The best social media management tools

For brands, effective management across different social networks is of course possible with social media management tools. In this article, I will tell you about the most preferred social media management tools with their pros and cons...

First of all, I would like to share some recent data on the importance of the concept of "social media":

• 62.5 million of Turkey's 71 million internet users use social media
• The most used social network is Instagram with 90 percent usage rate 
• The average user spends 20 hours on Instagram and TikTok and 18 hours on YouTube every month
• Turkey ranks 3rd in the world with 64 percent online shopping rate

(We Are Social)

This data shows how important it is for businesses to use social media. So much so that a brand that is not where everyone is is almost non-existent. In social networks where traffic and competition are high, the job of managing channels is also important. While some brands manage the process in the marketing department, some brands delegate the work to digital agencies. 

The way to manage different channels in a practical and planned way is through these tools. Here are the best social media management tools.

Hootsuite

Hootsuite, one of the most popular social media management tools, offers practical and comprehensive solutions. With the application, you can have the chance to manage all your content from a single panel. For brands that share content on many social networks, Hootsuite offers many advantages, including bulk content uploading in CSV format, and also offers useful suggestions to users. The highlights of the platform are as follows:

• You can get reports on the performance of your content on social media
• Integrated with nearly 50 networks including LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter (X), Meta, TikTok and YouTube
• For content editing, integration with Canva is available
• For professionals, the basic package with unlimited sharing from 2024 is 99 euros per month.

Buffer

Buffer, another useful application, is a platform that appeals to both agencies and businesses. Buffer, where you can manage multiple networks under one roof, also has a very good analysis-reporting process. Thanks to the feature called Reply, you can analyze the responses to your posts and gain insights into your target audience. Some features of the application are as follows:

• It has a practical administration panel
• Many integrations available including Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter (X), TikTok, Meta, YouTube
• You can use the free plan for up to three platforms
• 14-day trial version available
• You can use the AI assistant
• Paid plan starts at $5 per month

Sprout Social

Sprout Social is one of the most successful social media management tools, not only for posting, but also for engagement measurement and scheduling. The platform, which has a practical interface for teamwork, includes a higher fee plan than Buffer and Hootsuite, but it meets the needs of even corporate brands. The platform, which integrates with platforms such as Canva and Jira, offers a 30-day free trial. More than 30 thousand brands prefer Sprout Social and some of its features are as follows:

• Basic package with 5 accounts starts at $199 per month
• Single social network inbox for all accounts
• Includes advanced reporting system
• The iOS and Android mobile app is highly successful
• It is possible to manage Meta ads through the platform

Zoho Social

Zoho Social, one of the useful tools in managing social media for businesses, is a good alternative for those who want to share posts according to the calendar. Zoho Social, which also provides Google Business account management, has a feature that suspends the entire sharing plan in case of a crisis. In the Zoho Social application, which also offers important solutions on the CRM side, you can easily analyze the comments and likes of your target audience. Platform features are as follows:

• Features a user-friendly content calendar interface
• 15-day free trial available
• The most basic plan starts at $10 per month
• Analysis and reporting is improved
• Suggestions for the best sharing times. 

SocialBee

Another efficient tool for social media marketing is SocialBee. In addition to RSS integration, SocialBee stands out from its competitors with its advanced post scheduling. With the ability to categorize content, sharing and scheduling processes are quite easy. Other notable features of the tool are as follows:

• Improved analysis and reporting capability
• Very practical for agencies working as a team
• Basic package with 5 accounts costs $29 per month 
• Canva, Unsplash and GIPHY integrations 

Social Pilot

Standing out with its practical interface, SocialPilot appeals to brands and agencies looking for a smooth management on social networks. Thanks to the control panel with versatile information, digital agencies can easily manage the content of multiple brands. In addition, content editing and sharing processes are also practical. The platform allows the management of up to 50 accounts, and the membership fee for the most basic panel is 30 dollars per month. Some of its prominent aspects are as follows:

• A platform preferred by the world's leading agencies
• You can request a demo to test it
• Integration with many social networks
• With over 13 thousand users, the system publishes more than 10 million posts per month

Loomly

Loomly is one of the successful social media tools. The platform, which sets out with the slogan of stress-free social media management, has a wide integration network. In Loomly, you can easily manage Twitter (X), Instagram, YouTube, Google Business or LinkedIn accounts. On the other hand, all these processes become easier with Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Drive integration. The highlights of the platform are as follows: 

• The choice of over 50,000 marketing agencies
• Over 300 content ideas available on the platform
• Over 1 million content plans released to date
• Content analytics data is easy to access
• Basic plan with 10 account management starts at $42 per month

Sendible

Sendible facilitates the process of planning content according to the calendar with its successful interface. The fact that it is preferred by more than 30 thousand digital agencies shows how successful it is. A large pool of content ideas, team collaboration, and statistical reports are also available with Sendible. Some of the prominent features of the platform are as follows:

• Provides Instagram, Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn, Youtube management
• WordPress integration available
• Monthly plans cost $29, which is affordable compared to competitors
• Allows you to track the responses to posts from the monitoring system
• It has many integrations such as Canva, Google Drive

MeetEdgar

MeetEdgar, another useful tool, allows you to share content on a single platform, but there is one aspect that differentiates it from its competitors. It focuses on "content recycling". The platform, which automatically recycles content, makes certain edits to this content and allows it to be shared again. Some statistics of the platform are as follows:

• 10 years in operation
• Over 30 million pieces of content have been shared with MeetEdgar so far
• The number of social accounts connected to the platform is over 27 thousand
• It is an artificial intelligence-powered system
• Monthly plan is $29.99

Why should you use social media management tools?

Professional management of social networks is all about using the right tools. It is cumbersome to share content by logging in separately on each of the platforms such as Meta, Instagram, TikTok or LinkedIn. Moreover, brands and agencies want to see the entire content plan in a single calendar.

That's exactly what Hootsuite, Buffer or Sendible do. Seeing the overall content calendar and managing scheduling and publishing is easy with these tools. The overall benefits are as follows:

• You save significant time and effort for your brand or agency
• Performance tracking and reporting processes are faster
• Feedback analysis is easier with monitoring tools
• Keep track of all messages from social media in a single inbox
• In moments that require crisis management, you can stop the whole plan with a single move
• Integration with platforms such as Canva and Google Drive makes your work easier. 

In short, in the process of social media marketing, a plan independent of the above tools will be incomplete and disadvantageous. For this reason, choose the most suitable tool for you in terms of features and cost and set off!