Managing Social Media networks can be difficult – especially for SEO specialists who are responsible for keeping track of 10+ sites per client. Thankfully, there are free programs and services available online that help to aggregate log-in usernames and passwords from several sites, so webmasters can manage postings across several social media outlets within one dashboard.
Hootsuite is a social media management system that promises to save users hours per week and claims to integrate with and provide support for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Foursquare, Myspace, WordPress and Mixi listings. The company was founded in 2008 by tech entrepreneur Ryan Holmes and has gained popularity within SEO circles over the past five years with over 3.5 million registered users and an Alexa rank of 203 in the United States.
Although Hootsuite offers premium “pay-per-month” subscriptions, users can sign up for a free account to manage up to 5 social profiles and obtain a basic analytics report each month. The free option also allows users to post to an unlimited number of apps including Reddit, Instagram, Storify, Tumblr and Youtube. Creating an account takes only a few minutes, and postings can be instantly published across all integrated sites. Registered users can even choose to utilize the site’s “delayed posting” option, which allows for writing and publishing several stories to the Hootsuite dashboard at once. (The site will delay posting each snippet to social media sites based upon a timetable set by the user. )
Hootsuite’s services certainly make things easier for SEO specialists, but they also work well for small business owners and interactive clients. If you’re looking for a way to simplify your social media postings, give Hootsuite a try to see how well the content management system works for you.
By Michelle Robertson