By Krista Turkel | September 20, 2022

Do people speak highly of your brand? Is there a conversation happening in your industry that you’re not a part of? If you can’t easily answer these questions, it’s time to start LISTENING.

So, what is social listening? In short, social listening is a process of tracking and analyzing consumer conversations and mentions of your brand, competitors, or other brand-related keywords. And although that may sound rather simple, social listening is actually quite a complex process.

First, you’re going to want to invest in a capable social listening tool. Software tools like Sprout Social or Social Bakers can help streamline online behavior, help you identify and categorize patterns, and honestly, save you a ton of time. 

Once you’ve done that, it’s time to dive in.

Here are some reasons you should implement social listening into your brand strategy ASAP:

• Social listening can help you understand consumer sentiment. Pay attention to how your customers are speaking about your brand. Consumer sentiment can help give you a better idea of how your brand is perceived publicly. 

• Social listening can help turn an angry customer into a raving fan for life. Responsiveness is KEY! Regardless of whether a customer is raving or ranting about your product or service, timeliness in matters like these is of utmost importance. Here, you can easily connect with your audience, creating a more personal and memorable experience.

• Creating quality content in line with your brand identity is the best way to get your audience to talk and engage with your brand on social. Give your audience something to talk about and they’ll start to engage with you. 

• Social listening can help you find new customers. By searching relevant hashtags and topics, you can proactively engage with potential customers that may not have tried your product before. Here’s a #ProTip: Add some surprise and delight! If you see a user speaking about a need that your brand can fulfill, offer them a discount code, or a free product to encourage them to give your brand a try. More often than not, this will result in a loyal customer for life. 

• Social listening can give you an inside view of how consumers perceive your competitors. This can give you an edge up on understanding what your customer is looking for. 

Social listening is an effective way to gain insight into your industry, what your consumer is looking for, and understand the overall sentiment of your brand in order to boost your business and create a successful customer experience strategy.