Top 5 Useful Tools for Content Creation
Whether you’re a marketing strategist or graphic designer, you know that content creation can be harder than it looks. Sure, it may look like there’s nothing to it, but designers know just the right concoction of ingredients to make a social media spread look personable and engaging. Of course, without social content these days, you’re losing potential consumers. So, putting out fresh designs regularly is important to keep a brand going. Creating content alone can feel daunting, especially if you don’t know where to start or you don’t know what to use. If you are struggling to find the right tools to make your company’s web presence stand out, look no further! We’re here to help. Here are the top 5 tools that can help make your brand stand out on all social media platforms.
Content Copy
Google Trends
It’s important to see what other people are talking about online to make a dent in the market. Google Trends does just that. The popularity of search words across regions, timespans, and languages are analyzed through Google’s algorithms and brought to your fingers. Don’t worry. You don’t need to input much of anything in order to get the results you need. Free to use, this tool is a must-have to strategize your content process. If you’re unsure of what types of content to publish, you can go ahead and check out our previous blog article, Types of Content and How to Implement them Into Your Social Media Strategy.
Image Selection
Unsplash
It’s important to have great photography selections in your content creation. If you aren’t looking to spend money on one photo from Shutterstock or Getty Images, stock photo websites like Unsplash can allow for a stunning design that is free to use. Unsplash has its own license that lets users use their images for free as long as you don’t use them for creating a competing website. (We are huge fans of Unsplash here at Bright Age!)
Photo Editing and Graphics Creation
Adobe Creative Suite
It goes without saying that Adobe Creative Suite is an industry standard for a reason. Their selection of tools has endless possibilities and creating a cohesive look across all social media platforms have never been easier with their Libraries feature. (Uncertain about how to create a cohesive look? Check out our previous blog, Ways to Create A Seamless Brand Identity Across All Social Media Platforms.) From creating logos, to vector art in Adobe Illustrator, to editing photography in Photoshop, all the way to designing a website in Dreamweaver, Adobe has it all and much more. At a content creation agency, like Bright Age, the Adobe Creative Suite is critical to have at your disposal. It may not be easy to learn when picking it up for the first time. However, you can choose a monthly plan that is right for you and your business. Unsure? There is also a Free Trial promo.
Social Media Monitoring & Publishing
Sprout Social
At Bright Age, we’re huge fans of Sprout Social as well! Rather than handling one social media account at a time, we can access and monitor social media engagement across all platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Sprout Social is a one-stop location where you can manage everything from content curation, scheduling, publishing, reporting and analytics. As mentioned in our other blog article, How to Form a Social Media Monitoring Strategy, you can look at all sorts of audience engagement like tagged photos, keywords, hashtags, locations and much more with Sprout Social all at once. Efficiency is the name of the game with this useful application.
URL Shorteners
Bitly
Long, messy links have been known to look unappealing on a social media post. They also draw attention away from your message and reduce the likelihood of your audience clicking on content that you’re trying to share. To combat this, Bitly cleans up your inputted link into a digestible bite. You can use it for free or pay to get more exclusive features like adding keywords, campaign trackers, and branding your links.
While it’s important to create great design and layout for your content, it is also equally crucial to have great post copy. Post copy ties into your posts to make them more attractive and inviting. Creating copy in tandem with graphics can be a tedious and difficult thing to do on your own, especially if you don’t have the resources and know-how. You’ll want to partner with a content creation agency, like Bright Age, with a background in social media marketing and strategies. We can help you create everything you need to establish a powerful social media presence. Talk to us today to see how we can help your brand reach its full potential!
