17 Reasons Buffer Will Blow Your Mind

By: | March 19, 2016 | Tags: , , , , |

Buffer helps bloggers save time #bloggingAre you a busy blogger?

Is that redundant? Aren’t all bloggers busy?

Fortunately, tools exist today which can help you expedite your blogging tasks.

Two of those tools are Buffer and Hootsuite. When I first started blogging, I recommended Hootsuite.

I have since changed my position. This post will explain why all bloggers should use Buffer to automate their blog promotion and for other blogging tasks as well.

Why Should You Use a Social Media Management Tool?

Consider this comment from a reader:

Twitter is one of the social media outlets that I don’t follow. I tried, but I work outside the home 6 hours a day and I can’t even look at Twitter during that time. It seems if you don’t post regularly and interact, it’s pretty much Twitter suicide.

Bloggers are not expected to be at their computers for six hours a day even if they don’t work outside the home.

Post schedulers like Hootsuite and Buffer automate your blog promotion for you, and not just on Twitter. You can choose from various social media to use to promote ahead of time.

The Benefits of Buffer and Hootsuite

You can use them to preschedule your Tweets when it is convenient for you to be at a computer.

They are both free services.

They both have a variety of social media threads for you to pick from.

They promote at times you prefer.

They both have analytics.

They both allow you to attach a graphic along with your blog post link.

The Benefits of Using Buffer

  1. Buffer has a link shortener. When you promote to Twitter, which allows only a finite number of characters, this can be especially helpful. According to Michael Grubbs, Hootsuite makes you buy a premium account in order to use a link shortener.
  2. Buffer offers an Optimal Timing Tool that allows your posts to be scheduled when your audience will be most engaged.
  3. Self-esteem is enhanced. After I schedule a Tweet, I get a complimentary message. For example, the message often says, “One more Tweet is in your Buffer. Keep it topped up.”
  4. When your queue is empty, you get sent a message, so you remember to schedule more posts for promotion.
  5. Your blog post graphics are displayed as soon as you paste your link. When I use Hootsuite, I have to attach my graphics from my desktop.
  6. Buffer has a browser extension. This is helpful if you want to retweet other people’s articles or share them on your other social media.
  7. There is flexibility in scheduling. You can choose to schedule your posts over a 12-hour time period or a 24-hour time period.
  8. The folks over at Buffer provide great customer service. When I had a question and Emailed them, they responded immediately.
  9. Buffer has a free app you can download to schedule not just your post links but your Pinterest graphics as well. That means you can use Buffer on your mobile device. The app works with both iPhone and Android.
  10. Other people recommend Buffer. Iag.me recommends Buffer as one of their 10 Must Have Social Media Tools for Small Businesses. At Inbound.org, when the community was asked how they manage their social media accounts, most answered, Buffer.
  11. Their blog provides great articles. While I realize this has nothing to do with automating blog post promotion, the value I find in their articles makes me feel like their other products, such as their post scheduler, will be valuable as well.
  12. You can make images within Buffer using Pablo.
  13. Serious bloggers use Buffer. When I interviewed influencers for my expert interviews, they assured me my post was in their Buffer queue.
  14. Buffer saves you time. When I want to send my Tweet to someone, their Twitter handle come up as soon as I enter a letter, and I don’t have to keep typing.
  15. Using Buffer also saves you time since it will default to Facebook when you first make your account. If you are fine with prescheduling to Facebook, there is nothing to set up.
  16. Buffer has a solid reputation. I had heard good things about Buffer long before I started using it to schedule my posts. Most of the people I knew were using Buffer when I was still using Hootsuite.
  17. Buffer has analytics. Just click and you can see your analytics. According to Iag.me, Hootsuite sends you your analytics once a week, but they are often inaccurate. Buffer’s analytics tell you the days and times your audience was most responsive to your posts.

Buffer helps #bloggers.

