7 Best Social Media Marketing Tools for Small Businesses this 2024

“Social media is here, it's not going away; not a passing fad. Be where your customers are: in social media."

- Lori Ruff

Introduction to Social Media Marketing

Social media has become an essential platform for small businesses to connect with customers, increase brand awareness, and drive sales. According to a survey, 73% of marketers believe that social media marketing has been "somewhat effective" or "very effective" for their business. However, managing social media can be challenging for small businesses with limited resources and time. This blog introduces the best social media marketing tools that can help small businesses thrive, streamline their processes, and maximize their social media presence.

Tool 1: Hootsuite

Hootsuite is a comprehensive social media management tool that offers a range of features to help small businesses manage their social media presence effectively. With Hootsuite, you can schedule posts in advance, track social media performance with detailed analytics, and monitor multiple social media accounts from a single dashboard. This makes it easier for small businesses to maintain a consistent posting schedule and engage with their audience.

Hootsuite offers various pricing options, including a free plan that allows you to manage up to three social media profiles and schedule up to 30 posts in advance. The paid plans provide additional features like enhanced analytics, team collaboration tools, and more social profiles.

Pros: Hootsuite provides comprehensive scheduling and analytics tools, allowing you to manage multiple accounts from one dashboard. It also offers a free plan.

Cons: Paid plans can be expensive for very small businesses, and some advanced features have a learning curve.

Tool 2: Buffer

Buffer is another popular social media management tool that simplifies the process of managing social media accounts. Buffer allows you to schedule posts, track the performance of your content, and collaborate with team members. One of Buffer's standout features is its clean and intuitive interface, which makes it easy for small business owners to get started quickly.

Buffer offers a free plan that includes basic features for managing three social media accounts and scheduling up to ten posts. Paid plans provide more advanced features like detailed analytics, team collaboration, and additional social accounts.

Pros: Buffer has a user-friendly interface, simplifies scheduling and analytics, and offers a free plan with basic features.

Cons: The free plan has limited features, and advanced analytics and collaboration tools require paid plans.

Tool 3: Canva

Canva is an essential tool for creating visually appealing social media content. With Canva, small businesses can easily design professional-looking graphics, social media posts, and marketing materials using a wide range of templates and design elements. Canva's drag-and-drop interface makes it accessible even for those with no design experience.

Canva offers a free plan with access to a vast library of templates and design elements. The Pro plan provides additional features such as brand kits, premium templates, and more storage for a monthly fee.

Pros: Canva is an easy-to-use design tool with a vast library of templates, suitable for users with no design experience, and offers a free plan.

Cons: Some advanced features are only available on the Pro plan, and it can become costly for businesses needing extensive design resources.

Tool 4: Sprout Social

Sprout Social is a powerful social media management tool that offers features like social listening, detailed analytics, and content scheduling. It helps small businesses track and analyze their social media performance, engage with their audience, and plan their social media strategy effectively. The social listening feature allows businesses to monitor brand mentions and industry trends in real time.

Sprout Social offers a 30-day free trial, after which users can choose from various paid plans that provide access to advanced features and additional social profiles.

Pros: Sprout Social offers comprehensive analytics and social listening tools, and it is effective for managing and planning social media strategies. A free trial is available.

Cons: Sprout Social is more expensive compared to other tools, and advanced features may be overwhelming for beginners.

Tool 5: Later

Later is a social media scheduling tool with a strong focus on Instagram. It offers features like a visual content calendar, detailed analytics, and the ability to schedule posts for Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Later's visual approach makes it easy for small businesses to plan and organize their content visually.

Later offers a free plan that allows scheduling up to 30 posts per month for Instagram. Paid plans provide additional features like advanced analytics, more posts, and support for additional social networks.

Pros: Later has a visual content calendar that simplifies content planning, a strong focus on Instagram, and a free plan is available.

Cons: The free plan has limited features, and paid plans are required for advanced analytics and additional posts.

Tool 6: SocialBee

SocialBee is designed to streamline social media tasks through features like content categorization, automation, and scheduling. This tool helps small businesses manage their social media content efficiently by organizing posts into categories and automating their posting schedule. SocialBee also offers analytics to track the performance of your content.

SocialBee provides a 14-day free trial, and its paid plans offer a range of features including content recycling, advanced scheduling options, and more social profiles.

Pros: SocialBee offers efficient content categorization and automation, helps in maintaining a consistent posting schedule, and a free trial is available.

Cons: SocialBee requires time to set up content categories, and some advanced features are only available on higher-tier plans.

Tool 7: BuzzSumo

BuzzSumo is a content discovery and influencer tracking tool that helps small businesses find trending topics and influencers in their industry. It allows you to analyze the performance of content across social media platforms, identify key influencers, and discover new content ideas. This makes it easier for small businesses to create relevant and engaging content.

BuzzSumo offers a range of pricing options, including a free plan with limited searches and features. Paid plans provide access to more advanced features like detailed content analysis and influencer identification.

Pros: BuzzSumo is effective for content discovery and influencer tracking, helps in creating relevant and engaging content, and offers a free plan.

Cons: BuzzSumo has limited features on the free plan, and full access to advanced features can be expensive.

Easy Automated Sales

If you're looking for an all-in-one solution to automate your social media and digital marketing tasks, consider exploring Easy Automated Sales to further boost your business's growth. Easy Automated Sales offers a comprehensive suite of tools designed to simplify and enhance your marketing efforts, allowing you to focus on what matters most – growing your business. Their services include:

• Social media scheduling and automation

• Email marketing campaigns

• Customer relationship management (CRM)

• Social Media Analytics and reporting

• Content creation tools

• Lead generation and nurturing

• Marketing automation workflows

• Website and landing page builders

Conclusion

Choosing the right social media marketing tools can significantly enhance your small business's ability to engage with customers and grow your brand. The seven tools discussed – Hootsuite, Buffer, Canva, Sprout Social, Later, SocialBee, and BuzzSumo – each offer unique features and benefits tailored to different aspects of social media management. Evaluate your specific needs and try out these tools to see which ones best fit your business. Investing in the right tools can streamline your social media efforts, making your marketing more effective and efficient.

Frequently Asked Questions about Marketing Tools

1. What are some of the best social media marketing tools available in 2024?

Some of the best social media marketing tools to consider in 2024 include best social media management tool, listening tools, social media monitoring tools, and social media automation tools.

2. How can marketing tools help businesses streamline their social media efforts?

Marketing tools provide functionalities that enable businesses to manage their social media, streamline their social media activities, and effectively engage with their audience across various social platforms.

3. What role do social media analytics tools play in a marketing strategy?

Social media analytics tools are essential for businesses to measure the performance of their social media marketing efforts, gain insights, and make data-driven decisions to enhance their social media strategy.

4. How do marketing tools contribute to social media listening and monitoring?

Marketing tools like social media monitoring tools and listening tools allow businesses to monitor and listen to conversations about their brand, industry trends, and competitors on social media platforms.

5. Why is it important for businesses to utilize social media scheduling tools?

Using social media scheduling tools helps businesses maintain a consistent presence on social media, plan and schedule their social media posts

6. What are the key features to look for in digital marketing tools?

When selecting digital marketing tools, businesses should consider features such as social media automation tools, influencer marketing capabilities, and tools that help in managing and analyzing social media campaigns.