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Top 5 Small Business Marketing Tools

We have a running joke here at Shout Out that EVERY time we have a meeting somebody suggests a new internet tool that I haven’t heard about yet. There are so many tools out there that it will make your head spin. For instance, the following list of marketing tools can hardly even be considered the tip of the iceberg. *Note please scroll through to the end for the Top 5

Marketing Tools

For social media there is:

Hootsuite

SproutSocial

Engagor

RaffleCopter

For Website Analysis there is:

SEM Rush

SiteBeam

SEO Quake

Optimizely

*Click through to see more tools and the top 5.

For Video there is:

YouTube

Vimeo

Wistia

PopTent

For Content Generation there is:

CopyBlogger

DemandMetric

Ezdia

Scoop.it

CrowdFlower

For Workflow Management there is:

Evernote

Asana

Smartsheet

Podio

Central Desktop

AtTask

LiquidPlanner

Huddle

Clarizen

Datacert

For Link Building & Outreach there is:

Buzzstream

LinkProspector

Ahrefs

For Marketing Automation there is:

HubSpot

Act-on

LeadFormix

For E-mail Marketing there is:

MailChimp

Zoho

RapidMail

Campaigner

For Collaboration there is:

Skype

GoogleHangouts

Join.Me

For Analytics there are:

Google Analytics

Visistat

Quest

Webtrends

 

And that is just to name a few! If you are just starting out in digital marketing it can be overwhelming trying to create a strategy and then try to pick the right tools to help you execute that strategy. We have been through all of these. We know what works and what doesn’t, and we are constantly testing new ones. We have amassed an expertise that small business owners simply don’t have the time for and we want to share that. So if you are a small business owner who wants to take the marketing charge into your own hands, here are my top 5 tools to help you digitally:

 

  1. Google Analytics – If you aren’t measuring then why try? Google Analytics is free, easy to use, and immensely helpful. It will help you understand how people are acting on your site and give you the information to make informed decisions on changes to improve your site.
  2. Hootsuite – You have listened to the countless people tell you “you need to have a [INSERT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM] account”. So you decide to do it to the 9’s and register for all of them, only to find very quickly that you can’t keep up. Hootsuite is a fantastic tool to sync all of your social media accounts and schedule posts to each one. My advice: spend time one day a week to do some research and schedule some posts that adhere to your brand voice. That will help you avoid these MISSTEPS. Then it is easy to add a couple throughout the week for some more timely posts. Again Hootsuite is free.
  3. Scoop.it – When it comes to content generation there is nothing better than totally original stuff. But when you are a one woman/man show sometimes there just isn’t time. Scoop.it lets you easily create categories and feeds to help you stay on the lookout for content to share. Remember when posting, stay true to your brand voice and keep people engaged. It’s also free.
  4. Mail Chimp – Keeping people engaged is one of the most important things you can do online. For some businesses, an e-mail newsletter is the best way to do it. Mail Chimp helps you manage an e-mail list, use templates to lay out your content, and automate delivery. There is a whole other conversation to be had when it comes to tagging leads and landing pages, but Mail Chimp is a great place to start to keep your audience informed. They don’t charge for a basic version.
  5. Evernote – We have tried quite a few different workflow management tools here at Shout Out Studio, but lately we have been sticking with this one. If you are working with a team, this is a great collaboration tool. It doesn’t hurt you can use it for free.
  6. Wisita – OK, I know I said top 5 and this is breaking the rules, but I think so highly of these guys and the information they have on their site is top notch. Video isn’t for everyone, but if you are serious about incorporating video into your website, Wisitia can help you get it done right.

 

So there it is, my top 5 (6) tools for small businesses getting into the digital marketing for themselves. If you need help with any of this or are curious about stepping up to the next level, drop us a line! It never hurts to chat.

Photo Credit: Furryscaly

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