 

This screenshot shows Buffer’s analytics. Just click the Analytics tab, and you can see how your posts performed.

This screenshot shows how my promotion of my article about my new Blogger Collaboration group performed. As can be seen, my post performed best at 9:05 am. I received 1 retweet, 2 likes, and three people clicked my article link which resulted in blog traffic for me. According to the analytics, this occurred on a Tuesday.

The Benefits of Using Hootsuite

Buffer’s queue seems limited in contrast to Hootsuite’s queue. For example, I tried to schedule more than nine posts, and I wasn’t able to schedule any more. You have to pay for a premium Buffer plan in order to schedule up to 200 posts.

Conclusion

In closing, there are other automated post schedulers. This article contrasted two of them, Buffer and Hootsuite. For all the reasons above, Buffer comes out the winner.

Readers, please share, so others know the advantages of each tool.

What do you think? Buffer or Hootsuite? Which do you prefer and why? Are you using a different scheduler you can recommend? I look forward to your views.

Related Posts:

How You Can Know When It’s Time to Blog

6 Ways You Can Save Time Blogging, Technology You Should Know

Author: Janice Wald

Janice Wald is twice nominated (2019 and 2021) for Best Internet Marketer by the Infinity Blog Awards. Wald has been teaching Internet Marketing for seven years.

  1. Enstine Muki

    Hi Janice,
    This is now rekindling the buffer flames in me 😉
    I signed up to it long ago and most recently, I tried working on it. I see a lot of advantages but still been feeling very reluctant.

    Now, I’m going to spend sometime this weekend on it. Maybe I’ll get some spike up my spine to give it a bigger shot.

    I also had an account on Hootsuite but quite frankly, it’s never been my thing 😉

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Enstine,
      Nice to hear from you. It sounds from what you wrote that you haven’t been using Hootsuite or Buffer. Do you use a post scheduler? If yes, may I ask which one? I’ve heard of Tweet Deck and some others.Thanks for writing.
      Janice

  2. anita & jaye

    I have tried both Buffer and Hootsuite, and initially thought they were both a bit too complicated for me. I mean, I was trying to simplify my work load! But I persevered, and Buffer came out on top, for all the reasons you quoted.
    It is easier to use, once you figure out how, and if you get stuck they couldn’t be more helpful.
    It was addictive though, and before long I willingly upgraded to have more choices, for the free account just couldn’t keep up with me!
    Everyone should use Buffer, even the upgrade version, for I spend more money on chocolate every month than I do to schedule my posts to twitter…

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Anita & Jaye,
      Thank you for writing me. Great to hear from you! Thank you for your comments. People that commented after you wrote they are persuaded to use Buffer now. It could be because of your comments, so thank you for your testimonial about Buffer’s value.
      Janice
      PS I thought your comments about chocolate were funny!

    • Julie Syl Kalungi

      I am chuckling my backside off with your chocolate comment Anita & Jaye.

      Seriously its either be part of a highly active group of real givers and sharers or use an Auto scheduler and Both Buffer and Hootsuite are in my arsenal. I must say I bent more towards Hootsuite for the Limitless posts esp on Twitter and I had ever noticed that the analytics are lacking. I need to focus a bit more on Buffer to enjoy the benefits you mentioned above better Janice 🙂

      I definitely use Pablo…to Create Pinable Tall images for our blogs.

      So thanks for reminding me how awesome Buffer is.

