Social media is an essential part of any modern small business's marketing strategy. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn allow you to reach customers, build your brand, and generate leads.
But juggling multiple social accounts takes time - time small business owners rarely have enough of. This is where social media management (SMM) tools come in. SMM software allows you to schedule posts, analyze performance, manage engagement, and much more - saving you time while optimizing your social presence.
But with so many options on the market, how do you choose the right platform? I've tested and reviewed the top contenders and rounded up the 5 best social media management tools for small businesses in 2024 based on features, ease of use, and pricing.
#1: Hootsuite
Hootsuite is one of the most popular and user-friendly SMM platforms available. It allows you to manage unlimited social profiles from one dashboard and schedule posts weeks in advance.
Key features include:
- Post scheduling for consistency
- Content curation tools to find and share content
- Custom analytics reports to track performance
- Monitoring brand mentions and keywords
- Simple team collaboration
Hootsuite is ideal for small businesses that want a straightforward tool to coordinate their social media efforts. The free plan supports 3 social profiles, while paid plans start at $29 per month.
#2: Buffer
Buffer focuses on streamlining your social media workflow. Its intuitive interface makes it easy to schedule posts, analyze performance, and track engagement.
Notable features:
- Scheduling for social profiles, groups, and pages
- Posting queue to manage content
- Analytics to track growth and engagement
- Browser extensions for quick scheduling
- Image creator to design visual content
Buffer only supports Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Pinterest, but its affordable plans and user-friendly experience make it a great choice for small businesses.
#3: Sprout Social
Sprout Social is packed with powerful social media management and monitoring capabilities. Along with scheduling and analytics, Sprout offers robust listening tools.
Useful features include:
- Monitoring brand mentions across the web
- In-depth analytics and reports
- CRM integration
- Collaboration tools for large teams
- Social inbox to manage conversations
- Integration with ecommerce platforms
The extensive features make it better suited for larger small businesses. But the free plan still provides a lot of value, including social listening capabilities.
#4: Agorapulse
Agorapulse shines when it comes to social media customer service. Beyond scheduling and monitoring, it provides excellent inbox management.
Notable features:
- Unified inbox to manage conversations
- Queue scheduling for evergreen content
- In-depth analytics and reports
- Integration with Zendesk and Slack
- Real-time monitoring and alerts
While one of the more expensive platforms, Agorapulse is worth it for small businesses that rely heavily on social media for sales and support.
#5: Sendible
Sendible stands out for its collaboration features, making it great for teams. It also boasts excellent content libraries and scheduling capabilities.
Main features:
- Content libraries for storing reusable posts
- Workflows for collaborating with teammates
- Multi-channel scheduling
- Post approvals and user permissions
- Monitoring brand mentions and keywords
- Integration with leading CMS platforms
While at the higher end of pricing, Sendible is a great choice for service agencies or B2B companies with multiple team members handling social media.
The Bottom Line
The right social media management platform can save small businesses hours each week, allowing you to focus on other priorities. Based on your needs, I recommend exploring Hootsuite, Buffer, and Sprout Social as three of the top solutions available today. All offer free plans to test them out.
With a streamlined SMM tool in place, you can spend less time on administrative social media tasks and more time engaging your audience and growing your business.
