Tips For The Social Media Marketer
Do you find it difficult to juggle all your social media
pages? In this digital age, we have a whole new platform from which we can
advertise and receive feedback. Sometimes however, it’s hard to keep on top of changing
trends, which is why I have compiled this list of useful tools and apps that I
have found invaluable in keeping on top of things. The tools social media
marketers use are constantly evolving to help us do our jobs more effectively
and efficiently. All the apps, add-ons and tools in this list are either free
or offer a free version subject to limitations, and all of them have the
potential to save you time and help you get the most out of your work.
Working on the Move
#1: Raindrop
Raindrop is a free cloud-based web, desktop and mobile app
which syncs across all your devices. It can be used to organize and share
content, and allows you to access your files anytime, anywhere. The extensive
list of visualization options allows you to personalize your content and the
Share Sheet button will allow you to instantly send web pages to raindrop for
later if you come across something online and don’t have time to look at it
right away. You can also use it as a collaborating tool by setting up shared
folders, much the same as Dropbox.
#2: Scannable by Evernote
This free iOS app basically functions as a built-in scanner
on your smart-device. Simply pull up the app and t will automatically scan and
crop any document you hold the camera over. Even more, Scannable can scan
business cards and save the person as a contact, even amassing their data from
their LinkedIn profile if your Evernote is connected with LinkedIn.
#3: Trello
Trello is a free project management system that works with
Dropbox and Google Drive and allows you to link together project documents and
even people involved in a project, simply by using the @ symbol to tag them! Project
group members receive immediate notifications on the smartphone app and browser
versions, with no email sent where the notification is acted upon quickly. No
need to worry about a cluttered inbox after an intensive working session! All
involved can attach notes and comments as well as image files, cutting out the
need for a project group to be physically in the same place in order to work
together.
#4: Canva
Canva is an online graphic design platform which allows
users free access to a variety of design tools and options. Unfortunately, you
must pay to access the premium options, but even the limited free version is extensive
enough that you can use it for web or print designs, blog graphics, presentations,
Facebook covers, posters, invitations and so on. Its drag-and-drop interface is
easy to use and the designs look professional. I’ve found it far easier to
manage than many other free image editors or graphic design programs that are
currently available. Canva is available as an iPad app which operates like, and
offers as much as, the original desktop version.
Keeping Track
#5: SumoRank
SumoRank.com is a free tool which analyzes the rank and
content of your Facebook page, supplying you with invaluable information on
your page statistics, such as when during the day or week your page reaches the
most viewers, as well as what type of post is most popular. You can review the
level of engagement with your posts over short and long time periods and
discover what elements in a post, such as photos or video links, result in a
higher engagement level from your customers.
#6: BuzzSumo Chrome Extension
BuzzSumo is an extension for Chrome which allows you to track
the share counts for a piece of content on any social media network you are
using. BuzzSumo is important because its’ function extends to Twitter, which
recently shut off the API which allowed third-party tools to collect Twitter
counts on articles. The only requirement is a BuzzSumo account- the extension
itself is free.
Broadcasting
#7: Live Streaming Apps
Live Streaming is nothing new, but with the advent of
live-streaming apps such as Meerkat and Periscope, it is becoming a popular way
not only to connect with people on your personal social media accounts, but an
engaging and interactive way for businesses to connect with potential
customers. Meerkat and Periscope are two popular livestream app options- both
are free and available on a variety of devices including Apple and Android. To
complement this phenomenon and make it even easier for you to utilize live
streaming in your marketing campaign, Katch is a free platform which
automatically collects and archives your Meerkat and Periscope broadcasts
shortly after they are aired. This happens automatically as long as you have
Katch hooked up to your account, so it couldn't be easier to create and keep
track of a whole new aspect of your marketing campaign.
#8: Blab
The most recent social networking venture by the team that
created Bebo, Blab is a live-casting platform similar to Meerkat and Periscope,
with the additional feature of being able to bring multiple people from all
over the world into your conversation. Like Meerkat and Periscope, your Blab
broadcast is free and available to watch as soon as you’ve finished recording
it. It also sends you downloadable MP3 and MP4 files. It can be used to hold
interviews and discussions, create podcasts and even talk to customers.
#9: Overcast
Speaking of podcasts, Overcast is a
free iOS app which improves the way you listen to podcasts. Its’ voice-boost
feature automatically normalizes the audio levels in a podcast you are
listening to. You can also avail of Overcasts’ smart-speed feature which
shortens the length of pauses in conversations so the show isn’t any longer
than necessary, saving you valuable time. It can be connected to your Twitter
feed and will help you find shows that your Twitter followers have been
tweeting about. This is useful as it can enable you to keep on top of trends
within your customer base and any episodes you share can be upvoted so you can
view how shared podcasts rank among your followers.
