HootSuite Makes Twitter Easy
When I was using TweetDeck to manage and organize my Twitter activities, I thought it couldn’t get any better. Then I found HootSuite, and it did. Here are what I see as the advantages of HootSuite over TweetDeck.
- Easier to manage multiple accounts.The HootSuite display allows you to put Twitter accounts in separate tabs with highly customizable columns, which reduces the need for horizontal scrolling and allows you to scan information pertinent to the particular account, including keyword tracking, direct messages, and Groups.
- Easier to manage groups. Creating groups, selecting new members, and removing members, take very little time. The process of selecting group members in TweetDeck involves scrolling through your entire list of followers, unless that’s been changed in recent updates.
- Much more flexible layout. I already mentioned tabs: you can set up as many as you want. Tabs can represent a Twitter profile, a particular keyword search, a particular group or groups – pretty much anything you want it to be. The number and width of columns in any given tab can be customized, which in addition to reducing horizontal scrolling, enables you to arrange columns in a logical sequence for the information you’re tracking.
- HootSuite is web based. The TweetDeck client chewed up a lot of processing time on my hard drive. HootSuite is all web based, so it won’t affect the performance and speed of your computer
- HootSuite provides statistics. If you use the HootSuite default URL shortener, owl.ly, you’ll get clickthrough stats on your Twitter account(s). This is an extremely useful feature for evaluating which of your Tweets are generating interest.
There is one about TweetDeck that I miss: the seamless Facebook interface. Since I rarely go into Facebook, TweetDeck made it easy to monitor Facebook comments from my network, and easy for me to display my own Tweets on Facebook so Facebook friends not on Twitter could see them.
Over to You
Are you a HootSuite user? What do you like, and what do you not like?
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Chicago based SEO copywriting, blog consulting, and content strategy consulting.
Ulla and Granny the Marketer also recommend this – I will have to check it out meself. Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Hi Brad,
I’m a TweetDeck user, but have been intrigued by HootSuite primarily because of how this client seems to “speed up” as it may, the ability to pass along links. Whenever I receive an owl.ly link via HootSuite, a bar appears at the top of the screen that encourages me to easily pass it along to the next person by clicking a button on the bar. That’s an incredibly easy way to share a link! I wonder if sharing via HootSuite links is higher than link sharing via other Twitter clients? Thanks for the review – I may be switching soon.
Oh- and one correction – TweetDeck has recently updated its group management feature so that all you have to do is begin to type a twitter name into the screen within the group, and appropriate names to select from pop up.
Debra
@askdebra
Barbara, You of all people, an efficiency whiz, should like HS very much.
Debra, The enhancement to TweetDeck’s group organization is much needed – thanks for the heads-up. Your observation about forwarding owl.ly links is interesting: I wonder if there’s a way to check link performance for one Twitter client versus another. A good research topic! It sounds like TweetDeck users receiving links via owl.ly are more likely to pass them on. For HootSuite users, I don’t see any difference in utility from one URL shortener to another. Sometimes I use bit.ly on HootSuite when I need a customized URL. Doesn’t seem to cause any problems or reduce clickthroughs.
HootSuite will actually eat some resources. Even in a browser, it requires another tab or window, and the client is counting the time intervals and refreshing, and loading images and text. Not as much as a stand alone app, but not free either.
You can use a Facebook app to pull twitter into facebook instead of using TweetDeck/HootSuite to push into FaceBook.
It would be nice to read Facebook in HootSuite though.
I’ve been using HootSuite too Brad, finding that it works well for multiple Twitter accounts, and for creating the groups you mention. My only concern with it has been that the shortened links do seem to expire: That caused me to abandon it for a while in favor of bit.ly, but then the recent HootSuite upgrade pulled me back in because grouping your followers by like-mindedness or subject interest gets more and more compelling as your Twitter village grows.
Hi Rosa, The fact that bit.ly links expires is a worry – thank you for pointing that out. There certainly is a lot more to URL shortening than meets the eye.
At work I enjoy hootsuite because we are not allowed to install programs on our pcs, so tweetdeck was out of question. I also like the possibility to add tabs – I’ve got tabs for certain persons on twitter whom I really want to follow. In addition to that I put up a tab for #squidoo, so I easily get tweets covering that subject.
Hi Brad – I only recently got Tweetdeck and I like it much better than Twhirl. I always get so behind with technology and by the time I download something new, everyone seems to be moving onto the next big thing.
