UPDATE: this Post Planner feature has been deprecated and is no longer available. I’m leaving this post up to show you why I’ve been such a fan of theirs forEVER.
Color me enchanted
I wrote a while back about why I like Post Planner so much as a way to schedule posts to Facebook (have you tried it yet?).
Let me tell you right now that if you haven’t, you should, and that there is a special offer waaay down the post for you.
Yesterday, Josh Parkinson of Go West Social, one of the people behind Post Planner, did something absolutely wonderful for me; so wonderful, that I’m still reeling from his generosity.
They created a white label version of it for me. Free. Forever!
Maybe you’re yawning and wondering why this is so cool. I’ll tell you why:
Now, thanks to my very own “Waxing UnLyrical Post Planner app” (which shows up in my Facebook left sidebar), I have the option of having my Facebook posts come “via” Waxing UnLyrical.
That means I get my logo at the bottom of the post instead of the Post Planner icon (or, if I were posting from HootSuite, for example, the HootSuite icon), and a branded footer link back to my blog … or any URL I choose. This can be a custom landing page (if I have a special deal I want to share), my blog home page, whatever I want.
Kewl!
Here’s how Post Planner White Label works.
(And there’s a special offer in this for you as well … and yes, you have to keep reading first). No, it’s not free, but it’s very reasonably priced and I think it’s worth it (and please consider yourself disclosed that I have been given this free, but with no strings attached, see para 2 above).
1. First, you sign up for PPWL. When PPWL is launched to the public, it will cost $19.95 a month (September-ish). So you’ll have to enter your credit card info (but it won’t cost you that much).
2. Once your transaction’s been processed, you fill out a simple form that tells Josh and Julie (the other half of the PP Dynamic Duo) how you want your app to be named, the URL you want to redirect to, and so on. All very easy.
3. PP builds the app for you and emails you the install link and instructions within 24 hours. It literally installs in minutes, and boom, you’re done.
See how it works on Guy Kawasaki’s Facebook Page:
It’s that simple.
During the redirect, you’ll be taken temporarily to an app page with the name of your app, which then redirects in a few seconds to your landing page. Apparently this is the only way to do this right now.
In Josh’s words, here’s why this is so cool:
“The app is completely exclusive to you. No one … and I mean not a single other person… will be using your app. It’s all yours. This prevents any chance of collapsing it in the News Feed [as frequently happens if multiple people are posting from, say, Twitter or HootSuite].”
And even though you’re using Post Planner to potentially post to multiple profiles/Pages/Groups, Josh said that to date, they’ve never seen two such posts collapse into one in the News Feed.
So, outside of the obvious scheduling, branding and redirect advantages, you’re also increasing your chances that your posts will be seen and, hopefully, read by more people.
What if you want to change your URL (the one you want to redirect to), or any other aspect of your app?
No problem. Just email Post Planner and they’ll take care of it for you. And you won’t have to pay over again if, say, you want to switch your landing page after a few months (say you have a new promotion).
Two things you should be aware of:
First, once your white label app is installed, it will show up in your left menu along with the “regular” Post Planner icon. That “normal” app is still there. So to ensure that your posts are coming via your custom app, click on that icon to schedule your posts. If you click on the other one, your posts will not show up as coming from your white label app.
Also, say you’re the admin for several Facebook Pages, or Groups. You may not want posts to all of them coming via your white label app. But Post Planner remembers only the last app (out of your PP options) that you visited.
So if you want to schedule some posts via your custom app for certain Pages/Groups, and then others via the regular app, they will all show up as coming from the last app you visited (custom or regular).
However, the beauty of the white label app is the branding, redirect, etc., that I’ve already talked about … and if that’s what you’re interested in (I know I am), then you probably won’t have to worry about this.
Finally! The Deal!
As I said earlier, when Post Planner launches to the public, it will be priced at $19.95 a month. Right now their current customers are being offered a chance to lock their price in at $14.95 a month through the end of August.
But YOU get $2 more off if you sign up by 11:59 pm PT on Sunday, July 31. So that’s a lifetime price of $12.95 a month. Which is extremely reasonable, I think. And yes, you can cancel at any time, you’re not locked into an annual contract or anything like that.
You just enter the coupon code PRELAUNCH1 when you sign up (remember, if you want the custom app, and the deal, you have to do so by 11:59 pm PT on Sunday, July 31).
You know what I just realized? I’d probably be very good at making infomercials! Ahem, please stand by while I get my Billy Mays on …
Seriously, though. Initially I heard of the offer yesterday morning via an email from them (the one they sent to their current customers). But when, of their own accord, they created my app for me, and then worked out a few bugs very quickly (I swear, these guys might rival Livefyre for their customer service), I asked if I could share it with you. At which point Josh gave me the green light.
