Zoho Social: In-depth review
Best For:
Pricing:
Top Features
Establish and expand your brand's presence on social media with Zoho Social
Per Month
- Real-time Discussions
- Connections Tab
- SmartIQ scheduling
- Live Streaming Support
- Monitor tab for Social Listening
Individuals, businesses, Agencies
$25
Per Month
- AI-powered scheduling for optimized post-times
- Evergreen Content Marketing
- Advanced team collaboration without extra credentials
- AI-driven posting time Optimization
- Recurring posts to maximize content impact
- Seasonal Libraries
- AI Image generator
No credit card required
Zoho social overview
Zoho Social is a versatile social media management tool designed to help businesses, marketers, and content creators optimize their online presence. It integrates the management of social media profiles, scheduling, and analytics into a centralized platform, making it easier to coordinate digital strategies.
The platform excels at planning, scheduling, and analyzing content across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), LinkedIn, Google Business Profile, and YouTube. Zoho Social offers powerful features like SmartQ Scheduling, CRM integration, and real-time analytics that help refine strategies and improve engagement. Its unified Social Inbox and collaborative social media calendar further simplify the management process.
Overall, Zoho Social simplifies social media marketing with a suite of tools that save time and enhance the effectiveness of campaigns, making it a reliable choice for streamlined management and improved engagement.
Zoho Social ratings
Zoho Social earns a solid 8.0 out of 10 in our evaluation. The platform stands out for its comprehensive features, including SmartQ Scheduling, seamless CRM integration, and collaborative social media calendar, making it a strong contender in the social media management arena.
However, when compared to RecurPost, Zoho Social reveals some gaps, particularly in terms of customer support response times and the lack of advanced analytics like Instagram Stories scheduling. Additionally, Zoho Social could enhance its scalability and user roles management for larger organizations, where it could improve the user experience further.
| Feature | Zoho Social | RecurPost |
| Pricing | 8/10 | 9/10 |
| Users | 8/10 | 10/10 |
| Features | 9/10 | 9/10 |
| Support | 7/10 | 9/10 |
| Scalability | 8/10 | 9/10 |
Positive Reviews
“I love Zoho’s pricing, account management, cross-posting, preview function, and easy scheduling. The analytics are AMAZING!”
“Managing multiple social networks from one place simplifies my workflow.”
“Automated reporting and content scheduling save so much time.”
Negative Reviews
“Zoho doesn’t support carousel, stories, reels, or other video formats.”
“Customer support doesn’t reimburse if you’re unhappy with the product.”
“The UI feels a bit clunky and not as modern as other solutions.”
“Connecting with Facebook and Instagram can be tricky. Zoho should explain it better.”
Zoho Social pros and Cons
Pros
SmartQ Scheduling:
The SmartQ feature automatically suggests the best times to post based on historical audience engagement data, improving reach and visibility.
Seamless CRM Integration:
Integrates directly with Zoho CRM to help identify potential leads from social media interactions and nurture them efficiently.
Collaborative Social Calendar:
The social media calendar enables teams to discuss, approve, and schedule posts collaboratively, ensuring consistent messaging.
Monitor Tab Customization:
Allows users to customize monitoring columns to track specific keywords, hashtags, and brand mentions for more focused engagement.
Unified Connections Tab:
The Connections Tab provides detailed audience profiles and helps identify potential leads by syncing with Zoho CRM.
Cons
Clunky UI:
The user interface feels less modern compared to other similar tools, which can impact user experience.
Complex Facebook Integration:
Connecting with Facebook and Instagram can be tricky, requiring users to log out of personal accounts first.
Basic Analytics:
The analytics, while comprehensive, lack advanced insights and benchmarking features found in other platforms.
Slow Customer Support Response:
Response times from customer support can be slower than expected, which might not suit urgent issues.
