Guest post by Jennifer Jinright
Bloggers like us are very busy people.
Not only do we have to promote our blogs through social media, guest posting and commenting; we also have to keep up with our lives.
How can we focus our social media efforts to save some time for other important tasks?
Use a Twitter Application like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck. But how do they save you time?
Here are four ways I’ve found they help me.
Mentions Column
Having a mentions column ensures I almost never miss a retweet or other mention of my user name. This helps me to engage people who are talking about me without having to hunt through the stream on the website…talk about time saved, right! It also allows me to thank people who retweet my stuff, which encourages them to keep doing it.
Focus On The Tweets That Are Most Important
With these applications, you can add columns that are focused and filter the stream of tweets down to the essentials. You can use lists to keep an eye on your important contacts, and use that as a column. You can also use a search as a column, so you could look for mentions of your name or business name in order to interact with those who are talking about you but not using your user name in a way that would show up in a mentions column.
Manage More Than Just Your Twitter Accounts
One of the features I like best about Tweetdeck is the ability to post to multiple accounts. You can add your Facebook account and fan page, LinkedIn, Google Buzz, Four Square, and MySpace accounts. You can then selected where your updates will be seen. This has helped me keep my Facebook fan page from being just a stream of new posts, which I think is very important for those who have want to keep up with your blog. Hootsuite also allows you to manage more than just your Twitter account.
Schedule Posts For Later
While there are pros and cons to using this feature, I find that it is helpful when promoting my best blog posts. Some bloggers also use this to space out their retweets and so forth. This can be good in helping to keep your account looking active while you are tuned out doing other things. It’s also a good way to be sure you share everything you’ve found that is awesome without sending tons of posts within a few minutes. Tweetdeck and Hootsuite are awesome for doing this because the tweets won’t look like they were auto-posted at all.
Wrap Up
As you can see, these applications offer many great features that will help you save time. If you aren’t already using one of them, I recommend trying both out for a while to see which one suits you better. Tweetdeck installs on your computer and Hootsuite is web-based, so keep that in mind if you have a strong preference for either type of application. Tweetdeck can be synched across multiple computers, which is one thing that keeps it competitive with the use anywhere web applications.
Your Turn: Are you using a Twitter Application to help you manage your accounts? If so, which one and what is your favorite feature? If not, are you planning to try one or more? What features do you think will be the most helpful to you?
Jennifer blogs at Gurl’s Asylum. She writes about blogging, relationships and recipes and anything else that suits her fancy. Connect with her on Twitter.
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About Kiesha Easley
Do you have any advice on a good Twitter app for Firefox? I’ve been using Echofon but it’s getting buggier and buggier by the day
I become a twitter addict and I’m using those applications and they’re really save my time.
Did not know about these tools. But now i will check them out see if they work for me.
Thanks to this article, I discovered HootSuite! Yay!!
I was extremely frustrated by twitter, till a friend recommended Tweetdeck.
The grouping and columns make things so efficient.
I am trying to figure out the best way to do the scheduling, as well as tying it to the other Social Media options.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Dr Dean recently posted..New Versus Used- The Great Debate-
Hi Dr. Dean,
It is my pleasure to share what I’ve learned. Hopefully someone will see things like this before they get frustrated and can skip some of the irritation!
I am glad someone showed you Tweetdeck and that it has helped :) Best of luck with finding your scheduling sweet spot and the tying in with other social Media.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts :)
First of all I’ve started with twitter, so no I don’t use a tweeter app yet. And yes I’m planning to use one in the future, when I’ll have what to organize. The most helpful features for me would be the schedule posting and the focusing on essential tweets.
Ary recently posted..Money- Like a cake
Hi Ary,
I would recommend getting a feel for the options out there before you “need” them. It takes a little bit to get used to each of the programs available for organizing and scheduling tweets.
I’d also say loosely map out what types of tweets you want to schedule and at what times then start doing it. It will help you get into the habit of getting those tweets scheduled, and it will be easier to do when things get hectic for whatever reason.
Thanks for stopping in and adding to the conversation. I wish you the best in finding an application you like!
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I used to use TweetDeck but got rid of it a long time ago. Ok. Months ago lol.
Anyway, I’ve been using HootSuite and like it quite well. I’m not big on scheduling tweets though I’m sure that would benefit me in the long run.
I do like how you can post to several social media sites at once. That’s VERY time saving and makes me happy.