      • Janice Wald

        Hi Julie,
        Thank you for your response. Funny how we both were amused by the chocolate comment.
        Question for you about Pablo. Why would you choose Pablo over Canva? Are there advantages? Thanks!
        Janice

    • Janice Wald

      I agree they both have value for the reasons I stated. I just felt Buffer had MORE value, so I recommended Buffer. Thanks for reading what I wrote.
      Janice

  3. Beth McIntire

    I use the paid version of Buffer and have been quite thrilled with it. I can schedule my pins, tweets and Facebook posts weeks or months ahead. I can move posts around on the schedule just by dragging them. Buffer’s analytics let me see which posts perform best. I even get an email if something is getting a lot of activity.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Beth,
      That must be an exciting Email to get! The other commenters that use the paid version indicated they are happy with it as well. Thanks for writing and helping me give information about Buffer. Great to see you.
      Janice

  4. Robin Khokharr

    Hi Janice,
    The buffer is really an amazing tool. It has been two years that I am using it. But I was using it only to share content at a different time but was not was knowing about so many features that you have shared.
    Thanks for sharing.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Robin,
      Thank you for writing me. I am glad you found my article informative. I just started using Buffer after using Hootsuite all this time. Already, I am much happier. Buffer is quicker.
      Janice

  5. Linda Hobbis

    Hootsuite I find too consuming so I’m currently using Buffer but, compared to some of the newer media scheduling tools (social pilot, postplanner) I think they need to up their offer. I pay for the Awesome plan and wouldn’t cough up for the $99 for their business plan (a hard to justify price I think). I’m looking for a way to repopulate my twitter schedule without having to wade through previous tweets and looking for a facility that will retweet evergreen tweets for me (Edgar is one option, although, again, expensive).

    Whilst I love Buffer’s simplicity, I think it’s in danger of falling behind.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Linda,
      I don’t know enough about the other tools to comment, which is why I am glad you wrote to share information about the other scheduling tools.
      While it is possible they may fall behind more recent tools, I am looking for a free tool that serves my needs. Buffer is free and quicker to use than Hootsuite. I am happy! Thanks for writing.
      Janice

  6. Lori

    Thanks for the quote and link! I pinned this post. Buffer sounds like a great scheduling tool. If only it could interact automatically for me and think of clever things to tweet, while I’m busy at work. Now THAT would be impressive! Haha.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Lori,
      1. It was my pleasure to link to you. The timing of your quote was perfect!
      2. You sound like a funny writer. However, in all seriousness, you can preschedule your Tweet in advance, when it’s convenient for you. I work outside the home. I preschedule in the morning before I leave or the day before. Thanks for writing.
      Janice

  7. Mona AlvaradoFrazier

    Based on the #5 reason I’ll give Buffer a try. If I can cut one step off of my current social media app (currently, I use Tweetdeck to schedule my tweets), that would be worth it. I tried Hootsuite but since I only use Twitter this didn’t seem worthwhile to me.

    I like Tweetdeck because they have columns to set up notifications or whatever you want. This makes retweeting easy. Twitter also has an analytics page so I make use of that. I spend 15-20 minutes scheduling tweets in the morning (about six) and in mid-afternoon, I spend another five minutes scheduling three to five more or retweeting.

    I enjoy using Pinterest for storyboarding, writing tips, writing humor and travel. I don’t use a Facebook Page, only FB for personal use. Since I began pinning my photos from my blog to Pinterest, as you blogged about recently, the traffic to the site has increased. Thanks for all your tips.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Mona,
      I agree. The fact that Buffer takes less time to use is important to me as well. I work outside the home, so I am always rushing to get in my blogging tasks like pin scheduling. Anything to save us time, I think is a good idea. Thank you for telling people about Tweet Deck. I also greatly appreciated your comment about how my Pinterest idea for pinning photos has helped your site traffic! Huge smile here! Thanks for writing.
      Janice

  8. Margaretha (Equine Guided MD)

    OK, I am convinced. I am getting Buffer. Thanks for this useful post, Janice.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Margaretha,
      I am so glad I could help with your decision. As you know, I love to help. I hope you read the other comments. Everyone is raving about Buffer!
      Thanks for writing to tell me I was influential.
      Janice

  9. Carolann

    This is a very comprehensive post! I tried using Buffer so many times and gave up. I’m going to revisit it for sure now! It’s a lot more powerful than I thought. Thanks so much for this! Awesome as always!

