Running a marketing agency requires some serious expertise. You have to have knowledge across marketing strategy, B2B and B2C communication, client relationships, closing sales, and a heck of a lot more. Fortunately, we are in the digital age — giving us access to many software tools to help us out with our work. These tools automate many of our company’s essential aspects allowing us to focus on what matters most: clients.
You, too, can use digital marketing tools to increase efficiency and workflow. Understanding how to best utilize these tools will bring your brand to the top of the list of successful marketing agencies. That’s why we wanted to share a few of our tools compared to their top competitors, which might give your business a competitive edge.
Project Management
When it comes to organizing and delivering literally everything you can think of related to project management, there’s Asana — and we’re in love. Asana has a modern and easy-to-use interface that includes scheduling, messaging, and reporting functions. Asana makes staying on top of deadlines easy and allows you to track the progress of your coworkers. We prefer Asana to programs like Monday.com because it offers more useful features and versatility for our company.
Asana | Monday.com | |
Integrations | 200+ integrations with unlimited annual actions | 50+ integrations with monthly action limitations |
Setup | Task, project, and dashboard templates with customizable availability | Templates and prebuilt products for specific uses |
Storage | Unlimited projects, tasks, and storage across all plans | Limits on file storage |
Workflow Management | List, calendar, Gantt, and kanban views available | Calendar, chart, Gantt, kanban, and timeline views available. |
Pricing | Basic is free forever Premium begins at $10.99 per month Business starts at $24.99 per month | Individual is free forever Basic begins at $8 per month Standard starts at $10 per monthPro starts at $16 per month |
Internal Communications
Is there anything more seamless and integrated for internal communications than Slack? We’re not so sure. Slack is the spot (seriously) for direct, instant messaging that our employees use whether they’re working in the office or from home (or both, as is often the case). Slack allows you to message others in “channels” or via direct messages. (Our favorite channel is “#pets”, of course, because who doesn’t want to look at all the fur babies?) Slack also opens the door for different workspaces, allowing you to communicate with clients outside your organization by inviting them to special channels. It’s intuitive, straightforward, and makes chatting all day a breeze.
Slack | Microsoft Teams | |
Guest Access | Unlimited collaboration with users for paid plans | Limited to five per account, even for paid plans |
Accessibility | Better for smaller businesses, with more task-specific capabilities and messaging intimacy | More useful for larger businesses, with extra features for big corporations and broader messaging capabilities |
In-app Help | Slackbot, an in-app help bot with search capabilities that provides information related to app navigation and usage | Help icon with links to Topics, Training, and “What’s New” with Microsoft Teams |
Pricing | Free is free forever Pro begins at $7.25 per month Business+ starts at $12.50 per month | Microsoft Teams Essentials is $4 a month Microsoft 365 Business Basic begins at $6 per month Microsoft 365 Business Standard starts at $12.50 per month per user. |
External Communications
We prefer using Google Workspace for external communications. With an array of programs like Google Drive, Sheets, Meet, etc., Google Workspace makes everyday operations like sharing documents and arranging video calls simple. In an era where digital literacy is essential, Google Workspace’s basic interface is accessible and intuitive for almost all users. It has been a universal platform for businesses under 500 members since 2020.
Google Workspace | ClickUp | |
Functions | Full set of collaboration and productivity tools including Docs, Sheets, Meet, Slides, Calendar, etc. | ClickUp Docs, document sharing, whiteboards, and chat |
Features | Features across various apps that allow for specialization of tasks and communication efforts | Plan, track, and manage any type of work with project management tools Advanced features may be overwhelming to newer users |
Pricing | Business Starter Plan begins at $6 per month Business Standard Plan starts at $12 per month | Free Trial is free forever Unlimited Plan begins at $5 per month Business Plan starts at $12 per month |
Graphic Design
Every digital marketer knows that eye-catching, well-produced graphics and videos have become two of the most essential assets. Programs like Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator can make successful graphic design tricky because they often require a specialized skill set. Enter Canva, a simple-but-powerful tool for graphic designing. Its intuitive interface produces anything from social media posts to blog content. Even better? It doesn’t require an incredibly specialized skill set: a few tutorial videos, and you’re in like sin.
| Canva | Photoshop | |
Functions | Web-based graphic design platform for non-designers to create content in minutes | Powerful photo editing and graphic design software for professionals that can take hours to perfect |
Features | Offers millions of stock photos, videos, audios, templates, and graphic elements for designs | Does not offer ready-made templates, stock images/videos, but offers more graphic design and editing features |
Pricing | Canva Free is free forever but has limitations Canva Pro costs $12.99 per month for up to five users | Photoshop’s Single App Plan costs $20.99 per month |
Grammar Check
Competency in communication is everything in marketing. And thankfully, there’s Grammarly, a useful tool to assist the proofreading and editing process of the content you create. While Grammarly can be a bit rigid with its suggestions, it works wonders to ensure the writing has proper flow and delivery, as well as correct spelling and grammar. The Pro version also checks for plagiarism and has customizable editing options.
| Grammarly | ProWritingAid | |
Functions | Focuses on content’s punctuation, grammar, and clarity Offers suggestions to resolve simple errors | Focuses on content’s syntax, structure, and style Explains in-text suggestions |
Features | Offers many features with free version Good for checking short articles, emails, and documents quickly | Very limited features with free version Good for longer form writing as it checks for overuse and repetition |
| Pricing | Free Plan is free forever. Premium Plan costs $12 a monthBusiness Plan starts at $15 a month per member | Free Plan is free forever. Premium Plan costs $10 a month, billed yearly $120 |
Social Scheduling
If you’ve ever underestimated how long it will take you to feed the social media beast, you’re not alone. That’s why we are grateful for Buffer, an excellent and reliable program for our social scheduling processes. Buffer covers all our primary social media platforms — Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn — and many more. Scheduling social media content takes work off your plate and optimizes posting efficiency.
Buffer | SocialPilot | |
Functions | Allows you to connect to major platforms like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc. | Allows you to connect to major platforms like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc. |
Features | Easy to use, publishing and post scheduling features available Free accounts available | Connects with all social network platforms including Facebook ads Canva integration feature |
Pricing | Essentials Plan costs $6 per month Team Plan costs $12 a month Agency Plan costs $120 a month | Professional Plan costs $25 per month Small Team Plan costs $42 a month Agency Plan costs $85 a month |
Implementing digital marketing tools will modernize your agency and increase your employee’s productivity and efficiency. Whatever tools you decide on (and we’ve only named a few!), the key is to use them consistently. The better organized you are, the better your company will perform — and the more revenue you’ll see in the bank.
Click here for more information about the digital marketing tools we use at Vuepoint. You can also sign up for a consultation or join our newsletter!
