The top 5 free social media monitoring tools are available for you to try out today. Social media monitoring or listening is the analyzing of social media channel data for insights about a company or individual. Insights include, what customers are saying about your company, competitive analysis and identifying influencers. I have taken the time to identify some of the best social media monitoring tools. Included in this list are Hootsuite, Google Analytics, Klout, Socialmention and Buffer. At the end I have also provided a list of some of the top social media monitoring companies for you to explore as well. Enjoy the list and let us know what you think in the comments below.
1. Hootsuite
Hootsuite is at the top of my list and I use it every day. You can add feeds to monitor Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google+, LinkedIn, foursquare and more. Monitor your own social media accounts or search and filter on things like usernames or phrases. Paid version too in HootSuite Pro. App available for iOS and it is great.
2. Google Analytics
Google Analytics is another free social media monitoring tool that is getting more useful over time. Look inside of your Standard Reports under “Traffic Sources > Social” and you will find an ever increasing number of metrics to peruse. There is no official app available yet, but you can tryout the likes of Quicklytics or Analytics Pro for iOS.
3. Klout
Klout is very popular and its scores are used widely. Right or wrong, people and companies are rating others on the basis of their Klout score. This tool is best for those interested in a single score to measure both Facebook and Twitter. An app is available for iOS.
4. Socialmention
Socialmention is rad! I love to be able to perform real-time social searches and did I mention it’s free? It even includes the top 7 trending topics in social. The site claims to monitor over 100 social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google, Yahoo News and more. It als provides metrics such as strength, sentiment, apssion and reach. Sentiment is further broken down into “positive”, “negative” or neutral. No app is available yet.
5. Buffer
Buffer is a great tool that is available in a free version for you to try out. In addition to letting hook up most all of your social accounts to post now or “buffer” for later, you also have access to analytics which let you monitor what was sent through the app. Coments, clicks, reshares and +1′s are recorded for each item posted and then is reported in aggregate under a handy “Analytics” tab. Get the app version for iOS and don’t forget to use the bookmarklet in your desktop or laptop browser. There is a $10 per month paid version for individuals that is worth it. Business plans start at $50 per month and a free trial is available.
Social media monitoring companies
Check put this partial list of social media monitoring companies for you to explore for further information.
1. Hootsuite
2. Google
3. Klout
4. Netbase
5. Salesforce.com (Radian6 and Buddy Media)
6. Viralheat
7. Brandwatch
8. Meltwater
9. Buffer
10. Socialmention
What are your favorite free social media monitoring tools?
Leave a comment and tell us more.
Photo by Bryanbruns/Wikimedia Commons
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