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Carolann,
      What nice compliments! Thank you! I find Buffer quick and easy. If you have any questions after you revisit it, please ask me.
      Janice

  10. Melinda

    My BBFFJ, Stop! You’re gonna make my head explode!! You give so much good advice, and showcase so many new (to me) tools that I can’t keep up!

    • Janice Wald

      Uh oh, If this post makes your head explode, today’s post will REALLY make your head explode!
      Bookmark the articles to review when you get a chance. No rush to keep up.
      Were you able to delete categories? I sent you instructions.
      BBFFJ

  11. Tricia Vaughn

    Great article an it includes many of the reasons why I use buffer too. Their customer service is simply amazing.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Tricia,
      I believe I mentioned that their customer service is great. I wrote them with a question, and they responded immediately. (Also, the people over at Buffer wrote me today! They wrote to say they liked my article. Awww…) Great to see you Tricia. Thanks for writing.
      Janice

  12. smiling notes

    Thanks a lot for this piece of information. I have just started using the free version of Hootsuite and buffer sounds better than Hootsuite 🙂

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Shamira,
      Thanks for writing. I am so sorry if my timing was bad! I should have written this article sooner! Hootsuite definitely served my needs for a long time. My main reason for preferring Buffer is that it is quicker to use than Hootsuite, and I am always rushing.
      Janice

      • smiling notes

        I just made an account on Buffer and loving it already. Like you said, It has an added advantage where it pulls the images directly from your links whereas in HootSuite, I had to manually upload them.

        • Janice Wald

          Hi Shamira,
          Great to see you. Buffer is quicker because it pulls the images from your links instead of us having to take the extra step to upload them from our computer. As I said, there’s no contest. Thanks for writing. I echoed your thoughts since I agree with you.
          Janice

  13. Gary Jefferies

    Hmm, so you don’t just sit and post anymore. This newbie blogging promotion lark is really doing my head in. Last two weeks of reading these has my head imploding with information overload. Not that that take ps a great deal of info to do of course. I need a PA :-/

    Thank you Janice for another valuable post depicting 101 reasons Inshould run and hide under a large rock 🙂

    • Janice Wald

      Gary,
      No, no! Both Hootsuite and Buffer are extremely easy to use. They are literally as easy as copy-pasting a link. That’s all that’s entailed. I promise. On Buffer, your graphic or photo will come right up, on Hootsuite you would have to attach it from your computer. For this reason, Buffer is easier. Seriously, set Buffer for “optimal times”, so you don’t even have to set the times.
      Click “Content” and paste your link, that’s all you do! Are you on Twitter? I tried to follow you but couldn’t find you. I am MrsPaznanski there.
      Janice

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Pat,
      Thank you so much for writing me. I am glad you enjoyed the article.
      Janice

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Pat,
      I wanted you to know I tried to visit your site, but it doesn’t seem to be a link that’s taking me to your blog.
      Janice

  14. Carol Cassara

    I appreciate this. I’ve been looking for the right automated scheduling tool and hadn’t looked into Buffer. Also the discussion among readers is so helpful. Thank you.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Carol,
      Great to hear from you. Thanks for writing. I agree with what you said about the commenters. That’s why I wanted to blog about Buffer vs. Hootsuite. I figured people had heard of them. I was hoping people would share their opinions, and they are.
      Janice

  15. dgkaye

    Great description here of Buffer. I may look into it. I joined Hootsuite years ago and never use it. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I also like to tweet my own personal picks, not chosen by automation.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Debby,
      Thank you so much for writing and sharing my post across your social media as I saw you did. You are a good friend.
      As far as using a pin scheduler, if you have time to schedule it yourself, then there’s no need for either one. As you know, I work outside the home. Twitter is blocked on my campus, so I need to preschedule my posts.
      Janice

