In the digital age, charities are increasingly turning to social media to connect with their audiences, share their stories, and drive engagement. However, managing multiple social media platforms can be a daunting task. That’s where social media management tools come in. These tools can help charities streamline their social media activities, allowing them to reach more people, more effectively. In this article, we’ll explore our top social media tools charities should be using.

• Understanding Social Media Tools
• Our Top Picks
• The Role of Delivered Social
• Tips for Choosing the Right Tools
• Book A Social Clinic with Us
• How Social Media Affects Charities

Understanding Social Media Tools for Charities

In today’s digital landscape, social media has become an indispensable tool for charities. It provides a platform to share stories, raise awareness, engage with supporters, and even drive donations. However, managing multiple social media accounts can be a complex and time-consuming task. This is where social media tools come into play.

Social media tools are software applications or platforms that help organisations manage their social media activities more effectively. They offer a range of features designed to streamline the process of managing social media, saving charities valuable time and resources.

Here are some of the key features that social media tools can offer:

1. Scheduling: Social media tools allow charities to schedule posts in advance. This means you can plan your content calendar ahead of time and ensure that your posts go live at the optimal times for engagement.
2. Analytics: Understanding how your audience interacts with your content is crucial. Social media tools provide analytics that can help you understand which posts are performing well, who your audience is, and when they are most active.
3. Engagement: Responding to comments and messages can help build relationships with your audience. Social media tools can make this easier by providing a centralised platform where you can manage all your interactions.
4. Content Creation: Some social media tools also offer features that help with content creation, such as templates for social media posts or tools for creating graphics.
5. Collaboration: If you have a team managing your social media, these tools can also facilitate collaboration. You can assign tasks, share content, and ensure everyone is on the same page.

By leveraging these tools, charities can make their social media management more efficient, freeing up time to focus on what really matters – their mission.

Our Top Picks

There are numerous social media tools available, each with its own strengths and features. Here, we’ve selected our top picks that we believe offer the most value for charities.

Buffer

Buffer is a user-friendly social media management tool that allows you to schedule posts across various platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. It offers analytics features that can help you understand the performance of your posts and optimise your social media strategy. Buffer’s intuitive interface and comprehensive features make it a great choice for charities looking to streamline their social media management.

Hootsuite

Hootsuite is another popular social media management tool. It supports a wide range of social media platforms and offers features such as post scheduling, content curation, analytics, and team collaboration. Hootsuite also offers a social listening feature, which allows you to monitor mentions of your charity across social media platforms and understand the conversations happening around your cause. Many charities use Hootsuite as one of many social media tools for charities to help with their social media organisation.

Canva

While not a social media management tool in the traditional sense, Canva is an invaluable tool for creating engaging social media content. It offers a wide range of templates and design elements that can help you create professional-looking graphics, even if you don’t have a background in design. Canva also offers a non-profit programme, which provides free access to Canva Pro for eligible charities. At Delivered Social, we’re big fans of Canva. We love how quick and easy it is to create eye-catching images for our social media posts. While we also use Adobe Photoshop for more complex designs, we often turn to Canva when we need to create something quickly. It’s incredibly user-friendly, which makes it a great option for small businesses and charities that may not have the time or resources to learn more complex design software. With Canva, you can create professional-looking graphics in minutes, even if you have no design experience. We would definitely say Canva is one of the top social media tools for charities! Imagine the incredible graphics you could design especially with some influencer marketing too!

Later

Later is a social media management tool that specialises in visual content, making it a great choice for charities that use platforms like Instagram and Pinterest. It offers features such as visual content scheduling, media storage, and performance analytics. Later also offers a Linkin.bio feature, which allows you to drive traffic from your Instagram to your website or other online resources.

SocialPilot

SocialPilot is a comprehensive social media management tool that supports a wide range of platforms. It offers features such as bulk scheduling, social media analytics, and team collaboration. SocialPilot also offers a social inbox feature, which allows you to manage all your social media conversations in one place.

The Role of Delivered Social

At Delivered Social, we understand that managing social media can be a complex task for charities. That’s why we’re committed to providing the support and resources charities need to navigate the digital landscape effectively.

