Social media has become an indispensable part of any modern business strategy. With the right tools and techniques, businesses can leverage social listening to gain a competitive advantage in their industry. Therefore, it is no surprise that about eighty-five percent of businesses rely on social media data as a primary source of business insights.
By monitoring conversations on social media and understanding customer sentiment, companies can identify opportunities for growth as well as potential threats from competitors. This article will discuss 8 ways businesses can use social listening to gain a competitive edge over their rivals and stay ahead of the game.
How Social Listening Helps Gain a Competitive Advantage for a Brand
Social listening enables companies to gain an in-depth understanding of their customers, market trends, and industry competitors. This data can then be used to inform decisions and help brands stay ahead of the competition.
Furthermore, it can help brands by informing them of their rivals’ performance. This can give them valuable insights and help them develop better strategies to gain a competitive advantage.
Finally, social listening helps brands identify new opportunities and develop better customer relationships. This data can be used to inform decisions about products, services, and marketing campaigns.
By combining these strategies, businesses can gain better insights and stay ahead of the competition.
One of the important ways to use social listening to gain a competitive edge is competitor analysis.
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What Is Competitive Analysis?
Competitive analysis is the process of identifying and analyzing competitors’ strategies. Companies use this data to understand their rivals’ strengths and weaknesses, as well as the opportunities and threats posed by them.
For example, businesses can use social listening to identify what content their competitors are posting, how they’re engaging with their customers, and the types of products and services they are offering. This data can then be used to develop better strategies and gain a competitive advantage.
Suppose a competitor has launched a hashtag campaign that is gaining traction. Companies can use social listening to monitor the success of this campaign and understand why it’s succeeding. This data can then be used to develop strategies on how to replicate this kind of success.
8 Ways Social Listening Helps in Gaining Competitive Advantage
Here are eight ways businesses can use social listening to gain a competitive edge:
Compare Share of Voice Number
Share of Voice (SOV) is a metric that measures a brand’s presence and engagement in the digital space. Companies can use this data to compare their performance against competitors and understand who is dominating the digital space.
To calculate SOV, calculate the number of mentions for your brand. Divide this number by the total number of brand mentions in the market. This includes ours as well as those of our competitors. Finally, multiply it by 100 to get the share of the voice number. Repeat the same process for the competitor. Then, compare both the SOV values.
Suppose the SOV for your brand is 40, and the SOV for a competitor is 10. This shows that your brand has a stronger presence in the market and is dominating the competition.
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Compare Your Products or Services with Competitors
Businesses can use social listening to compare the features and benefits of their products and services with those of their competitors. This data can be used to understand the strengths and weaknesses of their products or services in comparison to competitors, helping them make informed decisions.
For example, businesses can use social listening to track user comments about their products or services, as well as comments about competitor products. Based on the sentiment analysis, they can understand how customers feel about the products and their features. This data can then be used to make improvements in their products or services and gain a competitive edge.
Monitor Competitors Conversations
It’s important to know what your competitors are saying about their products and services. Moreover, it is also essential to see how they are responding to customer queries and complaints. This data can be used to gain valuable insights into their strategies as well as identify areas for improvement in your own.
Social listening provides businesses with an opportunity to monitor their competitors’ conversations. Companies can track brand mentions and customer conversations related to a competitor’s product or service. This can be done by searching for hashtags and keywords related to the competitor’s product or service. This data can then be used to develop strategies to gain a competitive edge.
Also Read: 6 Benefits of Using Social Media Listening Tools for Competitive Analysis
Analyze Your Competitor’s Keywords and Content
Keywords are an important part of any online marketing strategy. They help businesses increase their visibility in search engine results and get more customers. Moreover, they provide valuable insight into what customers are looking for.
Businesses can use social listening to monitor the keywords their competitors are using in their content. This data can be used to determine the most popular search terms and create content that focuses on those keywords. Moreover, businesses can use social listening to monitor the content their competitors are creating and use it to develop better content that targets the same audience. Valuable social listening insights can give businesses practical and substantial knowledge of how to strategize their marketing efforts.
Sentiment Analysis of Competitors – Track Negative Brand Mentions of Competitors
In our opinion, the negative brand mentions of a competitor are a great opportunity for you to gain an edge. It helps you understand the potential risks and threats in the market and take measures to gain an advantage.
By tracking the negative brand mentions of competitors, you can gain valuable insights into the shortcomings of your competition. This data can be used to identify areas for improvement and develop strategies to differentiate your product or service from the competition.
For example, suppose a smartphone company is launching a new smartphone in a particular price segment. By tracking the negative comments about a competitor’s product in that price segment, the company can identify areas for improvement and incorporate them into its strategy. This can help them gain an edge over their competition.
Also Read: 12 Companies With Great Social Listening Strategy
Use Social Listening To find what is working well for your competitor
Social listening can also be used to identify what strategies competitors are using that are working well for them. Businesses can use this data to understand the features and benefits that customers are looking for in a product or service, as well as the strategies competitors are using to engage their customers. This information can be used to develop better strategies and products that can give them a competitive advantage.
Considering the example from the previous point, a company can use social listening to understand what features customers are looking for in the price segment it is targeting. This data can then be used to develop a product that offers those features, giving it an edge over its competition. We can then price our product at a slightly higher or lower price point to gain an advantage. Marketers can use social listening data to strategize ways to improve their metrics and increase market share.
Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing has become a vital part of most online marketing strategies. It is a powerful way to reach out to potential customers and build brand awareness. Additionally, businesses can use social listening to identify influencers in their industry and engage them to promote their products or services.
Using social listening, businesses can identify influencers who are talking about their competitors’ products and services. They can contact these influencers and build relationships with them to promote their products and services.
Similarly, businesses can use social listening to identify potential influencers who are talking about topics related to their industry. They can then onboard these influencers to promote their products and services.
Continuously Improve Your Strategies
Finally, businesses can use social listening to monitor customer conversations and feedback to identify areas for improvement and develop more effective marketing strategies.
By monitoring the conversations about their products and services, businesses can identify what customers like and don’t like. They can then use this data to make improvements and develop better strategies to engage customers.
For example, suppose customers aren’t happy with a product’s pricing. A business can use this feedback to develop a more attractive pricing structure to attract more customers. It will also signal to the customers that their feedback is being taken seriously and that the business is taking steps to address their concerns.
Conclusion
Thus, we can see that social listening is a powerful tool that can help businesses gain a competitive advantage. The benefits of social listening are immense, and businesses should use it to their advantage. By closely monitoring customer conversations, businesses can gain valuable insights into their customer’s needs and preferences and use this data to develop better strategies, services, and products.
If you are looking for a robust social listening tool, look no further than Konnect Insights. Our powerful AI-driven analytics platform will help you gain insights into customer conversations and act on them to gain a competitive advantage. Contact us today for more information!
Happy listening!
