Social media and social networking are all about getting YOU out there and the many multiples you out there in a coherent manner that makes sense to you and to your network. Multiple personality disorders of the tech kind are an issue many of us face when dealing with multiple accounts on the various social networks.
Thank goodness for the sharp minds who quickly realized this and for Twitter users, developed Hootsuite and Tweetdeck. Both are free platforms. Both have their fans. I prefer Hootsuite over Tweetdeck. I like the interface better and the layout. Tweetdeck feels a bit clunky to me when managing multiple accounts or streams. Not to mention the white writing on black…what the hell people!
Why multiple accounts you ask? Well for people like me who not only have more than one website that I want to network, I also manage other peoples Twitter and Facebook accounts. Hootsuite and Tweetdeck let me manage them easily on one page…from monitoring to scheduling tweets.
The free versions of both Hootsuite and Tweetdeck have lots of customizable options for you to use when setting things up to suit your needs. The free Hootsuite allows you to have five social profiles or streams. I upgraded to the Hootsuite Pro, because I thought that being a “professional” social media gal I could use the extra analytics, reports and streams.
For $5.99 a month, I can’t complain. Mind, I have hardly used their analytical abilities and have instead been playing with sites like Sprout Social have to offer when it comes to USEFUL analytics. I have though run into a bit of an issue and I can’t seem to get it resolved. It isn’t a HUGE deal, but is annoying none the less.
One of my clients already uses Hootsuite and already (I think) has a team member, thus using up their freebies. Apparently, I cannot access their account because of this. Again, I think as I am not sure. Thus I cannot use Hootsuite to access and manage their Twitter stream. This is annoying: annoying in a first world problem sort of annoying, but annoying none the less.
I have contacted their support and been told that either my client or myself need to upgrade so that they can me make a team member. I don’t think either of us want to pay $15 a month for this. I have a feeling that their support and I are talking at cross purposes.
With Hootsuite Pro you can have one team member assigned who can manage your accounts. If you require more team members you have to pay $15 a month extra for each subsequent team player. Paying two times more to add ONE team member seems a tad excessive to me and too rich for my blood. Leaping from $6 bucks a month to $20 for one issue is a bit of a leap for me and probably for many people. After their inexpensive pro plan, the leap to the mystical Enterprise Plan is even further away. Stratospherically far to $1499 a month, which apparently gives you a degree in Hootsuite University or something.
Right now I am working around the problem (for free). However, I am concerned because as a growing business, I can see this becoming an issue more and more. HOWEVER, as a growing business, I don’t have the capitol to be chucking at all these ‘helpful’ social tools. Like much in the world of social media, I find the need to constantly explore and reexamine the tools available. This constant research is time consuming and is what bewilders and can put off people who are trying to be a part of and use social media for their own needs.
What I find with so many applications is that they are developed by people who are not fully immersed in the real world. So much software doesn’t get tested out in real world situations to see just how useful they really are. Also, so many ‘free’ applications out there struggle after to find means to monetize their program without losing followers. We have gotten so used to free software and free applications, that us spoiled selves really do need some good salesmanship to convince us to actually (gasp) pay to use a product.
Still doesn’t stop me grumbling though.
