Can Social Media Listening Really Make a Difference For My Business?

If you are online in any capacity, from having a social media account of your own to having a fully-fledged website for your business, you need to be listening to what people are saying about your business online. What they say, even if it is far away from your business, matters. Out there in the world, people are posting statuses, pictures, checking in, using hashtags, and more that relate back to your business. Do you know what they are saying and why they are saying it?

What Does Social Media Listening Mean?

Social media listening means looking for people who are talking about your business in one form or another and seeing what they are saying about you. It also means listening to what people are saying about your industry and your competitors on social media. Everywhere online, but on social media especially, you are opening the door for a conversation. If you are just shouting into the void, you are not using social media properly. You should want to be part of the conversation—this is how you’ll get noticed. But it can only really be a conversation if you are paying attention to what other people are saying and are responding to it just as much as you are just adding your two cents to a topic.

How do I Know What People Are Saying About Me On Social Media?

In order to be able to listen to your customers, you have to know how to find what they are saying. There are lots of ways to this, the first being to simply search for it. When was the last time you ran a google search about your business? This is the very first place you should start. You might just find people who are tweeting and posting about you, in addition to publications that have written about you.
The second place to look is on your social media page itself. This is where people will likely come to ask questions and leave comments. It’s important to pay attention to what people say on your social media accounts, as this will reflect back onto your business even if you didn’t actually say it yourself. Answer questions quickly and appropriately, shut down bullying or any other unacceptable behavior, and make note of trends you notice in comments or questions.
A third place to see what people are saying about you? Review websites. These used to be just for restaurants, but just about every business is now getting the review treatment. If someone else has created a listing for you, claim it and pay attention to what people are saying about you on these sites.

Another great place to look is in relevant hashtags. You might search a hashtag that is directly related to your business, or you might just want to look at hashtags that are relevant to your industry. While you might not be specifically mentioned in these tweets and posts, this is still a good way to see what people are talking about in your industry. You can get involved in the conversation, glean an understanding of what your customers are concerned about, and make sure that you know what the cool kids are talking about.

You might also want to consider setting up a monitoring tool. There are lots to choose from, the most basic being Google Alerts. These tools allow you to choose a specific topic that you want to be informed about, and then all you have to do is to check the tool to see what is being talked about in relation to that topic. In addition to Google Alerts, there is Social Mention, Mention, Talkwalker, and Hootsuite, among others.

Why Bother With Social Listening?

You aren’t just looking for information that will make your marketing more effective. You are looking for information that will actually make you a more effective company. When you are tapped into the scuttlebutt of your industry, you can provide better products and services, are more sensitive to the needs of your customers or clients, are much better at customer service, and are simply able to stay current. When you listen to social media, you hear what people are talking about right now, allowing you to adapt to it and make sure that you are prepared for oncoming changes.

You’ll find your own roadblocks, find areas that you can celebrate, find new opportunities for marketing or simply improve how you handle your customer questions or complaints via social media. These are all worthy goals that can be accomplished by upping your social media listening game.