Hootsuite Vs. Buffer

Need help managing social media?

Read for the HootSuite vs Buffer review

Representing your brand on social media is a necessity that takes time.   Do you find you could use some help tracking and managing your posts and community?

We wanted to give you a comparison and point of view on two of (what we think) are the best tools in the marketplace.  

HootSuite vs. Buffer

HootSuite currently manages these social channels: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, Google+ and WordPress

HootSuite delivers an easy to use software that keeps all your social channels in one place.

Pros: You can connect most of your social accounts (more than Buffer). Don’t worry if you are unfamiliar with the creative specs: HootSuite gives you the character limits to ensure your post will go out smoothly. Hootsuite allows you to compare columns of social media streams side by side giving the platform an appealing and intuitive dashboard. Use HootSuite to monitor and reply to social comments quickly. One of the latest features of HootSuite we love is the ability to upload videos directly to YouTube. Pull quick and easy customised reports that give a clear overview of your social channel, track your follower growth, analyse your audiences and monitor campaigns. Share this data by downloading reports in multiple formats (CSV, PPTX, XLSX, and PDF formats).

Cons: Annoyingly when sending out links via HootSuite, each post is stamped with HootSuite branding.  This means that savvy customers know you are not necessarily online when you post which can really destroy customer engagement rates. On HootSuite, also be careful when scheduling posts on LinkedIn because there is a little bug that occurs without a correctly sized and selected image. The platform will automatically resize a post image as a thumbnail and a link to a bigger version of the image is placed in the post: this doesn’t look great (Tip: Speak to a web developer to minimise the size of the image of the logo in the metadata for your links). One other drawback of HootSuite is that you can only schedule Instagram posts via your mobile.

Good:

Bad:

Is this for you?

If you are looking to improve your customer services, with HootSuite you can track how your team is responding to queries on Facebook and Twitter. If LinkedIn is your main channel for communication, then you may want to consider using Buffer. Hootsuite is a good platform for people who are looking to connect and communicate directly with their audience, simply by liking/sharing their content.

Buffer currently manages these social channels: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Google+

Buffer delivers a professional and sleek looking platform with advanced scheduling

Pros: Buffer’s scheduling and posting content platform is simple to use. One of the best features is the ability to easily republish content – or ‘ReBuffer’ – you will find that is useful for recycling your best performing content when you don’t have time to write something new. A unique feature is the scheduling tab, which allows you to create a custom posting schedule, Buffer offers the option of automatic posting and determines the right posting times for your brand, based on the engagement of your audience – this will save some time in your day! Also note, Buffer does not put branding on their posts – thumbs up from us! Get weekly reports that analyzed the performance of your posts, tracks social channels overview (currently this is only available for Facebook and Twitter). Pull an analysis report- this is where you can track specific metrics and audiences or pull an influencer report (this is just available on Twitter) this is where you can find your most engaging audience.

Cons: With Buffer, you cannot schedule posts on Instagram. Instead, the app simply sends you a reminder to post the content. Depending on your account, you are limited to how many scheduled social posts you can do per profile, this is something to keep your eye on. Also, unlike HootSuite, you are not able to post videos directly onto YouTube. There is currently no monitoring tools for mentions, searches, and hashtags, so you’ll have to monitor these from another tool or through the networks themselves. On Buffer, you are unable to directly interact with your followers, whereas on HootSuite you can like and retweet their content.

Is this for you?

Buffer is good for people who are brand perception enthusiasts like luxury brands. Furthermore, if your work load fluctuates during the week, and don’t have enough time to write content then Buffer is the platform for you. However, if you are looking for a platform that allows you to schedule and/or post videos directly onto YouTube then you may want to consider using Hootsuite.

Pricing:

Hootsuite		Buffer
Professional- 10 profiles and 1 user	£16	Individual- 1 profile, 10 scheduled posts per profile	Free
Team- 20 profiles and 3 users	£80	Awesome- 10 profiles, 100 scheduled posts per profile	£7
Business- 50 profiles and 5 users	£400	Business – 25 profiles, 2,000 scheduled posts per profile, 5+ additional team members	£76+
Enterprise	Contact HootSuite for details

 

As you can see, both the platforms have their Pros and Cons, so get in touch with Digital Willow today so we can help you decide what platform is right for you.  Each of the platforms has features that will be important in helping you to streamline your social marketing activity.