You’re managing a marketing team. How can you keep track of all the social media tools available?

To assess needs, understanding the target is the starting point. I approach this subject from 4 angles: - What I think, - What my database says, - What my prospects, customers and former customers say, - What market research says. With these elements gathered, the understanding of the target is optimal. I then compare market potential with objectives, starting with the number of conversions I'm aiming for and working up my funnel using the company's ratios or, failing that, "empirical" ratios. This confirms the consistency between objectives and reality. KPIs to monitor : - Each step of the funnel - ROI - Time to sale - Customer experience Social media : - Ads awareness - Ads retargeting - UGC

The first step is to get a clear picture of what you're aiming for: What are our marketing goals? Who's our target audience? What's our budget? Understanding these helps us in filtering through the plethora of tools out there, allowing us to pick those that align perfectly with our business needs.

Tools Repository: Maintain a detailed list of social media tools with their features, costs, and reviews. Stay Updated: Assign someone to keep track of new tools and trends regularly. Trial Periods: Test new tools before committing to them. Organize and categorize: Group tools by function and use tags for easy reference. Feedback Loop: Encourage team members to share their experiences with tools. Documentation and Training: Provide guides and training sessions for efficient tool use. Centralized Dashboard: Consider a unified platform to integrate multiple tools. Regular Reviews: Periodically review and update the toolset. Collaborate and Communicate: Foster an open environment for tool discussions and recommendations.

I concentrate on those social media tools that my target audience is mainly using. Crucial is to know who is your target audience and how they behave.

Once you're clear on what you need, dive into the social media tools. There's something for every need. For content, tools like Canva or BuzzSumo can be game-changers. Scheduling and automation? Look into Buffer or Hootsuite. And the main is analytics – it's crucial. I also recommend tapping into our network for insights and tracking what industry leaders are using.

To test your options - o twe need see how they fit with our team/goals. I usually focus on user-friendliness, functionality, and cost. Free trials are great for this! And we should always have to hear what our team’s take on these tools – we want that they'll be the ones using them day in and day out...

Choosing the right tools is just the start. The real game is in how we implement and how much we use them. Training the relevant users and check where they excited to implement it - even if on a personal level it feels like we're missing out on some more important things - that's what actually matters. Later - when they enjoy it and get used to using it - they will agree to the implementation of the processes that you think are correct

This stage is essential. The best approach I've been able to experiment with is to co-construct the use of the tools with the team. This not only creates a common frame of reference that enables everyone to speak the same language, but also stimulates creativity and enables us to identify any irritants that might accompany the use of these tools at an early stage. We need to be vigilant about : - Impact on productivity, - Impact on fluency, - Impact on quality of execution, - appropriation. If these 4 indicators are green, then we're on the right track, moving forward. If one of these indicators is orange, or even red, then we need to address it and ask ourselves some questions. Either it's a question of support, or a question of tools.

Adapt to the digital dance: update, experiment, learn – rinse and repeat. And always - Alwayes - be open to learning from both successes and failures.

2 things I've always found very useful and which have a significant impact: - Setting up regular feedback sessions, - Setting up workshops to share each employee's technology watch.

Remember that finally, always there are new ways to use these tools. Whether it’s through innovative content strategies or trying out emerging platforms, there's always room for growth and improvement in social media management. Look for those new ways every week