Social listening is a way to track, analyze and manage conversations about your brand on social media. It works by tracking mentions and conversations related to your brand, products, and competitors on all relevant social media platforms. Once collected, this data will help you engage with customers and improve your brand’s offerings according to customer feedback.

With it, you get a sneak peek into what people are saying (and thinking) about your brand. It can help you identify issues customers are having with your products.

Oftentimes, customers will express their desire for companies to come out with something new that would better suit their needs. Brands can use that insight gathered through this tactic to inspire future product development efforts.

 

Benefits of Social Listening

Customer Engagement

Hearing what customers have to say about your brand gives you the chance to respond and deliver. Without listening, you probably will not see customers raving (or complaining) about your product on social media.

Listening helps you stay on top of customer service requests, potential website glitches, trends, and more. Plus, responding to comments makes your customers feel valued. Customers want to be heard, and that’s what social listening is all about.

Crisis Management

Social listening also prepares you for potential PR disasters that might come your way. If you’re seeing a flood of negative feedback, that is your cue to address the issue. It helps you get in front of negative sentiment and make the necessary corrections before the crisis becomes overwhelming.

Competitor Tracking

Social listening doesn’t just help you monitor your own brand perception- it also shows you what your target audience is saying about your competitors. With this, you can keep tabs on what your competitors are launching, how their customers are responding, and what you need to do to stay on top.