  16. Trudy

    Hi Janice . I didn’t know if you took my suggestion to use Buffer. Glad to see that you like it, I find it a lot easier and comprehensive. Even if you use the Awesome level, you can schedule a 100 posts which is great if you are on vacation and includes Pinterest. Stumbled.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Trudy,
      What can I say? I am a stubborn Taurus and slow to make changes, LOL. I wouldn’t want to pay for the Awesome Level which I assume is not free. Thanks for telling us about it if others are interested. Thank you so much for stumbling! You are awesome!
      Janice

  17. Susan Langer

    You are making me reconsider going to Buffer from Hootsuite. Hmmmmmm. Shared on SM. 🙂

    • Janice Wald

      Thanks for sharing Susan. I am glad you enjoyed the article. As I indicated, I have been having good experiences with Buffer, better then with Hootsuite. I recommend it. Thanks for writing.
      Janice

  18. Dawn Lajeunesse

    Do you have an option for readers to share this on their own blog, thus hitting a wider audience? (Like a Press This or Reblog button) Using something like Buffer or Hootsuite is such a timesaver!

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Dawn,
      I would be so grateful if you shared this on your site. Thanks for thinking of it! I agree I could hit a wider audience. I always appreciate more exposure. I keep writing about the importance of getting links into your site, and this could get a link into mine.
      Because I self-host, I can’t be reblogged. However, there is a way to could click the “Press This” button. I don’t think I’ve ever been “Pressed” before. How exciting! I made you a screenshot to show you how to do it.
      Click the green button. It will show you sharing choices. One of them is a “W” for WordPress Blog. Click that, and then click “Press This.” Thanks in advance, so much!
      How to find the
      Janice

      • Dawn Lajeunesse

        Thanks, Janice – I will try that immediately. Didn’t know what that icon stood for!
        Dawn

        • Janice Wald

          Hi,
          Thank you for writing and letting me know you were going to try right it away. Did it work out? I’ve never been Pressed before to my knowledge. I feel like a celeb, LOL.
          Janice

  19. Michele

    I didn’t know what that little green button was either! Thanks for the information about buffer. I know I need to up my social media game and I have been planning to look into one of the scheduling programs.

  20. Janice Wald

    Hi Michele,
    Oh, the social share button! Many icons are hidden under there! Great to hear from you, Michele. I hope all is well. Now that MailChimp is working seamlessly for you, it’s time to preschedule your Emails. When you do, I recommend you do A/B testing of your Email list subscribers for all the reasons I mentioned in my article. Thanks for reading what I wrote and for the visit today.
    Janice

  21. Kathleen

    Thanks for the good review Janice. I also need to look into Buffer and see if it is a good fit for what I want. This has been very helpful.

  22. Janice Wald

    Hi Leslie,
    I appreciated your comment and your visit today. I understand everyone is busy.
    I am not paying for Buffer either. However, I can only schedule ten tweets at a time. Despite this, I prefer Buffer due to the time-saving factors I mentioned in the article. Thanks for writing!
    Janice

  23. Kathleen

    Another post that has made the most clicked top four. Look for the feature on the Blogger’s Pit Stop on Friday.

  24. Arpit singh

    Hi Janice,

    Nice write-up, I found both Buffer and Hootsuite helpful with functionality.One can easily understand its importance in your post Thanks for sharing.

    Arpit

    • Janice Wald

      Dear Arpit,
      Thank you for coming by my blog. I am glad you enjoyed my review of Buffer. I used to use Hootsuite but found I prefer Buffer. Thanks for writing me.
      Janice

  25. Marsha Ingrao

    Great article, Janice. I’m going through your 87 tips post and reading the links especially concerned with time management which is what I’m writing for my Sunday Posts this month. I’m going to have to check back into Buffer. I post to so many FB groups that I can’t do it for free. Thanks again for all you do for the blogging community

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Marsha,
      I appreciate your interest. If you use any of my Ideas in your post, can you please link to me? I’m sure you know the importance of links for S EO. Thank you so much. I still have not forgotten about writing you a testimonial just majorly busy.