So. There you have it. A really cool deal on a really cool app.
Do let me know if you sign up, and how it works for you. And if you think your colleagues/friends would like this, by all means share it with them too (don’t share it with your enemies, go ahead and get a leg up on them, ha!).
Thank you, Josh and Julie!
Top image via JesusBranch on Flickr, CC 2.0
[…] For you, it might be creating a way for businesses (and people) to use Facebook more efficiently, that is also fun. Say, what the Post Planner folk are doing. […]
Thank you thank you thank you.
I know I give my all with valueable blog posts,
killer content, & heart to the groups I post in…
…Hootsuite is becoming frowned upon…
& I just have too many groups (hundreds) to post to.
This is the solution I was looking for.
Much love,
David
@DavidEmilLombard Glad you found the post useful! I’m in a lot of groups too, but there are very few I automate posting to – in fact, none right now. I think automation and scheduling are terrific, but I am still wary of using it so much that I come off like a spammer.
Hey tinu … I forget… since I wrote this post, did you start using Post Planner?
@Shonali def stay clear of appearing as a spammer. I made my branding name just David ; ) My posts are all free training & value, so this is perfect
[…] nothing like having your own branded footer, as I wrote about a while […]
[…] For you, it might be creating a way for businesses (and people) to use Facebook more efficiently, that is also fun. Say, what the Post Planner folk are doing. […]
@mgboydcom You’re most welcome!
Im intrigued! Love giving these sorts of apps a go, but it’ll be tough competition: i’ve just started using @socialsprout and am gushing over the design like the demographics summary charts. Great of Go West Social – they obviously breathe the ‘social’ not just code it. Thanks for the screen grabs, will put it on the trial list.
[…] Why Post Planner White Label Has Me Enchanted […]
@socialbrite Thanks for sharing! I think this is SUCH a great app and deal.
@kikilitalien You did! Oh, that’s excellent! Isn’t it nifty?
@shonali I tried out the app and just signed up for the white label version…great opportunity! :) Thanks for sharing the promo code.
@HowieSPM@Shonali that makes much more sense, though I have seen a lot of success as well with some larger brands, and even larger non-profits. One of my clients is an international non-profit and they were able to raise a lot of funds as a result of a strong Facebook presence.
And yes, i think sales, and even traditional marketing are not the intent of SM. It’s much better as a customer service/experience tool. A relationship builder and strengthener.
@Shonali Yeah, but I’m still cheap. Haha.
@Shonali@KenMueller just to be clear I am much more bullish on Brand Pages for small and local biz than for National who really need scale to move product.
I also feel all businesses should have them (and twitter) simply because they are so cheap for customer service. Chobani whom anyone who follows me on Twitter and Facebook knows is the only brand page I engage with actively does this great. People complain of a bad cup or missing fruit and they get this fixed quickly and easily. We all know companies have phone numbers and customer help lines but often we think ‘will be in hold’ or is this enough of an issue to call. But a quick tweet or wall post works. And even better they can’t come to FB for customer service unless they fan you.
My views on FB are mostly on the sales/moving product side vs they have no value. Many of the pundits and gurus try to push the sales angle. Social is not about sales in my view. Except individuals yes we can via networking etc,
@shakirahdawud You’re so welcome, I’d love to know what you think!
@ginidietrich I love it.
Oh, I’ll have to look at it on my iPhone! Gini – yes, please!
@KenMueller I thought you’d be the first to jump at it! Yes, the $5-20 subs can add up, so I go through mine periodically. This one, though, I’d pay for if I had to. It’s just too beautiful and such a brilliant idea. I’m going to try to schedule more posts, and watch the traffic to my blog, to see what it does, at least on that end.
The problem with the cross-platform apps is that they get collapsed in your News Feed. Earlier I tried cross-posting from Amplify (when I was active on Amplify), and they were also one of the first to introduce a very innovative way of posting to Facebook – the image would show up much more nicely than from, say, HootSuite. But then you have the same potential collapsing problem.
Now, if Post Planner can add tagging into its app (and I know they’ve told me before that that’s more to do with what Facebook does/doesn’t currently allow), then I think it’ll be really killer. For me, I’ve seen tagging really works, if you do it well.
@HowieSPM But you’re honest. :)
See, for me – and granted, I don’t work with big brands at the moment – the Facebook Page activity is great and all, but at the end of the day, I want people to take the action my clients need. That won’t happen all the time, which is where the nurturing of the community comes in.
I’m going to go like “Chunk-n-Chip”!
I love the idea, but not willing to pay. Is it worth it for me? probably not. I know @HowieSPM doesn’t think much of Facebook pages, but I love them. I’ve seen how they can really be an integral part of an integrated marketing approach that takes hold. I’ve watched it happen with some clients, one in particular that was a non-entity and now has a rather high profile locally.
