• Menu
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Before Header

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

The Social Media Hat

Always On Top Of Social

  • Coaching & Consulting
  • Community
  • Speaking
  • Articles
    • Digital Marketing
      • Influencer Marketing
    • Social Media Articles
      • Facebook
      • Instagram
      • LinkedIn
      • Pinterest
      • Twitter
      • YouTube
    • Social Media Tools
    • Virtual Events
  • Newsletter
  • Search
  • Coaching & Consulting
  • Community
  • Speaking
  • Articles
    • Digital Marketing
      • Influencer Marketing
    • Social Media Articles
      • Facebook
      • Instagram
      • LinkedIn
      • Pinterest
      • Twitter
      • YouTube
    • Social Media Tools
    • Virtual Events
  • Newsletter
  • Search

HootSuite Improves Scheduling With Daily Customization

HootSuite has added a Buffer-like option to set which days of the week you want to share AutoScheduled posts, and how many times per day.

You are here: Home / Social Media Articles / HootSuite Improves Scheduling With Daily Customization

April 4, 2014 //  by Mike Allton

Reading Time: 3 minutes

UPDATE: The addition of this capability has “broken” the optimization aspect of HootSuite’s AutoSchedule. Instead of scheduling posts at the optimum time for your profiles, posts are being scheduled at 9am, 12pm, 3pm and 6pm. HootSuite is aware of the issue and is working on a resolution.

One of the great features of HootSuite is the capability to schedule posts. Whether you’re choosing a specific date and time, or uploading a spreadsheet full of posts, it’s definitely a time-saving aspect that many of us use daily.

Even more useful is the AutoSchedule button.

With AutoSchedule, you can create a post, select one or more social profiles, and let HootSuite determine the best time to share that update. I use this scheduling option all the time because HootSuite not only finds the best time to share, but also automatically spaces out shares to different social networks so you’re not spamming all your accounts simultaneously.

Up until now, the only drawback was that we had little to no control over how these posts were scheduled. While we can see scheduled posts in the Publisher and edit them, it was still up to HootSuite when each post is scheduled.

But what if you could set a daily frequency for your posts?

HootSuite has added a Buffer-like option to set which days of the week you want to share AutoScheduled posts, and how many times per day.

This is a fantastic option for businesses!

You can decide in advance which days you want to share posts and how many per day, and then AutoSchedule as many posts as you like to fill up your queue as far in advance as you want.

How to Edit HootSuite AutoSchedule Settings

To get to these settings, open your HootSuite dashboard and click on the Compose dialogue box, then click on the scheduling icon.

Here, you can turn AutoSchedule on or off, and to the left of the toggle is a gear icon to access settings.

-insert-

You can also get to the AutoSchedule settings by going through the Settings icon in the left sidebar and clicking on AutoSchedule.

Once you’re in the AutoSchedule settings, you have two sets of controls.

First, you can set how many times a day you want to be able to schedule posts, and during what hours of the day. The default is 5 posts per day between 8 AM and 7 PM (your timezone). So if you want to be able to queue up 10 posts a day from 7 AM until 11PM, just adjust these settings accordingly.

Second, you can detemine which days of the week you want to post on, and simply disable any day you don’t want this activity on. For most people, the obvious choices would be to disable sharing on Saturday or Sunday, but I would caution you against doing that. Statistics have indicated that tweets can actally get more engagement on the weekend, so don’t be shy about tweeting outside of normal business hours.

-insert-

Once you’ve decided your best settings, simply click Save and from that point on, any time you choose to use AutoSchedule, the posts will be scheduled within those parameters.

HootSuite will still determine the specific time to share each post, but now you have more control over how late you’re sharing in the day, and how many posts can go out in a specific day.

Is HootSuite’s AutoSchedule Better Than Buffer?

So the obvious comparison here is to Buffer. With bufferapp.com, you can create a somewhat similar queue and determine how many times a day, and on which days, you want to share posts. The difference is that within Buffer, you can set specific times that posts are shared, as well as create multiple schedules. You can decide that on weekdays you want to share 6 times a day at these specific times, while on the weekends you may want to share a few times in the morning and then stop. So if you have somewhat advanced scheduling needs, Buffer’s capabilities are still superior.

But HootSuite is fast improving.