Our Delivered Social Green offer is designed to help charities maximise their impact on social media. We provide a range of services, from social media strategy development to content creation, all tailored to the unique needs of each charity we work with.

We also understand the importance of using the right tools. That’s why we’re always on the lookout for the best social media tools for charities. Whether it’s helping you set up a Buffer account to schedule your posts, guiding you on how to use Hootsuite’s social listening feature, or showing you how to create engaging graphics with Canva, we’re here to help.

At Delivered Social, we’re incredibly passionate about social responsibility. Our core Social Impact project, the Delivered Social Green offer, is a testament to this commitment. We’ve had the privilege of supporting numerous charities with free marketing services, helping them amplify their message and make a bigger impact.

We’ve worked with a diverse range of charities, each with their unique missions and challenges. These include Shaping Portsmouth, a community interest company dedicated to economic development; Endometriosis South Coast, which provides support and information for people affected by endometriosis; Portsmouth Hospitals Charity, which supports the patients of Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust; and The Guildhall Trust, which delivers inspirational opportunities in the creative arts.

We’ve also supported SANDS, a stillbirth and neonatal death charity; Helen Arkell Dyslexia Charity, which offers support for people with dyslexia; Mary How Trust, a charity focused on cancer prevention; and Talk For Health, which promotes mental health through therapeutic talk.

From building their brand and website to crafting effective social media campaigns, we’ve provided comprehensive support to these charities, all at no cost. If you’re a charity that could benefit from our services, we’d love to hear from you. We want to provide value by giving access to social media tools for charities to use to benefit their organisation and improve consistency with their workload. We also support brand new charities as we understand how tough it can be at the very beginning. We offer some top tips for charity just starting their journey too.

Tips for Choosing the Right Tools

Choosing the right social media tools for your charity can be a daunting task, especially with the plethora of options available. Here are some tips to help you make the right choice:

1. Identify Your Needs: Before you start looking at tools, take the time to identify your needs. What are your goals for social media? What tasks are taking up the most time? What information would you like to track? The answers to these questions can help you identify the features you need in a social media tool.
2. Consider Your Budget: While some social media tools offer free versions, these often have limited features. Consider how much you’re willing to spend on a social media tool and what features you’re willing to pay for.
3. Ease of Use: A tool that’s difficult to use can end up costing you more time than it saves. Look for tools that have intuitive interfaces and offer good customer support.
4. Integration with Other Tools: If you’re using other digital tools, such as a CRM or email marketing software for better email marketing campaigns, consider whether the social media tool integrates with these. This can help streamline your processes and make your digital marketing efforts more efficient.
5. Check Reviews and Recommendations: Reviews and recommendations can provide valuable insights into how a tool works in practice. Look for reviews from other charities or organisations similar to yours.

All these things plus more can help with maximising your social impact through your social media

Book a Free Social Clinic With Us

In addition to our Delivered Social Green offer, we’re proud to provide a Free Social Clinic for charities. This is a unique opportunity for charities to receive personalised advice and guidance on their social media and digital marketing efforts.

During these one-on-one sessions, our team of digital marketing experts will review your current social media strategies, website design, SEO efforts, and overall digital presence. We’ll provide practical, actionable advice on how to improve your online visibility, engage your audience more effectively, and ultimately, drive more support for your cause.

Whether you’re just starting out with social media or looking to take your digital marketing to the next level, our Free Social Clinic can provide valuable insights and guidance. It’s like a health check for your digital marketing efforts, identifying areas of strength and opportunities for improvement.

Over the past two years, we’ve delivered over 300 of these clinics to businesses and charities in Portsmouth and Guildford. We’ve seen first hand the difference that effective digital marketing can make for a charity. It’s not just about raising awareness; it’s about building relationships, sparking conversations, and creating a community of supporters who are passionate about your cause.

At Delivered Social, we’re committed to helping charities make the most of their digital presence. We believe that every charity, no matter how small, deserves the opportunity to shine online. That’s why we’re proud to offer our Free Social Clinic to charities. Get in touch with us today to find out how we can help your charity thrive in the digital age.