Social media should be a major component of any small business marketing strategy.  Whether it is through content creation or paid advertising, few tools will be more cost-effective.  It can engage potential customers, get the world out about your product, and drive valuable traffic to your website.

In addition to posting on social media, you should consider some type of social listening.  Simply put, social listening is a way of using social media to pay attention to what others are posting about.  This could be customers, competitors, the general public, or any other people or groups of interest.  Here are some of the most notable benefits of social listening:

1. Keep up with your competition

Every business owner wants to have some type of leg up on their competition.  What better way to accomplish that than to pay attention to what they’re posting on social media?  Once you see how they engage with followers and promote their product, it will give you ideas on how you can do the same.  You can match or beat their promotions and ensure that you stay competitive.

This could even include similar businesses who may not be direct competitors due to geographic reasons.  If you’re in the same industry, odds are you’re trying to reach similar people in order to accomplish a similar goal.  Learn from others in your industry in order to perfect your approach.

2. Keep up with your customers

Want to know what your customers are talking about?  Keep up with what they’re posting!  If they consistently have some type of need, you can craft promotions to address them.  Whether it be through coupons or free offers, you can step in and give them something that will build trust and give them reason to do business with you.

Hashtags can play a crucial role in this process.  Investigate hashtags your target customers are using – by following those hashtags, you may learn more about some type of common need and further expand your opportunity to do business with people online.

3. Blogging ideas

Blogging is a critical part of any online strategy.  Online content makes it easier for search enginges to find you and makes it easier to build a sense of trust with customers.  By keeping up with what is being said online, you can figure out what is popular and understand the best areas to explore in your blogging.

Competitors, trade publications, and news sources will probably publish a great deal of information, so use social listening to stay on top of it.  You will get a feel for any popular conversations taking place and give yourself the opportunity to get involved.

Consider using a solution like Hootsuite for your social listening.  This gives you the ability to roll all of your networks into one location and build lists based on hashtags, search terms, and countless other critera.  By staying on top of conversations in Hootsuite, you give yourself the opportunity to stay ahead of the curve and perfect your social media strategy.

Interested in learning more about how social listening can play a role in your online strategy?  Contact us about our Social Media Coaching program for a personalized look at what it can do for your business!