Communication is as much about listening as it is talking and Social is no exception. The amount of content being created and published on a daily basis is huge, take a look a snapshot of daily life on the Social web.
Each minute there are:-
600,000 logins on Facebook
67,000 photos uploaded to Instagram
433,000 tweets posted
And that’s just a large tip of an enormous iceberg.
In 2015 the Content Marketing Institute reported that B2B marketers were publishing 70% more content than in the previous year and this is a trend that is only going in one direction.
US Marketing expert Mark Schaefer calls this phenomenon “Content Shock” and it can be overwhelming when you’re trying to be a part of the Social conversation.
This is why I say that:-
SOMETIMES IT’S GOOD TO STOP TALKING AND START LISTENING.
Social listening can be hugely beneficial when you take a step back and focus on making sense of the content that is relevant to your business rather than constantly creating more content to throw into the pot. It is about searching the web and the social space to see what’s being said about your company, your competitors and other topics relevant and important to you and your business.
GENERATE NEW LEADS
Social listening enables you to monitor keywords associated with your business to find users who having problems and asking questions or perhaps experiencing difficulties with a competitor. You can make contact with them and ask how you can help. This also gives you the chance to pitch your business’ benefits and expertise.
FIND NEW CUSTOMERS
You can do this by setting up keyword searches that will constantly track across any Social channels or forums you are part of. Be careful to select the keywords that will give you the most beneficial search returns. You can then join the discussion and find out more information.
Hootsuite’s excellent geo-searching gives you the option to track not only on keywords but on location. If you only do business within a 25 mile radius of your base then you can use these parameters so there is no wastage in your results.
FIND WHERE YOUR COMMUNITY SPENDS THEIR SOCIAL TIME
Social listening enables you to find out where your potential and current customers and influencers are on the Social web. The number of businesses I talk to who don’t have the first idea where to find these people is very high indeed. Follow the conversation and join in when relevant and necessary. It is also worth highlighting the need for being personal and genuine in the interactions and not see them as purely business pitches.
IMPROVE CUSTOMER SERVICE
This is one area in which Social listening is essential, enabling you to identify feedback of all descriptions. You can monitor your brand in a variety of different ways to get a complete picture of where you stand.
For example, monitor Twitter with and without the @ symbol, also track mis-spelling of your company or organisation’s name. This gives you the opportunity to show appreciation for positive comments or to find and respond to disappointed customers, turning potentially negative experiences into positive ones.
There are number of tools available to help you to carry out your Social listening. Click on the names to go their sites:-
HOOTSUITE – As a UK Ambassador for Hootsuite I can recommend their business dashboard highly.
HOWSOCIABLE – HowSociable is a handy tool for measuring yours and your competitors’ social media presence. It breaks down scores for different social media platforms, allowing you to see which social media platforms work best for you and which ones need further development.
SIMPLY MEASURED – Simply Measured makes it easy to analyse your paid, owned and earned activity. They provide insights such as Facebook content, competitor and fan page analysis, key customer service metrics measurement on Twitter, Instagram engagement, content and trends analysis and many others.
GOOGLE ALERTS – A little forgotten these days in my opinion and underused. You can monitor the web for interesting new content, mentions of your brand or even yourself, your competitors, industry leaders and so on. As they’re extremely easy to set up, this is probably a good place to start for beginners.