Dedicating effort to Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Instagram, and other sites is it’s own challenge that eats up time, especially if you’re not sure what to post, what content works best for each channel, or what times are the most optimal. Many social media marketing tools and applications exist to do the heavy lifting and make these tasks easier on your marketing team. However, some offer different features than others, so it’s important to choose one that works best for you organization and company.
Some of these management platforms can be pricey, so we’ve compiled this quick list of social media marketing tools that might be helpful for you, and that we feel will provide you the best bang for your buck.
DrumUp
DrumUp is a social media management platform that curates relevant content from the news for you to share by allowing you to provide keywords related to your organization’s work and what your patients are interested in. In addition, this tool let’s you schedule social posts ahead of time (you can choose the time, or it will pick an optimal time for you), provides hashtag recommendations, and allows you to link up your blog updates. Pricing starts at $15 per month for smaller companies with less social accounts and less posting times, and goes up to $160 per month for large businesses.
Buffer
Images are an important factor of social media, and one thing that sets Buffer apart from some other similar management platforms is that it contains an image creator and editor. If photos are a large component of your social media strategy, this might be the tool for you. Buffer also allows users to schedule posts ahead of time, and save content they find to their queue. Pricing ranges from a free option to $399 per month depending on your needs.
Sendible
Not only can social help you inform and engage with patients; it has the potential to help you connect with potential patients. Sendible contains prospecting tools that will help you target specific audience members based on their interests. Additionally, you can schedule posts for all of your platforms ahead of time via the dashboard, collaborate with your marketing team on social strategies by utilizing a calendar, receive analytics on how your posts are doing, and much more. Plans start at $49 and go to $499 per month.
SocialPilot
When posting, it’s imperative to remain on brand to create trust and recognition. SocialPilot helps you do this by providing custom Facebook branding, ensuring your followers that your posts were carefully curated or created for them. This social management tool also allows you to collaborate with your department members on the dashboard and keep organized with a scheduling calendar. It offers curated content from the web, scheduling capabilities, and analytics. Pricing plans start as low as $4.99 per month and go up to $14.99 per month.
Post Planner
Despite how much you know your audience, how carefully you choose what to post, and how much research you’ve done, some things do significantly better on social media than other things – and sometimes for no apparent reason. Post Planner assists you in providing the best content with a post predictor that will predict how your scheduled posts will do, allowing you to tailor your content as needed for the best possible results. In addition, this social management tool lets you schedule posts ahead of time and curates content for you based on your organization’s work and your audience’s interests. Pricing ranges from $9 per month to $49 per month.
Mavsocial
Mavsocial is on the pricier side, with $59.99 per month as the lowest option (besides a very small free option). However, it has the extensive features to match the price, and it will likely be helpful for larger health organizations with unlimited posting per day, 10 users, and $50 social media platforms. Schedule posts on all platforms ahead of time, keep track of notifications in a social inbox and respond right from the Mavsocial, create campaigns, track audience interaction, reschedule posts, obtain free or affordable stock images, and so much more.
This article originally appeared on the HospitalPortal.net blog.
Need to transform your organization’s social media strategy? Join health care communicators at the Social Media & Digital Engagement Strategies for Health Care–West Coast conference, June 26-28, 2017 in San Francisco to gain practical advice and insights on how other organizations are navigating the world of social media.