Social Media on the Go

bookmarklet buffer echofon facebook instagram justunfollow linkedin pinterest studio type: blog

This article was originally posted to the Your Marketing Made Easy blog.  

Ever try to manage your social media accounts on the road, away from your desktop or laptop? Sure, you can use the web version of Facebook and LinkedIn and Pinterest but...sometimes they're clunky and unwieldy and the mobile apps are much more user friendly. But wait...the apps don't all have the same functionality...and it sure is annoying to copy and paste links on your device...and you don't have Photoshop to make nice graphics...

I'm going to share a secret with you: here's the process that I've developed over the past 2+ years. I'm constantly refining it, but I must admit, it's pretty slick right now and it means that I'm not chained to my desk like so many busy business owners sometimes feel they are. :)

Here are the tools you will need:

  • Feedly

  • Google Alerts

  • Buffer

  • Studio

  • Echofon (for Twitter users only)

  • PhotoRepost (for Instagram users only)

  • JustUnfollow (for Twitter or Instagram users only)

  • Bookmarklets: Pin It!, Add to Buffer

These are all FREE but some do have paid options that give you additional features.

Feedly

Feedly is a great tool for curating content across the web that you may want to share (for those of you that were Google Reader users, this is the best replacement tool!). You can add blogs and google alerts, creating groups and subgroups for easy navigation. Feedly comes with it's own default URL shortener, but if bit.ly is your preference (in order to track link clicks!) you can authorize Feedly to use your bit.ly account. Feedly integrates with other applications like Buffer and Pocket so you can easily share content, has a 1-click method to copy links, and has a bookmark feature for articles you'd like to save or read later.

Feedly is available on desktop, iOS, and Android.

Google Alerts

Google alerts are a must for any business owner - you can't respond to people online if you don't know they're talking about you! The best part is that you can set up your alert and have it sent to RSS (not your email). Then you can copy the RSS link and add it into Feedly so you can keep track of everything in 1 place!

Google alerts is available on desktop and mobile browsers.

Buffer

I know I go on and on about Buffer - because it's so great and it integrates perfectly with the other tools I use! Buffer is primarily a scheduling tool, but also has helpful sharing and curating features. When you load your social accounts into Buffer you can set up a weekly schedule for each one (so make sure you know when the best times to post for your audience are!).  The queue will continue to grow (up to 10 posts in each account for the free version) as you add posts, so you don't have to worry about spamming your followers one day and then being totally absent the next. Buffer also gives you post suggestions that currently fall into 5 categories - marketing, inspiration, business & startups, lifehacking, and design. And like Feedly, you can specify your own link shortener and add RSS feeds (like your own blog!) for super easy sharing. Buffer also tells you which of your posts were the most popular so you can easily re-share them.

Buffer is available on desktop, iOS, and Android.

Studio

Studio is great for making polished looking graphics - you can download (for free) a wide variety of design packs (for example: shapes, calligraphy, holiday) to brand your graphics and make them interesting. While Studio doesn't integrate with Buffer, you can still share directly to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. If you really want to add your image to Buffer simply tap to save it to your camera roll and then add it to a Buffer post.

Studio is available on iOS and Android.

Echofon

Echofon allows you to browse your Twitter feeds and add quotes and retweets directly to your Buffer schedule

Echofon is available on desktop, iOS, and Android.

PhotoRepost

Exactly what it says on the tin! Easily repost your favorite instagram photos (from your own account or your followers), giving proper credit and some default hashtags that will save you some typing. And don't worry, the image ultimately opens in Instagram so that you can add your favorite filter before posting.

PhotoRepost is available on iOS and Android.

JustUnfollow

Most people are familiar with JustUnfollow's tracking feature: monitor who is following or unfollowing you on Twitter and Instagram. But the real hero is the latest feature, TakeOff, which allows you to upload your instagram photos and then posts them for you according to when the majority of your followers are online. It also suggests popular hashtags to use, and you can schedule up to 10 posts per day.

JustUnfollow is available on desktop, iOS, and Android; TakeOff is available only in the iOS app.

Bookmarklets

Bookmarklets are bits of javascript that allow you to use bookmarks to take some sort of action on a webpage. At minimum you will want Pin It! for Pinterest sharing and Add to Buffer in case you find something on a webpage or in an email (outside of Feedly!) that you want to add to your queue.

Facebook

You may have noticed a distinct lack of Facebook tools... the truth is, there is a lot of evidence that when you post directly on Facebook your posts perform better than those that were created via a third-party application. So you could use Feedly and Studio to post to Facebook, and Buffer to schedule those updates (you may want to try it out and then compare performance over time), but I prefer posting to Facebook, and using their native scheduling tool.

You're now set! I'd love to hear about anyone else who tries out these apps, or if you've found something that works better (I try to stay on top of everything, but I'm still only 1 person!).

 

 

 

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