Half of a Digital Strategist’s job is knowing which tools are available to make our jobs faster, better, smoother and easier. And, really, there is no one perfect tool for digital wizardry. Oftentimes it comes down to utilizing the right combination of tools.

Whether you’re a freelancer, strategist or account manager, the following tools can benefit your digital strategy.

DISCLAIMER: No, I am not affiliated in any way with these companies. These are just a few tools I find quite useful. 

Buzzsumo

Buzzsumo is the ultimate tool when developing a digital strategy built around high-performing content.

  • Discover exactly which online influencers are relevant.
  • See what kind content is receiving a high number of shares.
  • Customize the display to prioritize data for your own content strategy.

Pro tip : Find, listen, respond and build relationships with top influencers as a long ­game strategy.

Canva

Canva lets you easily create and edit graphics at any size for any purpose. It’s a must have for any digital marketer who needs graphics on the fly while working on a budget.

  • Very user-friendly (especially for social media and SEM display ads).
  • Comes with preloaded templates sized to almost any social network’s required file sizes and formats.
  • Enables collaboration on designs (comments and ‘open to edit’ function).

Pro tip:  Save room on your Mac or PC by deleting PhotoShop.

SEMrush

SEMrush While the premium use of this tool can be quite costly, the information is extremely valuable, especially for high ­revenue clients.

  • Get info on roughly how much a company is spending on AdWords.
  • See how healthy a SEO rank is compared to industry-­wide averages.
  • Get analysis of a clients’ competitors in SEO, SEM, and more.

Pro tip: Try to match a significant dip in organic search traffic with a Google algorithm update, which may indicate that a competitor was in violation of Google’s design, technical or quality guidelines at some point.

MOZ

MOZ This all-in-one SEO companion offers a seemingly infinite pool of SEO tools that can cater to your digital strategy.

  • Fits a variety of budgets — from free SEO tools to their premium toolkit (MOZ Pro).
  • Site audits, keyword analysis and rank tracking across 170+ search engines.
  • Dedicated to SEO training and community building.

Pro tip: Peek MOZ’s tutorial videos! Not only will they help you to get the most out of each tool, but they can fast-track you knowing whether or not a particular tool fits into your digital strategy.

If This Then That

If This Then That is a powerful automation tool that connects with almost any social network, plug­in, API and site. Basically, it does nearly everything.

  • Embed relevant brands into your customer facing apps.
  • Auto­post Facebook updates to Google+; autopost to Twitter when streaming on Twitch; autoload Instagram photos to a Facebook album (you get the idea).
  • Connect to weather apps so your lawn doesn’t get overwatered if it rains; close you garage door from the other side of town.

Pro tip: IFTTT will send you instant notifications from the CDC in the event of a zombie apocalypse! 

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