My laptop just died on me so I may try downloading Hootsuite onto this one.
Luke, Thanks for the clarification on processor time – as with TweetDeck, you can set the refresh interval just about any way you want.
Ulla, At least you work in an office that gives you internet access. Some don’t, or are highly restrictive about the sites you have access to.
Cath, HootSuite is easy enough to try, since there’s no downloading.
Hi Brad. This is my first time here in your blog, compliments of Jan Geronimo from Writing To Exhale.
I’m a Hootsuite fan and one of my favorite features is the ability to manage multiple accounts as well as the possibility of scheduling tweets. Although I still use Tweetdeck once in a while, most of my Tweeting activities are done through Hootsuite. I also specially like the toolbar where with one click, you can send tweets to multiple accounts at the same time. Of course let us not forget that it is not a memory hog like Tweetdeck.
What I do not like about Hootsuite is their shortening service, because if someone clicks on a Hootsuite shortened link, the page will open with the Hootsuite bar on top. When I need a particular link to open directly, without the bar”, then I use Tweetdeck for this purpose, but that’s it.
I should check Hootsuite. But honestly, I rarely use programs like that since I just go directly to Twitter or Facebook’s own website. Call me old-fashioned LOL!
Thanks for this Brad. At your recommendation, I will check out Hootsuite. It will be interesting to compare it with Tweetdeck. I didn’t even realize we had a choice.
Is it possible to adjust the column widths in HS? You can’t in TD.
Best, Robin
Hi DiTesco, Thanks for coming by and sharing that excellent summary of HS. I agree with you about the annoying shortening display, but on the other hand it’s nice to have the stats compiled automatically by HS.
Hi Charles, More power to you if you can keep all the Twitter conversation straight without an organizer like TweetDeck or HootSuite. Whatever works!
Hi Robin, You can adjust column width in HS – a very nice feature.
Robin and Brad, HootSuite will let you adjust column width to allow one to three columns wide, but does not allow you to go 5 wide which for me would be much more useful.
Hey wait a second. On the Mac side with Firefox I can get 4 column, but on the Windows side with Chrome I can only get 3.
Luke, I have added six or seven columns in Windows, Chrome, though I might have set them up in Firefox – can’t remember.
I was referring to how many columns you can see at one time. I have about 8 to a tab, I have to scroll horizontally, which I do clumsily.
Luke, Ahh … now I get it. At least in HS you can use multiple tabs to eliminate the horizontal scroll, though I’m so used to scrolling I don’t bother.
That it’s web based is a plus for me since I use an ageing computer. TweetDeck is a resource hog and slows my other online activities.
An uber blogger enlisted me in his Retweet Club. Grouping functionality will surely come in handy in managing requests for retweet from 99 other RC members.
Hey, Brad, I’m using Chrome most of the time now. It’s super fast and it feels like I’m zipping recklessly along the internet superhighway. LOL
Jan, Glad Chrome is working for you! I’m still using it and loving it!
Brad,
I am using firefox at home – can you give me the advantages of Chrome? I am always a bit reluctant to use new products…
Hi Ulla, Chrome is MUCH faster and simpler, but it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of Firefox – Chrome does not allow plugins of any kind. I switched to Chrome because Firefox was taking forever to load and would not shut down properly.
I love your recommendations, Brad. Can’t go wrong with them: Apture plugin, Chrome, and the ideas inspired by your helpful posts.
Absolutely love Hootsuite – except for this previously mentioned, really irritating, fly in the ointment. I could have written the comment myself:
“What I do not like about Hootsuite is their shortening service, because if someone clicks on a Hootsuite shortened link, the page will open with the Hootsuite bar on top. When I need a particular link to open directly, without the bar”, then I use Tweetdeck for this purpose, but that’s it.”
@rabbitandcrow
Neal, Goes to show, you see what you want to see. I had such a love affair going with HootSuite I never even noticed the link URL problem until you guys mentioned it. Now it really bugs me.
Thanks not only for a good review, but a great discussion.
I’ve been using HootSuite for about 3 weeks now and I must say that I really like it. We were search for a solution that both we and our clients can use. No it’s not perfect, but I particularly like the multi-user support, the fact that it’s web based (no software to trouble shoot) and the metrics. Lastly, I agree that the ow.ly feels a bit ratty, but the metrics more than make up for it.
Bill, I’m with you on the metrics – they are a real time saver and provide plenty of detail. Still haven’t had an urge to try another interface.