Best Social Media Listening Tools

What are Social Media Listening Tools?
Yukta Rustagi
YR
Researched and written by Yukta Rustagi

Social media listening tools provide functionality for listening, tracking, and gathering relevant content across social media. These tools are used by social media, marketing, and communications teams to identify trends, track competitors, and understand customer sentiment. Researchers can leverage social media listening tools to analyze social trends and media outlets use them to identify breaking news.

Social media listening software enables marketers to personalize content for specific users or demographics, identify thought leaders or influencers, and respond to positive or negative mentions. Many of these products also support monitoring across multiple languages and countries, allowing businesses to localize advertisements effectively. As a result, these tools help organizations gain demographic insights, measure social media presence, detect negative mentions, engage with users, and improve brand reputation.

Social media listening tools often enhance social media analytics software by providing data. While these tools can be found as standalone products, their monitoring functionality can also be found within social media management software and social media suites as a feature. Additionally, many media monitoring software solutions include social listening capabilities.

To qualify for inclusion in the Social Media Listening category, a product must:

Listen for specific mentions across social media platforms
Identify trending topics or phrases by tracking real-time conversations
Analyze and detail customer sentiment (positive, negative, neutral)
Organize customer information for audience segmentation and engagement
Identify thought leaders and influencers within relevant industries
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Featured Social Media Listening Tools At A Glance

Leader:
Sprout Social
Sprout Social
Highest Performer:
Vista Social
Vista Social
Easiest to Use:
Vista Social
Vista Social
Top Trending:
Vista Social
Vista Social
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Highest Performer:
Vista Social
Vista Social
Easiest to Use:
Vista Social
Vista Social
Top Trending:
Vista Social
Vista Social

G2 takes pride in showing unbiased reviews on user satisfaction in our ratings and reports. We do not allow paid placements in any of our ratings, rankings, or reports. Learn about our scoring methodologies.

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184 Listings in Social Media Listening Tools Available
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Sprout Social
(6,209)4.4 out of 5
Entry Level Price:Starting at $79.00
3rd Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
View top Consulting Services for Sprout Social
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Sprout Social is a comprehensive social media management solution designed to help businesses effectively engage with their audiences, streamline content publishing, and derive actionable insights fro

Users: Social Media Manager, Marketing Manager · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Non-Profit Organization Management · Market Segment: 41% Small-Business, 35% Mid-Market
User Sentiment

Users frequently mention the convenience of having all messages, mentions, and comments from various social platforms consolidated into one stream via the Smart Inbox, and the detailed, customizable reporting capabilities that provide valuable insights into post performance and audience engagement. Reviewers noted that the platform can be expensive, especially for small teams or individuals, and some advanced features require time to fully understand and set up, with certain functionalities and insights only available on higher-tier plans.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Post Scheduling, Scheduling, Analytics, Centralized Management
ConsMissing Features, Limited Features, Expensive, Improvement Needed, High Pricing
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Sprout Social features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.7
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.5
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.6
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.0
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Sprout Social
Company Website
Year Founded
2010
HQ Location
Chicago, IL
Twitter
@SproutSocial
116,425 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
1,801 employees on LinkedIn®
Hootsuite
(6,697)4.3 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$199.00
4th Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
View top Consulting Services for Hootsuite
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Too many brands suck at social. Yours doesn’t have to. It starts with the right tools. Thousands of brands rely on Hootsuite’s platform and solutions to launch brilliant social campaigns, deliver 5

Users: Marketing Manager, Social Media Manager · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Non-Profit Organization Management · Market Segment: 59% Small-Business, 29% Mid-Market
User Sentiment

Users like Hootsuite's ability to manage multiple social media accounts from one dashboard, its scheduling features, and its analytics and reporting tools which help evaluate performance and optimize content strategy. Reviewers mentioned that some advanced features and detailed analytics are locked behind higher pricing tiers, the interface can feel complex at times, and there can be occasional issues with platform integrations and performance lags.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsPost Scheduling, Ease of Use, Scheduling, Centralized Management, Scheduling Posts
ConsLimited Features, Missing Features, Expensive, High Pricing, Posting Issues
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Hootsuite features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.6
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.1
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.1
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.2
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Hootsuite
Company Website
Year Founded
2008
HQ Location
Vancouver, BC
Twitter
@hootsuite
6,178,243 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
1,691 employees on LinkedIn®
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Meltwater
(2,506)4.1 out of 5
View top Consulting Services for Meltwater
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Meltwater empowers companies with a suite of solutions that spans media, social, and consumer intelligence. Since 2001, we’ve helped organizations harness the world’s data in real time to fuel smarter

