HootSuite Adds Automatic Scheduling

The world of technology is filled with surprises, some good and some bad. I wrote earlier this month about the bad surprise I received when I opened my iGoogle page. This past week, I was delighted by an enhancement in HootSuite.

I use HootSuite to organize my Twitter feed. I also use it when I compose tweets, because it allows me to schedule a date and time for that tweet to post. HootSuite also allows me to schedule the same information to post on Facebook at that same date and time. Furthermore, HootSuite provides me a little "Hootlet," which resides on my browser's toolbar. When I read an article on the Internet and decide at that moment I want to share with others, I click the Hootlet. A box populates with the title and URL for the article. I then designate whether I want to it to post to Twitter, Facebook, or both, as well as choosing the date and time.

HootSuite made things even easier. They have introduced "AutoSchedule." Instead of choosing a date and time, HootSuite will handle that decision for me, scheduling my tweet to post at what it says are the best times. I do not fully understand the algorithm it uses. I do know that the best times to post on Twitter (between around 9:00-3:00) and the best times to post on Facebook (early evening) are different. So far, I am seeing that if I schedule a tweet to post on both platforms, HootSuite assigns one time for it to post on Twitter and a different time for Facebook.

The new AutoSchedule feature in HootSuite will sound a great deal like a service called "Buffer," which also schedules your Twitter posts. Buffer is free for up to 10 tweets scheduled at any one time. The HootSuite AutoSchedule imposes no such restrictions.



Technology is full of surprises. This one is very welcomed, and one I see myself using extensively to simplify life for me, and to offer an better experience for those who follow my posts on Twitter and Facebook.