and appeal to your audience.
Practical tips:
- Use Rich Pins to add extra details to your pins, such as product information, pricing, and more.
- Analyze the efficiency of your content using Pinterest Analytics. This social media management service from Pinterest can help you adjust your content strategy.
- Regularly update boards and engage with others by repinning relevant content.
LinkedIn is a professional networking platform suitable for B2B marketing, recruitment, and establishing industry authority. Content on this platfrom can range from company news, industry articles, to professional insights.
What works for LinkedIn:
- Sharing insights, expert articles, and company updates.
- Engaging with other professionals through comments and direct messages.
- Implementing LinkedIn Groups for deeper engagement within your industry.
Practical tips:
- Optimize your company profile with detailed information and regular updates.
- Consider LinkedIn Ads for targeted professional audiences.
Social media management platforms every entrepreneur needs to know
Social media management platforms are tools designed to help you publish, monitor, and manage your social media content across multiple channels from a single dashboard.
1. Buffer
This social media management app specializes in scheduling posts, analyzing performance, and managing all your social media accounts in one place. Here are some of its benefits:
- User-friendly interface: Manage and schedule posts even if you’re a beginner.
- Analytics and reporting: Get insights into post performance and refine your content strategy accordingly.
- Multi-platform scheduling: Schedule posts across various social media platforms, ensuring consistency in your online presence.
- Wording tracking: Track important words in other users’ posts to better understand what your clients want and grow your customer base.
2. Hootsuite
Hootsuite is a comprehensive social media management software offering scheduling, monitoring, and analytics capabilities. Its benefits are:
- Bulk scheduling: Plan your content in advance by scheduling multiple posts at once.
- Social listening tools: Monitor mentions of your brand, industry keywords, and competitors to engage with your audience effectively.
- Team collaboration: This feature allows for multiple team members to manage social media accounts, making it easier to distribute workload.
3. Sprout Social
Sprout Social is known for its deep analytics, social listening, and content scheduling capabilities. Its advantages include:
- Comprehensive analytics: Explore detailed reports on social media performance, audience growth, and engagement metrics.
- Customer relationship management (CRM): Keep track of your interactions with customers on social media.
- Unified smart inbox: Gather messages from all your social media channels into one place, facilitating efficient communication with your audience.
Note: These platforms (Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social) offer social media management packages designed to cover all aspects of your social media strategy, from publishing and scheduling to analytics and engagement.
4. Social media scheduler from VistaCreate
This convenient social media management tool lets you plan and publish your posts for Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest — at the perfect time for your audience, across various channels and groups, to maximize your reach. Here are some of its pros:
- All-in-one solution: Create, design, and schedule posts through one platfrom. Ready-made templates from VistaCreate can help you make professional visuals for any socila media channel.
- Time efficiency: Save time by bulk scheduling posts. Create a content calendar to ensure that your social media presence remains active even during busy periods.
- Maximazing reach and engagement: By scheduling content to publish at optimal times, you can increase engagement and reach more audiences online.
5. Later
Later focuses on visual content scheduling, particularly for Instagram, but also supports other platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Here are some of the key benefits of this social media management software:
- Visual content calendar: Maintain a consistent aesthetic across various accounts by visually planning and scheduling your social media posts.
- Linkin.bio: Create a customizable landing page that mimics your Instagram feed, making it easier to drive traffic to your website.
- User-generated content (UGC): Find and share content created by your customers or fans to enhance community engagement and trust.
6. Semrush
Semrush is primarily known for its SEO capabilities, but it also offers features that can assist businesses with social media management. Key benefits for social media include:
- Social media tracker: Monitor your performance across various platforms, compare it with competitors, and analyze what content works best.
- Social media planner: Schedule and post your content directly to your social media profiles, saving time and allowing for consistent online presence.
- Content optimization: Explore insights into how your content performs in terms of engagement, understand what resonates with your audience, and optimize future content.
7. Ahrefs
Ahrefs provides a suite of features that can aid in content strategy and social media efforts, such as:
- Content explorer: Discover the most popular content for any topic on social media and adjust your strategy accordingly.
- Keywords navigator: Find the best keywords for your SEO and social media content to increase visibility and engagement.
- Competitor analysis: Track your competitors’ social media and SEO strategies to identify what’s working for them, then adapt this information to your advantage.
Wrapping up
The landscape of social media management tools is varied, with each platform offering unique strengths tailored to different business needs. Our social media scheduler can help you create and post content from one place. Hootsuite stands out for businesses seeking a versatile tool that supports a wide range of social media platforms. Sprout Social is a go-to for deep analytics and listening capabilities. Buffer’s simplicity and user-friendly interface make it a great choice for small businesses prioritizing ease of use.
Don’t forget that you can also use free analytical tools directly from social media platforms themselves. Facebook Insights, Instagram Analytics, Twitter Analytics, and LinkedIn Analytics provide valuable data that can help refine your social media strategy without any additional cost.
Want to dive deeper into the topic of social media management? Explore these articles:
