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7 Essential Social Media Management Tools for 2022

Before 2020, nobody could have guessed just how much more time we’d be spending on social media that year.

It’s likely that we were all bored or isolated at some point during the pandemic, and the stats prove it.

Research firm eMarketer predicted that social media usage would go up by 6 seconds in 2020, but it actually increased by 7 whole minutes on average.

People are constantly looking for interesting, varied content, and businesses have never had so many opportunities to get in front of potential customers. But it isn’t easy.

With so many algorithms and audiences to manage, embracing social media management tools is the most practical way to stay on top of every channel.

Here are 7 of the best:

Best for scheduling and monitoring posts

Falcon

This all-rounder social media management platform sells itself as being useful for any kind of marketer, whether you’re working solo or in a bigger team. 

It provides tools for managing customer data, measuring success, engaging with followers, and publishing content.

Pricing

From $129 per month for 1 user to manage up to 5 channels. Pricing for 3+ users and unlimited channels varies is available on request. Falcon offers a 14-day free trial. 

Platforms

Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Twitter, LinkedIn, Youtube.

Pros

Falcon puts a lot of effort into helping users make the most of the platform, with courses and informative summits. Our Zyro social media experts describe it as a “game changer”.

You’ll be able to do in-depth social listening and manage a Social Inbox feature to stay on top of follower communication. 

Cons

The platform can be complicated for beginners, although learning tools are available. Features are still quite limited, and it’s lacking things like Influencer Search capabilities.

eclincher

Not as well-known as its competitors, eclincher has positioned itself as a great social media management platform for agencies and larger organizations.

It allows users to schedule and publish content, analyze performance, and respond to user comments and messages. 

Pricing

From $59 per month, which allows 1 user to manage up to 10 social media accounts. For team access, pricing starts at $119 per month. eclincher offers a 14-day free trial. 

Platforms

Instagram (including Stories), Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Pinterest, TikTok, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Google My Business.

Pros

Scheduling on eclincher is made easy and intuitive with the help of auto-posting via smart queues, as well as RSS feed integration.

It boasts a drag-and-drop visual calendar as well as a custom grid planner for perfecting your Instagram feed. eclincher is known for its ease of use.

Cons

This is a remarkably well-reviewed platform, although the user interface is known for being a little confusing and less attractive than eclincher’s competitors.

Hootsuite

One of the original social media management platforms, Hootsuite is used by millions of marketers to curate content, run ads, and measure ROI among other things.

Having been around since 2008, this platform helped set the standard for managing social media channels all in one place. 

Pricing

From $49 per month for 1 user to manage up to 10 accounts. It costs $129 per month to allow access to 3 users. Hootsuite offers a 30-day free trial.

Platforms

Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest.

Pros

Hootsuite excels at helping teams work together on curating, publishing, and measuring posts. It allows users to track performance against KPIs and keep campaigns in focus.

The platform has strong social listening capabilities and allows for bulk scheduling. Hootsuite is also known for enabling users to learn on the go. 

Cons

Unfortunately, this platform has started to lag behind other social media marketing tools when it comes to features. It doesn’t offer auto-posting or a dedicated social inbox, for example.

Recommended reading: How to Market Your Small Business for Free

Sprout Social

Another leading social media management platform, Sprout Social is another safe all-rounder for teams needing multi-faceted scheduling and reporting. 

It’s a user-friendly resource which is known for providing powerful analytics tools on top of its standard social media management functions.

Pricing

From $99 per month for a Standard plan, although the Professional plan at $149 per month is ideal for businesses. Sprout Social offers a 30-day free trial. 

Platforms

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest.

Pros

Sprout Social stands out for providing users with customer relationship management (CRM) features, so that they can better manage follower communications.

It’s also a great data resource, with easy-to-use reporting functions that’ll give you clear insights on every channel you manage. 

Cons

Similar to HootSuite, Sprout Social doesn’t have features which are becoming standard on newer platforms, like auto-post or influencer search.

Best for flexible design tools

Canva

This vibrant and accessible graphic design tool helps users to create and publish unique visuals for social media. It’s often found as an integration on tools like eclincher.

It provides hundreds of thousands of templates for every social media platform, as well as things like presentations, invites, publications, and greetings cards.

Pricing

You can use Canva for free, although from $12.99 per month (+$6.99 per team member) you can schedule content and use premium features. Canva Pro has a 30-day free trial.

Pros

With a vast library of images and a huge stack of features, Canva’s Pro package allows users to create, schedule, and post content directly onto social media channels.

It’s easy to use with simple drag-and-drop tools. Our Zyro social media pros love how it adjusts text, colors, and designs based on a logo, to ensure your graphics stay on-brand. 

Cons

For users with more complex requirements, Canva might feel a little bit too limited. Sure, it has a ton of cool features, but you can’t edit pixel-by-pixel.

Snappa

Positioning itself as a speedy solution for creating online graphics, Snappa helps users to pull together visuals for social media as well as blogs and ads.

Offering thousands of templates and millions of stock photos, this tool isn’t quite as huge as Canva but it has the same premise.

Pricing

From $10 per month (billed yearly) to have social media integrations, or $20 per month if you need team access. You can use Snappa for free if you just want to use it for graphics.

Pros

Snappa has been designed for speed, and its functions are low-effort and easy to figure out. Upon signup, you’ll be sent a short video tutorial to help you get started.

You can share your work on up to 2 social media channels with the most basic Snappa price plan, or integrate it with Buffer, a more all-round social media management system.

Cons

As is to be expected from a platform snapping at the heels of its competitor (no pun intended), Snappa’s options are limited.You also can’t auto-save your work, which might get frustrating. 

Piktochart

With hundreds of templates and thousands of free assets to users, Piktochart is a smaller but just as flexible tool for creating a wide range of graphics.

Aimed at business professionals, this platform allows you to whip up visuals for Facebook and Instagram posts, as well as LinkedIn and Twitter headers.

Pricing

From $24.17 per month (billed annually) for individuals, or $16.50 per month per user (up to 5 users) to manage team tasks. You can also access Piktochart for free for limited usage.

Pros

The biggest selling point of Piktochart is its ease of use – anything from simple visuals to detailed infographics can be intuitively made. 

The tool makes it easy to download and share creations in blocks. It also provides users with tutorials, blogs, and how-to guides to fast-track the learning curve.

Cons

This is a more limited platform in terms of flexibility, templates, and assets. You also won’t be able to export rich media and extras will always cost more.

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Written by

Author avatar

Olivia

Olivia is a writer for Zyro and an eCommerce know-it-all. Having spent many years as a retail buyer, she loves writing about trend forecasting, brand building, and teaching others how to optimize online stores for success. She lives in London and spends a lot of time exploring the city’s parks with her whippet.

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