Users: Social Media Manager, Marketing Manager · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Public Relations and Communications · Market Segment: 41% Small-Business, 37% Mid-Market
User Sentiment

Reviewers like the comprehensive coverage Meltwater provides, its user-friendly interface, the ability to schedule posts across multiple platforms, the robust database of reporters, and the responsive customer support. Users mentioned that Meltwater can be difficult to navigate, the AI features are not impressive, the initial setup can be challenging, and the platform sometimes scrapes irrelevant data, causing data quality issues.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Features, Helpful, Customer Support, Helpfulness
ConsImprovement Needed, Learning Curve, Not Intuitive, Technical Issues, Complexity
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Meltwater features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.4
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.1
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
7.9
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.2
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Meltwater
Company Website
Year Founded
2001
HQ Location
San Francisco, CA
Twitter
@Meltwater
24,904 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
2,573 employees on LinkedIn®
Brandwatch Consumer Intelligence
(715)4.4 out of 5
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Brandwatch empowers over 5,000 of the world's most admired companies to understand and engage with customers at the speed of social. Its Consumer Intelligence solution offers AI-enriched data from ove

Users: Analyst, Consultant · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Public Relations and Communications · Market Segment: 35% Enterprise, 34% Mid-Market
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Helpful, Intuitive, Dashboards, Data Accuracy
ConsLearning Curve, Limited Features, Platform Limitations, Not Intuitive, Data Inaccuracy
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Brandwatch Consumer Intelligence features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.8
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.5
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.2
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.7
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Brandwatch
Company Website
Year Founded
2007
HQ Location
Brighton, East Sussex
Twitter
@Brandwatch
34,293 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
901 employees on LinkedIn®
BrandMentions
(274)4.8 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$99.00
2nd Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

BrandMentions is the ultimate AI-driven solution for monitoring your brand’s presence across the digital landscape. As one of the most comprehensive social listening tools on the market, BrandMentions

Users: CEO, Founder · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Computer Software · Market Segment: 51% Mid-Market, 34% Small-Business
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Sentiment Analysis, Brand Management, Insights, Trend Analysis
ConsFiltering Problems, Limited Customization, Time-consuming Processes, Slow Loading, Learning Curve
User SatisfactionSeller Details
BrandMentions features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.9
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.9
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
9.1
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
9.0
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
BrandMentions
Company Website
Year Founded
2015
HQ Location
Iasi, RO
Twitter
@BrandMentions
1,594 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
5 employees on LinkedIn®
Vista Social
(1,075)4.8 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$79.00
1st Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Vista Social is a modern all-in-one social media platform. Expertly crafted social media management tools to help you exceed your goals. Features include publishing and scheduling, reports and analyti

Users: Social Media Manager, Founder · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Health, Wellness and Fitness · Market Segment: 72% Small-Business, 25% Mid-Market
User Sentiment

Reviewers appreciate the platform's user-friendly interface, its ability to consolidate multiple social media tasks into one platform, and its unique features like real-time DM interactions and a listening tool for data analysis. Users experienced minor issues such as occasional slow loading times, glitches during peak usage, and a somewhat steep learning curve for more advanced features.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Social Media Management, Features, Post Scheduling, Centralized Management
ConsLearning Curve, Missing Features, Social Media Limitations, Improvement Needed, Linking Issues
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Vista Social features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
9.6
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
9.6
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
9.6
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
9.6
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Vista Social LLC
Company Website
Year Founded
2022
HQ Location
New York, US
Twitter
@vistasocialapp
2,705 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
28 employees on LinkedIn®
Agorapulse
(969)4.5 out of 5
Entry Level Price:Free
7th Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
View top Consulting Services for Agorapulse
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Stay organized, save time, and easily manage your social media with Agorapulse’s inbox, publishing, reporting, monitoring, and team collaboration tools. Agorapulse supports Facebook, Twitter, Instagra

Users: Social Media Manager, Owner · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Internet · Market Segment: 70% Small-Business, 21% Mid-Market
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Centralized Management, Helpful, Post Scheduling, Intuitive
ConsExpensive, High Pricing, Improvement Needed, Difficult Reporting, Limited Customization
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Agorapulse features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
9.1
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.7
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.6
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.5
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Agorapulse
Year Founded
2010
HQ Location
Paris
Twitter
@AgoraPulse
13,071 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
199 employees on LinkedIn®
Reputation
(2,387)4.6 out of 5
6th Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Reputation is the only platform that empowers companies to fulfill their brand promise by measuring, managing, and scaling their reputation performance in real-time, everywhere. Functioning as a busin