Thanks for the post here! :)
Eric recently posted..Get To Know Me Better: Ask Me Any 2 Questions You Want
Hi Eric,
With the rate things change in social media, a couple of months IS a long time ;) I am glad to read that you found an application that suits you. I adore being able to update all my profiles or just some without having to chase each one down and log in. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
Gurl recently posted..The Asylum Report Card- June 2010
I am still having trouble with Twitter as I am not reaching the people I want as clients or followers. It seems to me that in my niche it is a bunch professionals all following each other.
Do you have any thoughts on this or have you ever found yourself in the same sort of situation?
Excellent post Jennifer. I use HootSuite and just as you mentioned, i have a mentions tab that displays all my twitter accounts on each column so i never miss an @reply. I also use UberTwitter for Blackberry and set alerts when i get an @reply.
FreeKinect recently posted..Kinect Priced at 150
Hi, Josiah.
The mentions tab is a great thing to have. It really helps me to not miss people trying to get attention. I also like seeing when people retweet things of mine so I can thank them.
I’ve seen a lot of people using UberTwitter. I wondered what devices it worked on. I know it won’t work on mine, but eventually I’ll have a cooler phone ;) Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts with us.
Hi Jennifer, I’m wedded to HootSuite, however you mentioned great points in favor of Tweetdeck. I didn’t realize you could post to Buzz, and schedule tweets.
There’s a couple of features that go unmentioned on HootSuite most of the time and that is the two different URL shorteners – ht.ly and ow.ly and the other is sending tweets via email.
Thanks for the post and it’s nice to see you guest posting here. Good job.
Ileane recently posted..SEO for WordPress via Stephan Spencer on WordPresstv
I knew about ow.ly, but I prefer bit.ly myself..so Tweetdecks integration ability for bit.ly is another huge plus for me. I use SMS when I can’t hit Tweetdeck to update both my Facebook and Twitter accounts..Usually if I can’t get to Tweetdeck I am somewhere with no internet ;) Those are some great features of Hootsuite… Thanks for sharing :)
I tried Hootsuite for one day and went right back to Tweetdeck. I guess I just felt at home already. I like the sound of analytics though, that would be helpful.
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Hi Lauren,
I know how you feel. I used Hootsuite for a short while in order to schedule tweets. Once Tweetdeck added the feature..it was buh-bye Hootsuite for me.
Lately, I’ve been using http://mediafunnel.com, and it comes in very handy with a team of people! I also get keyword alerts emailed to me at intervals I pick, so it helps me to be more engaged with topics I care about.
Hey Derek,
That’s a totally new service to me. Its amazing how many different ways there are for us to manage our social media accounts. Thanks for sharing!
I started out with Tweetdeck about a year ago but longed for an easier way to keep track of my multiple Twitter accounts. So when I found Hootsuite I have never looked back. With Hootsuite there is nothing to install or keep track of when they have an upgrade. The best feature by far are the ability to keep track of multiple Twitter accounts and other Social media. Hootsuite helps me manage some of my clients Twitter accounts as well. I agree with @Justin the analytics on Hootsuite are amazing. I also recommend installing the Hootlet for you browser taskbar or the Hootsuite Add-on for Firefox to save time in Tweeting. I could go on and on about how much I love Hootsuite. It is one of the best Social Media tools ever created.
JB Brathwaite recently posted..TED Talk With Cameron Herold- Let’s raise kids to be entrepreneurs
Hi JB,
You make some great points in favor of Hootsuite. I don’t need to have a “team” account nor am I involved in any twitter account that works that way. However, this feature is a really sweet way to let others in your organization etc help to manage an account or to have a friend watch your account while you are away. Thanks for sharing your insights!
I tried hootsuite for a few days and didn’t like it so went back to web. I know .. that’s so 2008. Ready to give it another try after reading this post, like the idea of managing more than just twitter. Hmm .. will let you know how that turns out! Cheers, Tia
Tia SIngh, Coach T.I.A recently posted..25 Things I wish I’d Learned Sooner in my Life
Hey Tia,
Its about whatever works for you. I hope you have a better experience this time. Being able to manage other accounts is an awesome thing for me..I get distracted when I go to Facebook LOL I guess I should have added that it helps eliminate the distractions the other sites throw at you ;) Looking forward to seeing how it goes for you!
