Social media is king. It’s where consumers go to hang out, get their news, goof off and shop. It has become the new mall of the 21st century. And it’s bustling. Brands that want to be sure consumers visit their virtual on IRL shop, need to monitor social media as a part of their daily strategy. It’s the way competitors are winning consumers – and you should be too!
Social media isn’t going anywhere, of course, and these stats speak to their popularity:
- There are 78 billion social media users worldwide in 2021
- Roughly two-thirds of U.S. adults (68%) now report that they are Facebook users
- 54% of social browsers use social media to research products
And then there’s the fact that 73% of marketers believe that their efforts through social media marketing have been “somewhat effective” or “very effective” for their business. Monitoring these popular social channels is the first step toward keeping your brand on top with consumers – assuming you deploy the right tactics. Let’s explore!
What is Social Media Monitoring?
Monitoring social media is about keeping any eye on your brand, but more specifically it requires tracking brand mentions so you can respond to any engagement. Keeping a close watch is key to maintaining brand health, as it keeps you aware of any disturbances in the force. You can capture brand mentions from social media posts which don’t tag you – and this applies to a good number of posts. And this helps you maintain your good brand reputation, as one sour customer can leave a mess in their wake.
And there are social monitoring strategies that can apply specifically to small, medium and large-sized businesses. Let’s take a look!
Small Strategies for Bigger Impact
Even for small brands, it’s important to be organized and to take social media seriously. Today, there are 3.78 billion social media users worldwide and a brand that is inconsistent in posting will be passed by. Creating a social media calendar helps, but you have to know which platforms to target – and for that, you’ll need to know where your audience is. Roughly two-thirds of U.S. adults (68%) report that they are Facebook users. Are your customers a part of that number?
Looking at a popular beverage company (below), if they focused only on Facebook, they may be disappointed! Though there are some mentions of this brand there, it’s places like Twitter, Tumblr, Forums and Blogs which captures the attention of this brand’s consumers.
Once you’ve located your audience, it’s time to get to know them. Demographics are an important part of getting your messaging right, if they are young Gen Z than your social media posts need to reflect their voice, not one of a 65-year-old person. Get to know their age, ethnicity, and gender through monitoring social media to discover ways to connect.
Medium-sized Businesses Building Better Consumer Relationships
The bigger the company, the more consumers expect brands to know them and their interests. And this requires an understanding beyond basic demographics. Medium-sized businesses must discover and target consumers by identifying their interests.
For there, they can dialogue and engage with them on their preferred social channels. 54% of social browsers use social media to research products, after all. Monitoring social media for consumer interests allows you to greet them at the door (or on your landing page) with a product they already want, or messaging they were hoping to hear.
For example, below, our bubbles share what our consumers do for a living. These little bites of intel can bring about huge results when used in an authentic and engaging way. Creative arts are the biggest segment. Perhaps this brand could run a design competition for their next product’s packaging. Or maybe they just use this knowledge to create relevant ads which speak to the need their product fills for specific professions.
It’s not all background homework though, social media analytics identifies trends that you can participate in, or get in front of, leading the charge.
TikTok has shown us that consumers want and enjoy brands when they join in on a good hashtag challenge. By monitoring social media, you’ll locate top trends relevant to your brand to take advantage of and enhance your brand awareness.
And speaking of brand awareness, bagging yourself an influencer is a great idea here as well.
With social analytics, you can identify and monitor potential influencers over time to see who will be the best fit for your company. And influencer marketing isn’t just about getting your name out there, it’s also about increasing your revenue. 80% of consumers have purchased something via an influencer recommendation, so getting the right one for your brand is money in the bank.
For example, by monitoring social media for relevant beverage influencers, we see many possible candidates in a variety of categories such as:
- Experts and content influencers such as bloggers, professional and students
- Cultural influencers including fashion, gamers and travel
- Digital influencers on top news sites and top forums
Below are top gamers and Food & Travel influencers with their visitor counts, number of brand-mentions and engagements.
Some brands that come up will be competitors, giving you a sense of the space and how well they’re doing (or not doing) – and how engaged their audience actually is with their content and/or that of the influencers they’re partnering with. This can tell what not to do as well.
Enterprise Democratizing Social Media Access & Insight
As large company, you’ve already done and continue to do everything mentioned above for small and medium businesses. And you fully recognize that monitoring social media is critical and it plays a pivotal role in your success. For large brands, one of the best strategies to maintain, or create, your category-defining presence, is managing your voice.
Consistency is key here – just as consumers want the bag of chips they buy to taste the same from one bag to the next – your brand needs to taste the same across platforms. Having a consistent brand voice is two-fold:
- It shows consumers that your brand is “living up to the company’s mission and following through on its promises.”
- It inspires company confidence, encouraging employees to adopt the company’s culture and vision. And nothing is a bigger advertisement for a company than happy employees.
Employing good engagement management with social media monitoring tools, your whole team has access to your voice online and will help you oversee it, ensuring there’s no deviation from your standards. Everyone will be on the same page and personally invested in its success.
Monitoring social media is interwoven with a brand’s success in today’s social media driven world. And you need powerful, real-time insight information your efforts – so be sure to reach out for a demo. It’s time to get your social media monitoring on track!
