This year has been big on education. Mostly in how to market my business better. In the past 3 years marketing has changed blazing fast and it’s been incredibly hard to keep up. Just when I think I get the hang of something, BAM Instagram announces changes! Between Google, Facebook, and Instagram a girl just can’t win!

But I didn’t let that stop me, sure I probably screamed my frustration to my fur balls which sent them running under the couch for cover, but I eventually moved past my frustrations. You just gotta keep going and learning and doing, that’s all there is to it.

Recently I read a blog by The Rising Tide that showcased several helpful apps for social media. One was Planoly, at the time Plano.gram. After reading through their features and testing their free trial I was HOOKED! This little app has become essential in my social media marketing world, especially after the new updates they’ve rolled out.

Planoly did not ask me to write about them or promote them, this is completely of my own free will. So let me tell you, unbiased, WHY this little app changed my life:

#1 – Organization – Planoly allows you to upload all of the photos you want to post ahead of time. You can move them around and put them in any order that makes your brain buzz with productivity. Not having to hunt through my photo folders on my phone is a game changer. Recently they added an online version to the app, so now I don’t even have to put photos on my phone! I can just upload straight to Planoly via my desktop!

#2 – Scheduling – Planoly gives you the ability to schedule all of your posts, write up your text, add your hashtags which works just like Instagram. I know a lot of other apps offer this, but the best part about Planoly is their online calendar. Now I can see my whole month laid out in front of me and type with a KEYBOARD, not just my thumbs! I’m WAY more efficient that way! I can sit down and do my social media for the week in just a few minutes. It’s amaaaaaazing!

#3 – Management – Not only can I schedule everything and keep it organized, but I can manage all of my comments and get analytics on my posts! WHOA BABY! Talk about a photogs dream come true!

#4 – Reminders – I haven’t found an app that will automatically post for you, but Planoly almost does that. It sends you a push notification when it’s time to post AND it copies everything you’ve typed to your clipboard. All you have to do is hit a couple buttons and Boom Shacklacka your post is done!

Yes, Planoly is subscription based, but it’s money well spent to keep my sanity! I hope you find it as helpful too!

Now the only thing I wish I could figure out is my hashtag comment game. That whole … #allofthethings still takes up too much time. Anyone have any recommendations for that? Right now I have all of my favorite #’s saved in notes and then just copy and paste into a template based on what I’m posting, then I copy and paste into Instagram. Tedious, but it works.

XOXOXO,
Mabyn