The practice of monitoring social media and online conversations for mentions of a brand, competitors, or relevant industry topics, used to understand sentiment, catch emerging issues, and identify opportunities for engagement.
Why it matters
Social listening surfaces conversations a brand isn't directly part of but should know about — a customer complaint posted publicly rather than sent to support, or a competitor comparison happening in a community a brand doesn't monitor by default — giving a team the chance to respond or learn from it.
In a sentence
"Social listening caught a wave of complaints about a competitor's price increase, which we used as a timely moment to highlight our own pricing stability."
Related terms
- Often confused with: Community management (social listening is about monitoring and understanding conversation broadly, including conversations a brand isn't directly participating in; community management is the active practice of engaging within a brand's own owned channels and communities).
- Synonyms: Brand monitoring.