New programs, services, applications and tools are coming to market at a dizzying rate. There’s not enough time in anyone’s life to do it all. So, you have to choose what works best for what you want to get done.

During May, my team and I participated in the Hootsuite University program, achieving the Hootsuite Professional certification. This is a membership program with a monthly subscription fee providing an introduction to Hootsuite’s tools and best practices. We completed our certification May 28 and loved the program!

Hootsuite is an easy to use online new media service helping users maintain multiple media streams (social media accounts, blogs, etc.) from one screen. You can send messages to one or all registered accounts, and view multiple columns of replies, keyword tracking and much more. Hootsuite allows users to schedule messages for sending later, which is the feature I like the most. It makes it convenient for businesses who want to maintain their online visibility to send messages when they are actually busy running their business, best of both worlds!

Hootsuite is an online service, no downloads, no upgrades, no hassles. It is the service I recommend to new users because of the simplicity and a service I recommend to experienced users because of the layers of data that can be mined. URL shortening, keyword tracking, conversation management, Hootsuite has it all! If you think this is an advertisement, you are wrong. I really believe in this tool and the value it provides to users. (After achieving the Hootsuite Professionals certification, I did discontinue that membership but only because I felt I reached my goal and got the results I wanted for my investment.) If you have a Hootsuite success story or challenge, please share it by commenting here.

What services are working best for your business? Individual professionals each have a technology comfort zone. Do you prefer to post live direct to services like Facebook and LinkedIn or do you manage your new media from a desktop application like Tweetdeck or SocialOomph? Limiting time spent online has led me to greater focus and better results. Using Hootsuite has allowed me to focus on creating timely messages that meet my goals and provide value to my networks.

Thanks for reading and I look forward to hearing about what is working in new media for you!