My 5 Go-To Social Media Management Tools

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As a social media manager for a couple of brands – not to mention my social media – people often ask what my process, automation, and my favorite social media marketing tools are.

Here are my top 5 social media management tools that I use almost every day, to keep things organized, scheduled, and most importantly, keeping the social media channels looking AWESOME.

Additionally, I’ve found it’s best never to post anything without your clients approval. Of course, things can change throughout the month, but I always plan an entire month’s visual content ahead of time. I find having a deadline of the 20th to be perfect to ensure client approval and make any changes if needed. So what do I use to do this?

1. Google Drive

It may seem so simple, but using Google Drive is my favorite way to stay organized and ensure quick and easy client approval. I’ll put an entire month’s worth of posts (let’s say five posts a week x 4 weeks + 5 "extra" images = 25 images) in the folder, share it with my client, see if they had any changes needed, and ta-da! You have an entire month of content ready to go.

If you want to get SUPER organized, you can even number these images, so you can see what it would look like in an Instagram feed, just adjust your browser window to only allowing three images per row.  

Side note: If I have any leftover images that I didn’t use for that month, I will move them to the next month!


Google Drive Planning


The UNUM phone app planning for my person IG

Unfortunately, you can only use UNUM on your phone, but it is WORTH it. I’ve tried other similar apps, like Planoly, but this is the best FREE Instagram planning app. In the free version, you can have multiple accounts within the app to plan (I currently have eight different IG feeds connected in the app), plus you can plan up to 18 pictures. Even if you get an overview of your feed through Google Drive, I still like to see what it looks like on a phone.

If you use hashtags, you can pre-make your hashtag list on an image, and then copy that to as many photos as you want. This app truly does it all! Except for post for you ;)

3. Buffer

There are so many social media scheduling platforms, but if you’re managing more than 3-5 accounts, you’ll have to pay for a social media tool. I used Hootsuite for a while but found that if I wanted to schedule for more than three accounts, I’d have to pay, at the time, $15/month.

Buffer is $10/month for up to 10 accounts. Great way to stay organized, schedule the same content across different platforms, and see basic analytics (likes and comments). Plus, you can “Re-Buffer” content later on, without having to re-do the entire post. Super easy!

You can use Buffer for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, and Pinterest, but I only use it for Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. I don’t know why - I just do!

4. Firing Table

Although people have different opinions about “bots” on Instagram, Firing Table is a $29/month service that will target specific hashtags, followers of a particular IG profile, and like their content. They have a follow/unfollow functionality, but you can turn it on and off. Firing Table is a great way to grow and get your Instagram profile out there. However, this won’t work unless you do! You have to post consistent content to ensure people know what they’re going to get when they follow you.

Additionally, this doesn’t mean you should sit back and do nothing, still engage, ask questions, comment and have real conversations on IG, as this will help your growth immensely.

If you choose to use this program, during checkout use promo code rpzdnh to get a get a 33% discount on your first month!


I came across IFTTT way too late in the social media management game, so get on this ASAP! IFTTT has different “Applets" (from their website: An Applet connects two or more apps or devices together. It enables you to do something that those apps or devices couldn't do on their own) that you can use to post consistently. My favorite Applet to use is “Add to a Pinterest board when you include a specific #hashtag in your Insta caption.” This way, every time I post on IG, I am also posting that to their specific Pinterest account. You can use this for other social media platforms, too! Pinterest is the only platform that I don't use a scheduler.

IFTTT goes beyond social media management, as they have applets like "Get a notification when the International Space Station passes over your house" or "Get Wikipedia's word of the day as a mobile notification." There are so many fun Applets; it's worth it to check them out!

What are your go-to social media management tools? I’d love to hear them! Leave me a comment and let me know what other apps help aid your social media management and tools to stay productive and organized. 



If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the prospect of social media and are feeling a bit lost, don’t hesitate to schedule a free 30-minute social media consultation with me! We can talk through what’s stopping you, any difficulties you're facing, and see how we can get your profiles up and running!