Hootsuite - a platform that enables you to schedule and plan your social media activity - has announced it is reducing its free plan. This means that if you want to keep using Hootsuite but don’t want to sign up to a paid plan, you can now only connect two social media accounts (previously five) and schedule five posts (previously 30).
Many small charities rely on Hootsuite’s free plan to manage their social media activity and this reduction will have a big impact on how they use social media.
If you are one of those charities and are wondering where to go next, our national partner NAVCA have pulled together various alternative options below which you might want to look at. No recommendations – just facts.
Agorapulse Free plan? Yes and paid plans Number of free scheduled posts: 40 per month Platforms covered: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest
Buffer Free plan? Yes, and paid plans Number of free scheduled posts: 10 Platforms covered: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest
Canva – content planner Free plan? No – the Canva free plan does not include the content planner Number of free scheduled posts: None Platforms covered: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Slack and Tumblr
Content Cal Free plan? Yes and they offer a charity discount Number of free scheduled posts: 50 Platforms covered: Tons – depends on package
Facebook Creator Studio Free plan? Yes, all free Number of free scheduled posts: unlimited Platforms covered: Facebook
Later Free plan? Yes and paid plans Number of free scheduled posts: 30 per profile Platforms covered: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest
Lightful Free plan? Yes and paid plans Number of free scheduled posts: unlimited but for two social accounts Platforms covered: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
Loomly Free plan? No but they offer a 50% charity discount Number of free scheduled posts: None Platforms covered: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn
Publer Free plan? Yes, and paid plans Number of free scheduled posts: 10 per social media account and 5 social media accounts Platforms covered: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest
Smarterqueue Free plan? No but a 50% charity discount and a free trial Number of free scheduled posts: None Platforms covered: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest
Tweetdeck Free plan? Yes, all free Number of free scheduled posts: unlimited Platforms covered: Twitter (it’s owned by Twitter)
Twitter – desktop version Free plan? Yes, all free Number of free scheduled posts: unlimited Platforms covered: Twitter
Also, Hootsuite do offer a 50% discount for charities (having hiked their prices up last year). So, if you did want to stay or go with them this could be an option for you.
This blog was written by Lucy Straker, Policy and Communications Manager at NAVCA. Thanks to everyone who contributed. You can chat with her on Twitter - @Lucy_NAVCA.
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