Users: Community Manager, Property Manager · Industries: Automotive, Real Estate · Market Segment: 45% Mid-Market, 29% Small-Business
User Sentiment

Users like Reputation's ability to centralize reviews, its real-time review monitoring system, and the insights it provides from marketing campaigns, which guide users in SEO improvements. Reviewers noted that Reputation lacks a strong social media presence and management, and its reporting often lags, causing confusion in reviews navigation.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Review Management, Helpful, Centralized Reviews, Reputation Management
ConsImprovement Needed, Review Management, Missing Features, Reporting Issues, Review Issues
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Reputation features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.9
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.9
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
9.0
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.7
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Reputation
Company Website
Year Founded
2006
HQ Location
San Ramon, CA
Twitter
@Reputation_Com
10,934 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
728 employees on LinkedIn®
YouScan
(277)4.8 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$299.00
8th Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
View top Consulting Services for YouScan
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

YouScan is a next-generation, AI-powered social listening platform designed to help users gain deep insights into customer behavior and sentiment. This innovative solution caters specifically to marke

Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Market Research · Market Segment: 47% Small-Business, 36% Mid-Market
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsCustomer Support, Helpful, Ease of Use, Analytics, Social Listening
ConsLearning Curve, Difficult Learning, Slow Performance, Limited Features, Data Inaccuracy
User SatisfactionSeller Details
YouScan features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
9.4
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
9.2
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.9
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
9.5
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
YouScan
Company Website
Year Founded
2010
HQ Location
Kyiv, Kyiv City
Twitter
@YouScan_io
447 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
86 employees on LinkedIn®
Brand24
(336)4.6 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$199.00
12th Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
View top Consulting Services for Brand24
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Brand24 Brand24 is one of the most advanced social media monitoring tools with AI-powered reports and insights. Thousands of companies of all sizes use Brand24 to identify and analyze online conversat

Users: Marketing Manager, Founder · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Information Technology and Services · Market Segment: 65% Small-Business, 28% Mid-Market
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Helpful, Brand Monitoring, User Interface, Mentions Tracking
ConsFiltering Problems, Limited Features, Data Inaccuracy, Irrelevant Content, Slow Loading
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Brand24 features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
9.4
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.8
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.8
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
9.4
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Brand24
Company Website
Year Founded
2010
HQ Location
Wrocław, Poland
Twitter
@brand24
23,608 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
98 employees on LinkedIn®
Brandwatch Social Media Management
(975)4.0 out of 5
Entry Level Price:Contact Us
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Brandwatch empowers over 5,000 of the worlds most admired companies to understand and engage with customers at the speed of social. Brandwatch Social Media Management, previously Falcon.io, is a leadi

Users: Social Media Manager, Marketing Manager · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Higher Education · Market Segment: 40% Mid-Market, 33% Small-Business
User Sentiment

Users like Brandwatch's ability to handle multiple social media accounts, its scheduling feature, and the ease of sharing content with clients, which improves communication and collaboration. Users experienced issues with the platform's complexity, steep learning curve, high pricing, and occasional technical glitches that affect its reliability and functionality.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Post Scheduling, Social Media Management, Centralized Management, Helpful
ConsImprovement Needed, Publishing Limitations, Limited Features, Missing Features, Complex Usage
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Brandwatch Social Media Management features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.5
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
7.9
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
7.7
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.1
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Brandwatch
Company Website
Year Founded
2007
HQ Location
Brighton, East Sussex
Twitter
@Brandwatch
34,293 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
901 employees on LinkedIn®
Sprinklr Social
(1,199)4.1 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$2,800.00
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Sprinklr Social’s industry-leading platform empowers enterprise teams of all sizes to deliver a consistent brand experience across 35+ digital and social channels to drive engagement and revenue, with

Users: Social Media Specialist, Social Media Manager · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Information Technology and Services · Market Segment: 49% Enterprise, 28% Mid-Market
User Sentiment

Reviewers frequently mention the platform's robust automation capabilities, customizable dashboards, and the ability to manage multiple social channels in one place, saving significant time and improving efficiency. Reviewers experienced a steep learning curve with the platform, finding it complex and not always intuitive, with some reporting issues with slow performance when handling large datasets and occasional support or bug issues.

Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsEase of Use, Centralized Management, Features, Analytics, Social Media Integration
ConsComplex Usage, Learning Curve, Complexity, Improvement Needed, Learning Complexity
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Sprinklr Social features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.0
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.2
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.3
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
8.3
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Sprinklr
Company Website
Year Founded
2009
HQ Location
New York
Twitter
@Sprinklr
38,173 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
4,340 employees on LinkedIn®
BuzzSumo
(106)4.5 out of 5
Entry Level Price:$199.00
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Founded in 2013 and loved by marketers worldwide ever since, BuzzSumo is the all-in-one content marketing tool that gives you the content research and performance insights you need, fast. From Faceb

Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Internet · Market Segment: 61% Small-Business, 36% Mid-Market
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsContent Management, Content Creation, Features, Ease of Use, Engagement
ConsExpensive, Information Overload, Initial Difficulty, Interface Issues, Learning Curve
User SatisfactionSeller Details
BuzzSumo features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
9.1
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.6
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.3
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
9.0
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Cision
Year Founded
1867
HQ Location
Chicago, IL
Twitter
@Cision
48,790 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
3,867 employees on LinkedIn®
Onclusive Social
(212)4.5 out of 5
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

Onclusive Social is a cutting-edge social media intelligence platform that empowers marketing, PR, and communications teams to turn social media data into strategic insights. Our platform helps organi

Users: Social Media Manager · Industries: Marketing and Advertising, Information Technology and Services · Market Segment: 35% Enterprise, 33% Small-Business
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsAnalytics, Helpful, Insights
ConsDifficult Learning, Difficult Setup, Difficult Usability, Lack of Clarity, Learning Curve
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Onclusive Social features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.8
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
8.5
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.4
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
7.9
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Onclusive
Year Founded
2002
HQ Location
London, GB
Twitter
@Onclusive
3,696 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
1,003 employees on LinkedIn®
Critical Mention
(220)4.3 out of 5
9th Easiest To Use in Social Media Listening Tools software
OverviewPros and Cons
Product Description

The fastest, most reliable all-in-one PR and earned media platform featuring global media monitoring, a media contact database and robust analytics. Search results are easily analyzed, turned into act

Users: Account Executive, Assistant Account Executive · Industries: Public Relations and Communications, Marketing and Advertising · Market Segment: 49% Small-Business, 28% Mid-Market
Pros and ConsUser Satisfaction
ProsFeatures, Client Satisfaction, Client Service, Contact Information, Coverage
ConsLimited Search Functionality, Navigation Difficulty, Search Functionality, Search Issues
User SatisfactionSeller Details
Critical Mention features and usability ratings that predict user satisfaction
8.9
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
Average: 8.8
7.9
Social Measurement
Average: 8.6
8.1
Social Reporting
Average: 8.6
9.0
Brand Monitoring
Average: 8.7
Seller Details
Seller
Onclusive
Year Founded
2002
HQ Location
London, GB
Twitter
@Onclusive
3,696 Twitter followers
LinkedIn® Page
www.linkedin.com
1,003 employees on LinkedIn®
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Learn More About Social Media Listening Tools

What are Social Media Monitoring Tools?

Social media monitoring tools are often a company's main platform for consumer engagement and customer insights. How a company interacts with its customers speaks volumes about whether it values what its consumers want and how much it is willing to improve its product offerings and campaign messages to cater to those consumers.

Using social media monitoring as a form of social listening can also help give provide a company with valuable customer insights that will help identify trends, track competitors, and understand customer sentiment. Social media monitoring benefits include:

Key Benefits of Social Media Monitoring Tools

  • Monitoring accounts on various social media platforms
  • Quickly receiving alerts of customer criticism or complaints
  • Tracking brand competition
  • Monitoring your social media reputation and presence in real time
  • Gaining insights on the effectiveness of your social media approach

Why Use Social Media Monitoring Tools?

Revenue – Social media monitoring can generate more revenue for your company. Understanding how consumers interact with your social media posts can clue your business in on what to do to grow your audience, which translates to more subscribers and, therefore more revenue for your business.

Customer Loyalty – Beyond growing your customer base, social media monitoring is also a great tool to manage the customers that you already have. Brand loyalty can be earned from customers if you engage with them on a more personal level, answer any concerns that they might have, and improve your product based on the feedback provided through social media.

Competitor Insights – Social media monitoring can give your business insight into how your competitors are performing. Consumers that may be responding negatively to your competitor's offerings can be used to promote your own marketing campaigns and how your product offerings outperform the competition.

Brand Presence – One of the greatest benefits of social media monitoring tools is the ability to produce in-depth reports on brand presence. With social media monitoring, you can produce reports with easy-to-understand datasets. Competitive reporting is key to understanding the effectiveness of social media marketing campaigns and the underlying flaws that may be present. Remedying issues and capitalizing on effective methodologies can do wonders for a brand’s presence across social networks.

Who Uses Social Media Monitoring Tools?