Keeping it Simple
#10: Reverse Image Search
This surprisingly little-heard of tool allows you to
instantly source any image by simply dragging the image, or it’s URL, into the
Google Images search bar. As of March 2014, Bing Images also offers the same
function. These free tools are incredibly useful as they not only allow you to
source images that you would otherwise be unable to source, but if you have
uploaded a unique image such as an advertisement you can use the reverse image
search function to see if your image has been posted anywhere else on the
internet.
#11: Reader Mode
Another feature which is gaining popularity and which you
may not be aware of is Reader Mode. Reader Mode is becoming available in a
range of browsers including Firefox, Chrome and Explorer is. This free app easily
allows you to adjust the text size, font and background of webpages and
articles, as well as removing pictures and graphics, to make them easier to
read online. If a page is available in Reader View, an open book icon will
appear in the URL bar. I use Firefox Reader mode which allows you to save pages
to you reading list for later. This function is also available as an add-on for
Android. Safari is an Apple download which offers similar functions.
#12: Opera Mini Browser
We’ve all experienced the frustration of not being able to
sleep on a work night, but did you know that your smartphone can interfere with
your brain’s ability to switch off? This is because the blue light that is given
off by your smartphone is scientifically proven to stimulate your brain in the
same way that sunlight does, tricking your brain into thinking it’s daytime and
making it harder for you to power down. Opera Mini Browser, available on iOS
and Android, has a possible solution to this problem. It offers an extension
which will allow you to adjust the brightness of your screen, and also includes
the “reduce eye strain” mode, which adjusts the tone of light from your browser
from blue to orange. This is easier on your eyes and shouldn’t interfere with
your brain activity and sleep patterns, so you can continue to work from your
smart device in bed if needs be without jeopardizing your performance the
following day. I’ve found that it does make night reading easier- however the
extension can be a little unreliable and it doesn’t work in all versions of
Opera.
#13: MileIQ
For when you do need to travel, Mile IQ is a smart drive
detection app which tracks your miles for you. You know those fitness apps that
log the amount of time you spend working out and calculate the calories you’ve
burned? MileIQ is essentially the same thing for driving. It was designed to
simplify mileage reimbursement for companies, but even if you are a freelancer
this app can be useful in enabling you to get the most value out of every mile
you travel. You can use it to calculate the shortest driving distance between
locations as well as the cost of each journey, and you can save and categorize
drives into personal and business trips. MileIQ is available for iOS and
Android, and has a free version which offers 40 drives per month.
#14: World Clock
When you are working with customers
or colleagues from all around the world, a World Clock app can be very useful
indeed. Rather than having to keep track of or constantly check up on the time
difference in locations across the globe that you are working with, a World Clock
app will let you know instantly and with most of these apps, you have the
option to save your favourite cities. The greatest advantage to this from a
marketing point of view is that you can use it to schedule your broadcasts at
peak times in the areas where they will be most relevant, thus maximizing the
effectiveness of every publication. Depending on what device you have, there
exists a variety of free World Clock apps to choose from.
#15: Spritz/Squirt
Ever heard of Optimal Recognition
Point reading? No? Neither had I. OPR reading is where, instead of
traditionally reading a paragraph of text the way you are probably reading this
one, the words are fast streamed one at a time in front of you. The idea behind
this is that in traditional reading, your eyes have to constantly search for a
specific point in each word (this is the Optimal Recognition Point) in order to
understand it. As the Optimal Recognition Point of each word varies depending
on the length of the word, your eyes often have to jump from right to left
while trying to identify a word, akin to reading backwards. This could happen
an infinite number of times in any given piece of text, so not only do you lose
valuable time while reading but your brain is so focused on trying to identify
words that you typically aren’t absorbing as much information from the text as
you could be. In 2014, Spritz was launched- the first app to stream words one
by one, always centred on the Optimal Recognition Point so that your eyes can
focus on the one spot while reading. Spritz is available for Android, and
Squirt is the more recent version for desktop. I’ve tried Squirt, and it
certainly enables me to read much faster than I usually do, although there are
some definite downsides in that coughing, sneezing or blinking can cause you to
miss words (startlingly there is no rewind function), and it’s necessary to pay
much more attention to the text in order to remember and process everything you
have read- although this may be no bad thing! The jury’s still out as to
whether or not this is something I will use regularly but if gotten used to, it
could certainly save a lot of time. In any case, it’s free, quick to install
and easy to use so why not give it a try?
If you’d like to read the full article from Social Media
Examiner, you can find it here.
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