You now have a company Facebook page and you’re even tweeting for your business. Great! But your work isn’t done. If you really want to maximize the impact of your online presence and make sure social media is worth your investment of time, you need to track and analyze your online efforts using social media management tools.
How these tools help you?
Social media management tools help you avoid getting lost in data. The key is to set clear goals, isolate which metrics matter to your company and find the tools that will present that information to you simply.
Social media management tools can help you:
- keep track of mentions of your company and brands
- manage industry‑related news
- follow customers, competitors, thought leaders and others, based on topics or keywords
- manage your reputation and
- manage your network.
How do social media management tools work?
Social media management tools help you follow what people are saying about your brand, products or services on social media networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. They help you quickly address customer complaints, spot trends, analyze the effects of your social media initiatives and consider how social media activity is affecting your firm.
Free and low-cost social-media management tools
There are many tools for tracking your company’s success online. If you are just getting started, you may want to consider the following.
Revised March 2023
Buffer
Free English French English support French support Data stored in Canada iOS app. Android
Buffer enables you to plan, collaborate and schedule posts on social media. You can then create reports and analyze the performance of your content on all your social accounts in one dashboard. The browser extensions and mobile apps make it easy for you to share content from a webpage as you’re reading it. Buffer's AI Assistant can be a real time saver to come up with new ideas, improve your writing, or repurpose existing posts.
Canva
Free English French English support French support Data stored in Canada iOS app. Android
Canva started as a design tool and provides a huge library of designer-made layouts and graphics. But it also lets you schedule and publish your social media posts directly from Canva. You can start with the free plan and upgrade your subscription to access more pre-made templates and other features.
Later
Free English French English support French support Data stored in Canada iOS app. Android
Later has grown from an Instagram scheduler to a platform that lets you plan and schedule your photo and video content on other social networks, including Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. It has a free plan, but other features such as media management, marketing and analytics require a paid plan. Later is a Canadian company headquartered in Vancouver, BC.
Planable
Free English French English support French support Data stored in Canada iOS app. Android
Planable speeds up the planning and approval process of social media campaigns. The platform shows exactly what the posts will look like and enables you to invite clients and teammates to collaborate in real time. It supports all popular social media networks including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and TikTok and offers a free plan to get you started.
SocialOomph
Free English French English support French support Data stored in Canada iOS app. Android
SocialOomph is a service developed by a Canadian company that offers some capabilities that you may not find elsewhere. Users are especially fond of the auto-response and social media notification features as well as the possibility to post content to Twitter and Facebook that will automatically be deleted after a period of time you specify.
TweetDeck
Free English French English support French support Data stored in Canada iOS app. Android
TweetDeck is a social media dashboard application owned by Twitter that allows you to use multiple Twitter accounts at once. You can then keep track of each account’s tweets and organize live column streams by topic or account. The main limitation is that TweetDeck does not let you manage other social media profiles such as Facebook or LinkedIn.
This table lists applications alphabetically and isn’t exhaustive. Hyperlinks to external sites do not constitute endorsement by BDC of those websites or any information, opinions, products or services expressed or described on them.
Furthermore, the list is only a starting point and excludes applications not offered either in English or in French, or that are neither low cost nor free. When assessing which solution is best for your organization, you will probably consider many other factors.
BDC will review and edit this list regularly. If you offer a similar application and would like us to consider adding your solution, please contact us.
