Social media engagement plays a critical role in building a brand’s reputation and relationships. Responding to comments and messages promptly ensures positive user experiences and fosters loyalty. At SMR Social, we’re often asked to use external tools like Agorapulse for managing client engagements across platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, and LinkedIn. While these tools claim to streamline the process, we find managing engagement directly through each platform superior for several key reasons.
The Reality of External Management Tools
External tools promise efficiency by consolidating messages and comments into one dashboard. This feature can save a small amount of time, as users don’t need to open each platform individually. However, this slight convenience often comes at a cost—both in terms of subscription fees and lost engagements. During a recent experience with a large organisation’s social media management, we encountered a serious issue using Agorapulse. Despite being meticulous with notifications and monitoring, we discovered that a significant number of messages and comments were never displayed in the tool. These missed engagements represent a real threat to a business’s reputation, as customers may feel ignored or undervalued.
Direct Management: The Superior Approach
When managing comments and messages directly on each platform, there is far greater control and visibility over all interactions. Platform-specific inboxes ensure no messages are overlooked, notifications are tailored, and moderation features are precise. Each platform’s native analytics and insights tools further provide more reliable engagement tracking and reporting than external software.
By transitioning back to platform-native management for this large client, we’ve already identified and addressed numerous missed interactions. This proactive approach helps ensure customers receive timely responses, protects our client’s brand image, and saves unnecessary subscription costs.
Why The Tools Fall Short
- Potential Missed Interactions: No external tool is perfect. Missed messages and comments can seriously impact a brand’s engagement and reputation.
- Cost vs. Value: Subscription costs for external tools can add up, yet their value is compromised if they don’t deliver complete coverage.
- Platform-Specific Capabilities: Each social platform offers unique engagement features, which third-party tools often struggle to replicate fully.
Conclusion: Making the Smart Choice for Social Media Engagement
While it might seem convenient to rely on external tools like Agorapulse, direct engagement through each platform ensures comprehensive visibility and superior user interaction. It’s not worth compromising a brand’s reputation for the slight time savings these tools may offer. For our clients at SMR Social, ensuring no engagement opportunity is missed means sticking with what works best—managing everything directly, where we know nothing falls through the cracks.