  26. Monica Matthews, how2winscholarships.com

    I love Buffer! Hootsuite gets really wonky for me a times. I especially love how easy it is to use Buffer from my phone when I’m away from my desk and pc. Gotta keep my queue topped up! 🙂

    • Janice Wald

      HI Monica,
      Thanks for commenting on my Buffer article. Kind of an old article now. Where did you find it, may I ask, I always wonder.
      I have never used Buffer on my phone. Great idea, though. Is it hard to get links and paste into Buffer from a phone? I thought so which is why I never tried it. It would make things far more convenient, so let me know.
      Thanks,
      Janice

      • Monica Matthews, how2winscholarships.com

        Hi Janice! The article actually came up when I was using StumbleUpon. Using Buffer on my phone is so easy. I just use the analytics tab to rebuffer my posts/links that are doing well. Click x 10 and I’m done!

        • Janice Wald

          I will try that. Exciting to hear my post came up on StumbleUpon. Thank you for the tips about buffer. I can’t wait to try. Is buffer an app? How do I do it? Do I use the browser on my phone or is it an app? Thanks.
          Janice

          • Monica Matthews, how2winscholarships.com

            I use the free Buffer app that I found in my play store, as I have an android phone. I also just use the free version of Buffer. I like free, LOL! 🙂

          • Janice Wald

            I use the free version of Buffer. However, I have an iPhone. I will check the App Store. Thank you so much for the help.

          • Janice Wald

            HI,
            Iphone does have the app in the app store. Excited to be able to retweet proven tweets. Thanks for the tip!
            Janice

  27. Joy Healey

    Thanks Janice,

    I tried Hootsuite twice and just couldn’t get on with it I’m afraid.

    I am currently using Buffer and like it except for one thing…. I can’t see any way to repeat “Evergreen” content – like adverts, say once a month.

    At one point they were trialling this and I was part of their beta test group. I loved what they were offering but then they withdrew it, which was disappointing. So now I’m looking for an alternative.

    Edgar has been recommended to me too, but it’s a bit more than I wanted to pay 🙂

    Joy – Blogging After Dark

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Joy,
      Thanks for commenting on my Buffer article.
      Both Hootsuite and Buffer have their pros and cons. I felt, after using both, Buffer had more advantages for me.
      As far as repeating evergreen content, once a month, go into your Buffer analytics.
      On my phone, I was able to see the performance of tweets dating back a year! Just click “Buffer” and you can retweet them.
      I hope this was helpful.
      Janice

      • Joy Healey

        Thanks Janice,

        That’s a good idea 🙂

        I should have thought of it…. and so should the support team when I raised it with them LOL.

        Joy – Blogging After Dark

  28. Donna Harvey

    I have been using another Scheduler as a trial, and now I have to decide weather to continue and pay or try Buffer, Let me Think, Buffer is for me. It sounds like it will do everything that I don’t have time to. Thanks for the Suggestion, Donna

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Donna,
      I am a huge fan of Buffer. It does everything I need, so I don’t see a reason to pay for another scheduler. Although it only allows ten in the queue, I use the app to retweet what’s in my analytics. Where did you find this article? It’s rather old now. Thanks for writing!
      Janice

      • Donna Harvey

        I looked back it wast Posted March 16, 2016. A little older, never the less a terrific Post. Thanks Janice.

  29. Ankita

    Hey, Janice!! Great review on Buffer and HootSuite, personally I like the RSS and the bulk messaging features as it saves me so many hours. But I afraid it’s too expensive when compared to other tools.

    • Janice Wald

      Hi Ankita,
      Buffer has spoiled me and now I prefer it to Hootsuite despite it limiting the free version to only 10 tweets in the queue at one time.
      Thanks for adding to the dialogue.
      Janice

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