Marketing – Social media monitoring tools allow marketers to personalize content to specific users or demographics and identify thought leaders or influencers. Social media monitoring software can help marketing teams respond to social network mentions and facilitate customer engagement. Furthermore, user mentions such as asking for assistance or complimenting a product can be captured and used for future campaigns to demonstrate satisfaction and dedication. Engagement with these users across various social networks may also lead to increased traffic and customer engagement.

Customer Service Teams – Customer service teams use social media monitoring tools to listen to customer complaints or answer any concerns they might have. They can respond to positive or negative mentions in order to mitigate escalations in customer frustration and keep the customer base happy.

Public Relations Teams – Outreach and public relations teams monitor social media to identify whether they need to publicly respond to a major customer concern. If your company is being viewed negatively because of a major misstep, then PR can respond with a company-wide message and answer customer concerns in a succinct message.

Kinds of Social Media Monitoring Tools

Review Aggregator Tools – These types of social monitoring tools aggregate all of your business’ online reviews in one organized list. This helps your business easily identify negative customer reviews and whether the issue can be quickly mitigated. Responding quickly to negative reviews can be the difference between retaining a customer and losing them to your competitors.

Lead Generation Tools – These types of social media monitoring tools allow you to pick up on leads via social media interactions. Lead generation tools have features that filter social mentions, whether they be negative, positive, or neutral. Lead generation tools also allow you to see who is talking about your product the most. You can then mark these people as leads and interact with them directly to convert them into customers. More leads via social media mean more revenue for your business.

Social Mention Tools — Social media monitoring tools specializing in social mentions help you determine how often your brand is being mentioned. These tools can filter what type of social media platforms you would like to monitor, the sentiment of the mentions, social mention demographics, etc. Monitoring social mentions can show who is talking about your product and what they are saying about it. This can directly influence your marketing and outreach teams’ successes. They can use social mentions to tailor their future efforts to correlate with what people want and discover what demographics your company should focus on.

Social Media Monitoring Tools Features

Cross-Channel Monitoring – Cross-channel monitoring features allow you to simultaneously track activity from your accounts across various social media channels. This centralizes data collection and tracking and improves the efficiency of social media monitoring. If your company has many social media accounts, utilizing cross-channel monitoring features can help you easily manage them. Listening to users across all networks will paint an accurate picture of how they perceive your social media posts and brand.

Analytics – Social media management software tools typically offer features that help analyze the trends you observe and search efficiently for data. These tools allow you to optimize internet searches to find facts faster. Some products can create reports that visualize data, making it easier to analyze results and measure the effectiveness of your social media strategies.

Social Reporting – Social reporting allows your company to access custom reports and dashboards to measure social activity and engagement opportunities. It also allows users to export data and graphs into PowerPoint, Excel, and other useful data-reporting programs. This feature provides great visuals for you to present data in meetings.

Sentiment Scoring – Sentiment scoring determines whether social mentions of your brand are positive, negative, or neutral. This feature helps you monitor whether certain products are performing well and if marketing changes need to be made to keep customers happy.

Influencer Identification – Influencer identification helps identify who is talking about your brand along with their influence over social communities. This feature can help bolster your company’s reputation by having popular social media bloggers feature your brand on their own social media accounts.

Publishing – Most social media monitoring software offers a publishing feature that allows users to auto-schedule social media posts. Users can schedule posts for months into the future, which can save your company plenty of time. Publishing features also automatically post blogs from your website onto social media. This is a great way to bolster the views on your blogs and generate more traffic back to your website.

Potential Issues with Social Media Monitoring Tools

Inaccurate Sentiment Analysis – As with all artificial intelligence, it can be very difficult to teach AI to monitor human emotions. As such, having a social media monitoring tool accurately pick up on all negative or positive responses to your brand can be a near-impossible task. When implementing a social media monitoring tool, be aware of potential inaccuracies in customer sentiment analysis, as it may not paint the full picture of how your brand is being viewed.

Over-Listening – Focusing too much on one negative social mention can prove to be counterproductive. Brands constantly trying to filter out all the negative reviews can spend too much time doing so, which distracts them from more important tasks. Furthermore, a few negative sentiments can influence brands to switch gears on certain products and make poor decisions. When implementing a social media monitoring tool, companies must have a thick skin and understand when it is truly worth listening to the consumers.

Spam – Social media monitoring tools have difficulty filtering out all the spam when robots or other people post about your brand for their own promotion. Because of this, your social media monitoring tool may pick up on many unwanted social mentions that don’t positively impact your company because they’re not coming from actual users. This can waste a lot of time for companies trying to use actual customer data to influence their marketing.

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