6 Hot Social Media Tools You Can't Do Without
Posted by Sandy Fitzgerald on Tue, May 24, 2011
Are you getting bored with using the same old social media tools, day after day? After all, there's only so much you can do with a Facebook page after you've marketed the heck out of it and begged your mom to hit the like button (which she probably hasn't yet, but that's another issue better taken up with Dr. Phil!)
Just like a cheap shovel left out in the rain, it doesn't take long for your social media tools to get rusty, does it? So why not add a few more awesome tools to your box?
Here are just a few of my favorite social media tools (and of course, they're free!):
1. Sharethis.com. This is a nifty little button that you can place on your blog or website that allows visitors to share out your content through Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn -- you name the social media site, and your visitors can share your content with just the click of a button that you've added to your site. No copying your website name and maybe doing it wrong and giving a dead link; no errors. Just click and share.
Sharethis.com also offers analytics and real-time trending content widget. The analytics service will let you track where your content is going and even more importantly, how they're linking back to you. And the real-time trending content widget lets you track what is trending on other websites.
This is truly one of those social media tools that has a little bit of something for everybody. And did I mention it's free?
2. HootSuite.com. This free online tool allows you to pre-schedule your updates for specific days and times. So, if you're feeling prolific, you can write all your blog posts at one time and this nifty little program will upload them at the times you specify -- and share them on Facebook. And all you have to do is schedule it.
Hootsuite also lets you manage your social media profiles (and how many of them do you have, anyway? Personally, I have 10, and this program is a lifesaver for people like me!) You can also keep up with your Twitter lists and retweets, and much more. It's free, but you can also opt for a paid version that will give you more features. I find that the free version is more than sufficient for my needs.
3. TweetDeck.com. This is one of my essential social media tools. It allows you to post updates that will go directly to Facebook, Twitter and many other social media sites all at one time, without your having to log in to all of them. It's also a great social media tool because it keeps up with all of the updates being put up by the people you follow on Facebook and Twitter, and shows them all in one nifty little screen.
4. Listorious.com. While we're talking about Twitter, have you ever wondered how people find so many followers on Twitter? The secret is a site such as listorious.com. You sign up for free, put your interests in, and listorious gives you access to the millions of people on Twitter whose interests match you -- and gives them access to your tweets as well. After signing up for Listorious in the past, I've been able to build my Twitter follower list to nearly 600 people and companies.
5. Linkedin.com. This is a social media site geared toward professionals. While Facebook can be one of the most valuable social media tools for connecting with people, LinkedIn is valuable for networking with the people who are experts in your profession -- and those who might just invest in what you have to offer. Don't forget while you're on LinkedIn to join some groups in your field. The connections you'll find will be invaluable when you're marketing your website.
6. Google.com. While you might already use Google a lot, do you know about the power of specific searches? For example, if you're looking for a specific type of person on Twitter, you can go to google.com and type in site:twitter.com/*/topic. (Replace topic with whatever topic you're searching). You will find lists of people who post on just that topic. This is an invaluable marketing tool for finding the kinds of people you want to reach.
And don't forget how helpful Google Documents, Google Maps, Google Voice and more are to your job. And once again, it's all free!
So take advantage of these and other hot social media tools to grow your online presence.