I love tools like HootSuite and other social media dashboards and content managers…They are amazing tools for some conferences and events. This post isn’t for those events.
For some small and medium sized events and conferences (and some large ones), tools like HootSuite are like duck hunting with a nuclear bomb or trying to fly a kite in a hurricane. Just too much.
This is where Buffer comes in. I have written about Buffer in the past but basically Buffer is a social media post scheduler.
You add new posts directly through a browser add on or through any of the services that support Buffer like Feedly. You add posts, images, videos, and more and then Buffer staggers them out over the day and week so that there is a constant stream of content coming from your social profiles. Drip, drip, drip, drip….
It works really, really, well. I have used Buffer for well over a year and it is my preferred way to share content across PlannerWire’s social networks. The one thing that Buffer always lacked however, was Google Plus Integration.
Because Buffer did not have G+ baked in with the secret sauce, I did not avoid Buffer, I avoided G+. I found myself posting to G+ infrequently and haphazardly. All of that ends today because Buffer and Google+ have made it to the altar. Can you hear the church bells ringing. The crowds cheering. The horns blaring…. I can (and not because I am crazy).
I now think that Buffer is the perfect social media content sharing tool for small and medium sized events. Especially if social media and marketing are handled by one person. Now Roger over there in marketing or Sally the meeting planner can schedule an hour or two a week to queue up some awesome content, only having to jump in for social conversations, breaking news or other timely info (you still have to monitor your social accounts, you do not get a pass on that).
Social media for this one man show can now be social. If you are queuing up your week’s content on Monday morning, this leaves you the rest of the week for interaction….. This is a tool that can really make a difference in your content marketing life.
Jump into Buffer, I really think that it kicks butt. They have a number of accounts ranging from free to holy crap expensive (I am on the awesome plan, a whole $10 a month). Start with the free and figure it out, I think that you will love it.
<<UPDATE>> Adrian Segar brought something to my attention yesterday; currently, Google+ Integration is only for the Buffer paid plans (they start at $10 per month). I have been told that it will roll out to everyone in the coming days.
FYI – I love Buffer but there are no affiliate links in this post. This post is all about love man, I do it for the love….