Zoho Social Pricing
Zoho Social offers three paid plans for businesses, along with two additional plans for agencies:
Business plans
Standard:
- Pricing: $10/month (billed annually) or $15/month (billed monthly)
- Features:
Home dashboard for centralized social media activity overview
Post-scheduling & calendar
URL shortening
Draft posts
Twitter location management
24-hour email support
(Limitations: Limited data retention and publishing frequency)
Professional:
- Pricing: $30/month (billed annually) or $40/month (billed monthly)
- Features:
Live stream on channels
Schedule retweets & bulk posts
Answer messages in Zoho
Pause & resume campaigns
Custom video thumbnails
Instagram first comment
(Limitations: Limited automation features, user role restrictions)
Premium:
- Pricing: $40/month (billed annually) or $65/month (billed monthly)
- Features:
Workflow feature to visualize campaign progress
Reports dashboard
Custom reports
Traffic source analytics
Click map
Integration with Zoho CRM and Zoho Desk
(Limitations: Higher pricing, team member cap of three)
Agency Plans:
Agency:
- Pricing: $230/month (billed annually) or $255/month (billed monthly)
- Features:
Manage 10 brands
Custom reports and dashboards
White-label reports
Client approval workflows
Unlimited team members
Dedicated account manager
Agency Plus:
- Pricing: $325/month (billed annually) or $365/month (billed monthly)
- Features:
Manage 20 brands
All features included in the Agency plan
Premium support
Zoho Social features
Content Import
Import photos and videos directly from your device to your social media posts
GIFs Gallery and Emoji Quick Access
Access a variety of GIFs and emojis to add some fun to your posts
AI Text Generator and Saved Texts
Quickly generate compelling captions with the AI text generator or add saved texts to your posts
Canva Integration
Create and import eye-catching graphics from Canva directly into your Zoho Social posts
Cloud Picker
Connect Zoho work drive, Google Drive, Onedrive, Box, Dropbox, Evernote, Zoho Notebook and access them within Zoho application for quick access
Social Inbox
Supports messages from Facebook, Twitter (X), Google Business Profile, and Instagram
Respond to comments or messages with saved replies
Create rules, group interactions, and more
Content Scheduling
Schedule posts instantly or set them up for a future time
Use Autolist to automatically and recurrently publish content
Import content via CSV or connect an RSS feed
Reports
Create new templates or reuse existing ones
Download reports as PDF, PNG, or bulk export via CSV
Personalize your reports with your company logo
URL Shortener
Connect your Bitly account to shorten links directly within your captions
Thumbnail for Video Posts
Add a cover image or thumbnail for video posts
Hover over the video, click the menu option, and upload your thumbnail
First Comment
Schedule the first comment for your LinkedIn and Instagram posts
Zapier Integration
Connect Zoho Social with Zapier to automate your publishing queue
Integrate with Google Sheets, Calendar, Trello, Slack, and more
Alt Text
Add alt text to your posts for Twitter (X), Pinterest, and Facebook
Workspace Management
Create separate workspaces for different clients
Assign team members to each workspace
Mobile App
Analyze and generate social media reports on the go with Zoho Social’s mobile app
Competitor Channels
Monitor competitors’ posts and their performance with Zoho Social’s Competitor Channels feature
Team Collaboration
Invite your team to work together
Create approval workflows and assign team roles like Manager, Editor, Analyst, Content Creator, and Client
Social Calendar
Multiple calendar views: List, Day, Week, Month
Export the calendar as a CSV file
Change the timezone as needed
Image Editing
Edit images with tools like crop, filters, fine-tune, stickers, and more
Customer Support
Access blogs for common issues or reach out to customer support
Team Collaboration
Zoho Social offers a Collaborate feature that allows social media teams to work together seamlessly on campaigns and posts. Here’s how it helps:
Real-time Discussions
Team members can discuss social media strategies directly within the platform
Enables tagging colleagues for specific feedback on posts and campaigns
Facilitates real-time decision-making
Approval Workflows
Set up approval workflows to ensure content is reviewed before publishing
Assign posts to specific team members for creation, editing, or approval
Roles and Permissions
Assign distinct roles (Manager, Editor, Analyst, Content Creator, Client) with varying permissions
Manage client access by assigning them specific roles to view and approve posts
Content Calendar Collaboration
View and plan posts in a unified calendar
Leave comments, make suggestions, and adjust schedules to align the content strategy
Reports Sharing
Share social media performance reports directly with team members
Discuss the data within Zoho Social to refine strategies
Connections Tab
The Connections Tab gives a comprehensive view of your audience, providing detailed profiles and allowing direct engagement through comments and messages. Organize followers with tags and lists, and identify leads for targeted campaigns
Monitor Tab
The Monitor Tab keeps track of all your brand mentions, keywords, and hashtags across social networks. This feature allows you to engage with your audience promptly, providing multiple monitoring columns to stay updated on relevant conversations
Conclusion
Zoho Social excels with its SmartQ Scheduling feature, CRM integration, and collaborative social media calendar, making it a robust choice for businesses and agencies needing strong analytics and engagement tools. With the Monitor tab, it provides social listening and brand monitoring across supported platforms like Facebook, Twitter (X), LinkedIn, Instagram, Google Business Profile, and YouTube. The platform also provides a unified Social Inbox to manage messages and comments effectively. While a major drawback of Zoho Social is it doesn’t support Facebook and Instagram profiles, Facebook groups, and TikTok.
While Zoho Social provides an excellent set of features for teams seeking comprehensive social media management and analytics, RecurPost is the preferred choice for businesses aiming to excel in evergreen content marketing and strategic scheduling. RecurPost’s exclusive features like evergreen content libraries, RSS feed integration, and customizable social media plans offer unparalleled value, making it a compelling option for those seeking efficient content management and improved engagement
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Zoho Social free?
Yes, Zoho Social offers a free plan that allows managing one brand and includes basic features like scheduling, URL shortening, and Twitter location management. Paid plans start from $10/month. - Does Zoho Social support Instagram direct posting?
Yes, Zoho Social supports direct posting to Instagram Business profiles, allowing users to schedule and publish posts without a mobile app. - Can Zoho Social integrate with Zoho CRM?
Yes, Zoho Social seamlessly integrates with Zoho CRM, helping businesses identify and engage leads directly from social media interactions. - Which social media platforms does Zoho Social support?
Zoho Social supports Facebook (Pages and Groups), Twitter (X), LinkedIn (Profiles and Company Pages), Instagram (Business Profiles), Google Business Profile, and YouTube. - Does Zoho Social provide analytics and reporting?
Yes, Zoho Social offers detailed analytics and reports, including custom dashboards, downloadable PDF reports, and a traffic source analysis for understanding audience behavior.