I just need something that works cross platform and isn’t cost prohibitive. too many things that cost anywhere from 5 to 20 bucks a month, and it really adds up. Just not sure I can justify it.
@kikilitalien Thanks for sharing that! Did you try it yet?
This looks cool. Even on the iPhone.
@Shonalipostplanner
The Facebook Alogrithm that weeds out from people’s feeds the posts they feel are most important (Top News vs Most Recent) is burying posts. Partially because the default is Top News.
I always wonder why with almost 2000 fans we don’t get more Likes when we post especially when we have such rabid fans. I have been driving traffic to facebook (not getting as many Likes of the page) by posting photos and fliers on Facebook then posting those to Twitter (so twitter is giving us way more traffic than the existing Fan base on Facebook).
I am always analyzing brand pages big and small. I see number of fans and how many react to the posts. The % is always so small it is almost zero. But when the people I talk with say is they are getting results and view it from a bottom up vs top down.
For example I can say bottom up: I am getting 10-20 people participating isn’t that great. Vs Top down (above big picture) I have 2000 Fans why only 10-20?
The reason is Facebook wants you buying Facebook Ads. No one would buy them if Brand pages worked.
I see eventually Bigger brands migrating back to their websites and just use Facebook to pull people their vs having them stay on the page. And for a big brand with 1m + fans getting 2,000 comments to a post while only 0.2% is very valuable for insight purposes. So it’s not a waste of time. It just isn’t growing sales which is what Brands are being sold by the big Social Media Wonks. The emails I have traded with some people who work at Fortune 500 Brands about Facebook, for the most part is they think marketing via Brand pages is a charade. But then you know me and of course who would I befriend right? So could be a very biased view! LOL
Ohhh! I’ll have to show Molli Megasko too!
highlight in yellow?… not sure, let me try a few things :)
Btw, Joshua, Howie HouseMusic has a couple of questions for you in his comment on the post. :)
Oh, that’s MUCH better, Josh. Hmm… is there a way to bring make that copy even more prominent?
check the redirect now… and let me know what you think
@shonali :-)
@kikscore Thanks so much for sharing! Are you going to sign up? :)
I dig it so much I’m well on my way tunneling to China!
@postplanner @LiveJulie Well, many thanks to both of you!
@postplanner @LiveJulie Well, many thanks to both of you!
thought you’d dig that :)
Also, I love that my logo shows up in the notifications. It’s so cute!
Awesome!… thanks, Shonali!
Justin, Aseem and Mary, this is what I was talking about yesterday with the “test post.” Check it out. I LOVE this. Oh – Gini, Joe, you should too! Thanks again Joshua!
@HowieSPM Those are really good questions, Howie. I’ll wait for the postplanner folks to reply directly, since they know their product best.
I’m curious – what is your experience re: Facebook and specifically Chunk-n-Chip?
The thing I like about this is that even if I don’t use it for brands, per se, I can use it to drive traffic to my blog, or whatever I want. So it can be as helpful to me from that point of view. And when you add in the posting to profile + different pages, groups, etc. – I just think that’s killer.
I use some scheduled tweets via HootSuite too, but I only post those to Twitter, because of the issue with them getting hidden in Facebook’s News Feed, if many people are posting. So that’s another reason I like Post Planner.
I must admit I never went through with using the App after they were so nice answering my questions. It has been on my mind. Especially since I don’t do mobile Facebook on my phone only Twitter and G+ so if I am traveling I can’t post for Chunk-n-Chip. Hopefully this fall I won’t be running much of their page. And even better hoping to leave Facebook if I can, even if G+ fizzles. But I have been contemplating using the APP as much as I hate using any Facebook APPS it could be of help to me at this time.
My question for the Post Planner folks is I am being very vocal that Facebook Brand Pages don’t work. I have been now for over a year. What happens if my view takes hold or Facebook fades do they have a plan to take this technology and integrate it into other platforms? I use Scheduled Tweets in Hootsuite all the time.
I must admit I never went through with using the App after they were so nice answering my questions. It has been on my mind. Especially since I don’t do mobile Facebook on my phone only Twitter and G+ so if I am traveling I can’t post for Chunk-n-Chip. Hopefully this fall I won’t be running much of their page. And even better hoping to leave Facebook if I can, even if G+ fizzles. But I have been contemplating using the APP as much as I hate using any Facebook APPS it could be of help to me at this time.
My question for the Post Planner folks is I am being very vocal that Facebook Brand Pages don’t work. I have been now for over a year. What happens if my view takes hold or Facebook fades do they have a plan to take this technology and integrate it into other platforms? I use Scheduled Tweets in Hootsuite all the time.