Jennifer, I just started with Hootsuite a couple of weeks ago. I like all the features you describe here. The most important for me is the ability to schedule tweets for later. This allows me to appear on Twitter without having to actually be at my computer.
John Soares recently posted..Planning For Future Products Set Up The Website Now
Hey John,
Scheduling is a very important feature for me as well. It giving you a presence on Twitter when you have to be doing other things is an aspect I don’t often think about, but that is a great point. I like being able to send out links to my new posts a few times to catch those that may still be using the website and missed my link earlier in the day.
I have been using Tweetdeck for a few months ……..I think I am in love with Tweetdeck :)
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Hi Avi,
Good to meet another Tweetdeck addict! I adore Tweetdeck…and am SO happy they got scheduling integrated. :) Thanks for stopping by!
Great info. here, Jenn, and I can really put it to use. I’ve get Tweet Deck sitting on my computer but haven’t been using it. It actually sounds like Hootsuite might be a better option for me. I’m going to come back here and read the comments to hear about various experiences too. Helpful stuff!
Jean Sarauer recently posted..What Lil’ Wayne Can Teach You About Marketing Your Blog
Hi Jean!
I am glad the information is useful to you :)If the discussion here doesn’t help you decide, you can always try each one for a few days as well to help you see which is a good fit for you.
I’m new to Twitter and it’s apps, but I chose Seesmic because it’s easy to use. It integrates well with Facebook and my Blackberry. Tweetdeck in particular seems to have a lot of bells and whistles…I didn’t want to become overwhelmed!
Angiel recently posted..Like Clockwork They Dance
Hi Angiel,
You have a great point. I Love The bells and whistles, but they may not be for everyone. I am glad you found one that suits your needs. Thanks for sharing!
Hey Jennifer,
I’m a big fan of HootSuite. It allows me to manage couple of Twitter accounts and Facebook account. It is nice to have a software where you can pretty much do everything there without having to log out and log in to go to another account. Thanks for writing this post.
Chat with you later…
Josh
Josh Garcia recently posted..3 Barriers That Can Hold You Back From Achieving Your Goals
Hi Josh,
Though we choose different applications, I agree that it is awesome to be able to do almost everything in one place. Saves time..and keeps me from getting distracted on Facebook :) Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Hey Kiesha,
Cool post, I am so disorganized with my twitter, I totally needed this post!
I guess I need to try out one of the two and see which one I like best.
Thanks for informing us that one is web based and one installs on your pc, don’t think my pc can take many more applications, it’s already buckling under the strain.
So I guess hootsuite is my best option.
Catch you soon, Sally :)
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It does sound like Hootsuite would be better for you :) I hope it helps you get more organized and makes your Twitter experience better. I know using Tweetdeck did the latter for me almost instantly. Thanks for stopping by :)
It isn’t just the time you save, but Hootsuite also gives you full analytics and now integrates with GA to provide instant analytics showing you directly how your Twitter referrals relate to spikes in your site traffic. I prefer Hootsuite for all my scheduling tweets, though their new interface slowed down creating scheduled tweets its more reliable than Tweetdeck.
Tweetdeck however is still just faster to type and send, because as you cut/paste URL’s it auto shrinks them bypassing the Hootsuite where you have to copy/paste link then hit “shrink” which is an extra step. Also Hootsuite you have to check mark your twitter account each time you tweet (if you run multiple) and Tweetdeck defaults to your last profile so again, slightly faster to do updates on Tweetdeck in real time.
Justin Germino recently posted..Creating an Effective Mailing Newsletter for Subscribers
Hey Justin.
Great points on the pros and cons of both. I bet the analytics in Hootsuite are very helpful! Thanks so much for adding your observations. They may just help someone decide which one is better for them.
tweetdeck is by far the best for me anyhow, i love it.
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Hey, glad to see you here hun. I agree. I’ve been a Tweetdeck Gurl for ages. I know Hootsuite is almost a web based clone of Tweetdeck, but I like being able to clear my columns once I’ve looked at everything I want to.
Great post Jenn! I use Tweetdeck mostly, but have been checking out the new features Hootsuite has to offer with their latest release, I like it so far but may only use it when I am on my laptop…
Keith recently posted..Instant Gratification Blogger
Thanks Keith! I’ve not checked out Hootsuite since the new release. Since Tweetdeck got the scheduling feature, I haven’t seen a need to go back but I may check it out just for curiosities sake :)