Marcus RichardsSocial media continues to infiltrate the lives of internet users across the globe. According to the latest figures, social media users have passed the 4.7 billion mark, a 7.8% increase from a year ago and equivalent to 59% of the world’s total population.
More and more people are opting for social media to obtain information rather than search engines. As a result, the number of social media network inquiries has increased by around 77% over the past years.
There’s no issue with that at all. It’s just that several online businesses can’t leverage their social media monitoring very well. If you’re one of them, you’re in the right place. Here are some effective ways to improve social media monitoring.
Track Brand Mentions
One of the ways to make your brand popular in no time is by promoting a positive feedback loop. When a company’s name, service, or product is tagged or linked on social media, it gets factored into its organic search value. From there, it turns into positive SEO leads that can prompt increased visibility, which, in turn, triggers more mentions and then again increases SEO value, and the cycle continues.
A successful outreach campaign doesn’t automatically cause a heavy volume of brand mentions. However, it can also indicate a potential crisis. Hence, tracking all your brand mentions with and without links is a must, especially when you want a more holistic view of your brand’s social media positioning.
Trace Brand-Adjacent Terms
Micro-target people who you find using similar terms to your brand. Start tactfully and use likable articles. Carefully gauge their intent rather than swamping them with pushy messages. When starting a conversation, especially with people who haven’t mentioned your brand, always strike the right balance.
Respond to Your Customer Needs
Customers nowadays expect you to respond to their queries 24/7. They tend to demand brands solve sales, marketing, and customer service issues within minutes. If you don’t meet their needs promptly, they won’t waver to switch their loyalty to competing brands.
Being unavailable isn’t an option for brands, especially in a competitive market. That’s why social listening is deemed necessary. You have to actively listen to your clients and engage in meaningful, two-way communication.
Monitor Customer Sentiments
Many of the best product ideas come from your target audiences. Crowdsource actionable insights on content, products, and pricing from your customers with a vested interest in your brand. At least to public perception, doing so offers you a better sense of in what direction your brand is headed. You can employ their sentiment in your product roadmap.
Your clients’ sentiments can also give you a top-level view of your brand’s performance. A high volume of brand mentions is great, but it’s not a good sign if negative sentiments accompany them. In this case, you have to improve your customer service to prevent the snowball effect.
On the other hand, your business experiences low brand awareness if you’re getting a low volume of brand mentions with positive sentiments. If this happens, it’s recommended to accelerate and improve your marketing efforts.
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Run Competitors’ Analysis
Remembering to be mindful of your business competitors has always been a rule of thumb. Social monitoring is crucial to that effort. Inspect your competitors’ brand mentions the same way you do your own.
Competitors’ brand mentions usually appear in search results whenever you set up alerts for keywords in your market niche. Check their product ideas, customer feedback, unique marketing strategies, and tactical mistakes.
Negative sentiments from your competitors’ customers can serve as additional business opportunities for your brand. You can win over these dissatisfied customers by offering them better deals and competitive prices, but don’t reach them directly. Instead, make a soft pitch, ideally through influencers or brand advocates. It won’t make your brand look aggressive or desperate, which can be a total turn-off to other potential customers.
Final Thoughts
Social Media Monitoring Strategy can make a big impact on your marketing tactics. It gives you a clearer understanding of how your existing and potential clients discuss your brand, what are the best product ideas, and how your competitors do their business.
All of these can give your brand reputation management opportunities. Follow the steps above and give your brand a competitive advantage!
