One of the hardest things for people new to social media to understand is the time it takes to post and engage within the various social media platforms. And, it’s true. To actively engage with your followers, fans, and subscribers does take time. But, finding the information and scheduling the posts doesn’t have to be a large part of that time.
Enter Buffer, where their tagline is, “Be awesome on Social Media.”
What is “Buffer”?
Quite simply, it is a tool to allow you to share content on any schedule that you choose.
After linking your Twitter and Facebook accounts, you decide what times you would like the app to post or tweet for you, up to four times per day. Then, all you have to do is fill your “buffer” with great content, and they take care of posting or tweeting at the pre-determined times.
How can I “Buffer”?
Using Buffer could not be easier. There are add-ons and plug-ins for all major browsers, including Chrome and Firefox. Just install the add-on, and when you are on a website you want to share, click the buffer icon, and either add it or share it immediately. It’s that simple.
And, if they don’t have a plug-in for you, just e-mail the link, with whatever text you wish as the subject line, and it is added to your buffer. This is also great to add items from your mobile phone, as well.
Do you use the web interface of Twitter? Well, Buffer is there, as well, making it incredibly easy to buffer your re-tweets.
What about “Analytics”?
Buffer also gives you great analytics for every post sent, including re-tweets, click through, and number of people reached. This is great information so that you can analyze and evaluate timing and content that is of interest to your followers.
How much does all this awesomeness cost?
Buffer, for the majority of users, is completely FREE. That’s right, for free, you get to add one twitter account, one Facebook account, and have 10 items in your buffer.
Need more? There are plans for $10 per month giving you 50 posts in the Buffer and 5 social accounts, and $99 per month which offers unlimited posts in the Buffer and unlimited social accounts.
There are many tools available to help schedule posts and that offer analytics, including Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, and Sprout Social, and I don’t believe Buffer is meant to replace these tools. It is only another tool in the social media tool chest, making our sharing of great content even easier.
Tools and Resources
It constantly amazes me how much Social Media sites has an impact on the amount of traffic that you can get when done correctly
Keep up the great work,
Robert
Thanks for the compliment. I agree, that if done correctly social media will make a tremendous impact on the traffic to your sites. It’s organic SEO!
Craig