I like to use Buffer to schedule several weeks worth of tweets in advance, where I’m sharing and resharing old blog posts – evergreen content. But I love using HootSuite’s AutoSchedule to share my latest posts, as well as great articles and posts that I find from other people and sources. So I tend to use HootSuite to share posts no more than 12 – 24 hours out, while Buffer is more longterm. So for the time being, I’m not likely to change.

But I do think this development from HootSuite is fantastic, and I’m looking forward to having this greater control over when my posts are shared.

What do you think? Have you been using HootSuite’s AutoSchedule, or will you think about using more now?

If you aren’t yet using HootSuite at all to manage your social media, now’s a great time to get started. Here’s an affiliate link for you to get a free 30-day trial of HootSuite Pro. It doesn’t cost you anything more to use the link, and I only make a couple bucks, but it helps me gauge interest so I appreciate you using it.

And if you’ve been using HootSuite for a while and aren’t yet using all of its features, definitely check out my HootSuite Series, where I go into depth about all of the things you can do with the social media management tool.

Related

Category: Social Media ArticlesTag: Hootsuite

About Mike Allton

Mike is an international keynote speaker, an award-winning blogger & author at The Social Media Hat, and Head of Strategic Partnerships at Agorapulse where he strengthens relationships with social media educators, influencers and partner brands. He has spent over a decade in digital marketing and brings an unparalleled level of experience and excitement to the fore, whether he's delivering a presentation or leading a workshop.

Join The Community!

35,000 savvy marketers have signed up to get the latest social media insights and ideas. Will you?


Previous Post: « The Top Tactics and Goals of Social Media Marketing
Next Post: 5 Big Changes Coming To Your Twitter Profile »

Primary Sidebar

Work With Mike

Work with Mike Allton in a consulting capacity, or to speak at your next event.

Meet Mike

Mike Allton is an international keynote speaker & consultant, and an award-winning blogger and author at The Social Media Hat, where he has been educating businesses and organizations on the best use of content marketing for reaching and converting target audiences. Mike is proud to serve as the Head of Strategic Partnerships at Agorapulse, where he builds relationships with influencers and brands around the world.

Since 2012, Mike has worked with over a hundred brands and executives to help them identify and implement successful strategies. As a certified NLP Coach & Practitioner, he helps YOU achieve excellence. Work With Mike

Partnership Unpacked

Featured Posts

B2B Influencer Marketing Revenue Information

How Much Revenue Can A B2B Influencer Earn?

January 25, 2023 //  by Mike Allton

7 Ways B2B Influencers Can Make Money

B2C vs B2B Influencer Marketing

B2B Influencer vs B2C Influencer Marketing

January 23, 2023 //  by Mike Allton

What’s the difference between B2C & B2B Influencer Marketing?

Fintech CEOs Demonstrate Leadership Through Personal Brand

January 22, 2023 //  by Marc Angelos

Hint: it’s all about creating content in one way or another.

More Like This

  • Setting Goals for Partnerships & Omnichannel Marketing
  • How To Build Strong Client Relationships
  • How To Develop Successful Influencer Marketing Campaigns

Footer

Recent Posts

  • How Much Revenue Can A B2B Influencer Earn?
  • B2B Influencer vs B2C Influencer Marketing
  • Fintech CEOs Demonstrate Leadership Through Personal Brand
  • Setting Goals for Partnerships & Omnichannel Marketing
  • How To Build Strong Client Relationships
  • How To Develop Successful Influencer Marketing Campaigns
  • How To Launch An Affiliate Program In 30 Days
  • How To Approach Strategic Partnerships and New Opportunities

Marketing Resources

  • Marketing Hyperdrive Podcast
  • The Virtual Event Strategist Podcast
  • Partnership Unpacked Podcast (Coming soon!)
  • How To Craft Your Marketing Plan
  • The Ultimate Guide to the Perfect LinkedIn Profile
  • Social Media Spring Cleaning
  • Social Media Planner
  • Get The Newsletter
  • Home
  • Virtual Event Strategy
  • Mike Allton, Your Next Keynote Speaker
  • Mike Allton’s Newsletter
  • Work With Mike
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosure

Site Footer

Partnership Unpacked Podcast

  • Listen on Amazon
  • Listen on Apple
  • Listen on Google
  • Listen on Spotify
  • Listen on Stitcher
  • Social Media Articles
  • Digital Marketing Articles
  • Social Media Tools & Resources
  • Virtual Events Articles
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2011–2023 The Social Media Hat ยท All Rights Reserved