2 Free Digital Tools To Get More Out of Bluesky
If you're looking to dig into this buzzy new(ish) platform, today's tools will help!
Hey there!
Twitter’s been a HUGE part of my life for soooo long. But it just keeps getting worse. So, like so many others, I’ve been on the lookout for a replacement.
Bluesky isn’t a full replacement for Twitter, but it’s the closest platform I’ve found to date.
I recently dropped an episode of Step Up Your Social (one of my two podcasts) called:
Like all eps of SUYS, it’s less than 10 minutes long.
In it, I answer the what, the why and the how. Or whatever.
Check it out today, if you’re looking to learn more about this platform.
And of course connect with me while you’re there.
Know anyone who might appreciate what we’re doing here? Invite them to join us! As you know, we’re all really nice, and cool, and we all LOVE free digital tools!
But of course, we’re not here to talk about Bluesky. We’re here to talk about free digital tools that will help you get more out of the platform!
So let’s dive in.
Deck.Blue
Tool type: Web App
One of my very first episodes of Step Up Your Social was about Twitter lists. I loved (and still love!) them. They help make order out of the chaos. Bluesky also has lists and they work just like Twitter.
You can listen to that episode here.
While lists are great, there was a free tool that made Twitter lists FAR MORE POWERFUL! It was called TweetDeck. I discuss it in that episode.
Surprise, surprise, Elon killed off TweetDeck, just like he destroyed so much of what once made Twitter great.
The product still exists under a different name, but now it’s only available if you’re a paying member. Which I’m not.
But Bluesky has a TweetDeck alternative called Deck.Blue and it’s great (and, of course, free)!
Just like with TweetDeck, you build your lists, add your columns, and bang: you have a 30,000-foot view of what’s happening on Bluesky at any given moment.
As you can see I have a column for my home feed, another for a Wisconsin list I built, a third set to Discover and another showing me content that’s Popular with Friends.
Instead of endlessly scrolling, build your lists, set your columns and drink it all in. 🫗
FREE or FREEmium: FREE
This tool is totally free to use without restrictions.
TrendSpotter
Tool type: Web App
Want to know what’s trending on Bluesky? The platform did just recently roll out trending topics, which is nice. But it’s pretty light at the moment.
If you want more, head on over to TrendSpotter.blue.
You can search any keyword and see what’s happening on any given topic for the last hour, the last four hours or the last 24 hours.
It will then show you a series of posts, weighted by engagement.
Super easy to use, and a helpful way to see what people are talking about in real time.
FREE or FREEmium: FREE
Totally free to use. If you want to run a deep search, they do warn it “may hit API usage limits faster.” But that doesn’t seem to be about charging you (there’s not even a login required to access the tool), but rather slowing down how quickly you can access the data.
Whether you’re on Bluesky, thinking about joining, or just wondering what the heck this platform is, I hope this was helpful!
If you are on Bluesky, or plan to join, definitely connect with me.
Happy Skeeting (I actually never used that word, but that’s what some folks call posts on Bluesky lol)
If you like Free Digital Tools, you probably know others who will too. Invite them to join us. They’ll appreciate it… as will I!
See you in a fortnight.
Josh
joshklemons.com