The Benefits Of Social Research
Understanding your audience better while staying on top of current trends can be tricky. But knowing your audience’s behaviour and preferences is the key to any successful marketing strategy, so it’s important to wrap your head around it.
Enter social research – a vital component of digital marketing that provides valuable insights into trends, consumer habits and preferences of those who shop in the online realm.
What is social research, exactly?
Social research is an invaluable tool used by businesses to gain a better understanding of their audience and to help create better content. It’s what sets apart great content from good, giving businesses an inside look at their audience’s behaviour online. Unlike traditional market research, which leans on focus groups and surveys, social research digs into the rich, actionable insights behind each interaction and click.
Think of it like this… Market research focuses on extracting facts from data, examining the “what” of consumer behaviour and market trends. On the other hand, social research focuses on understanding the motivations behind consumer behaviour, exploring the “why“.
Let’s use Debbie as an example… Debbie from accounting is scrolling through Facebook for 45 minutes every day. Is it the riveting updates from her Nan, or the cat memes that keep her locked to the screen? Without social research, you might never know the answer! Instead of using the 45 minutes as a quantitative figure, social research delves deeper into it looking at why Debbie was spending time on this particular platform. Understanding her motivations can transform your strategy, making your content irresistibly targeted.
Investment equals impact
The effort you invest in social research could be the difference between flourishing and floundering here. You’ll want to get to grips with platform analytics to really get into the nitty-gritty of what makes your audience tick. But remember, the goal is to spark conversations, not just broadcast your successes. Once you figure out what your consumer wants, it can be tempting to go full throttle with your content, but for something to be considered social, it must be a two-way interaction. True social content nurtures relationships and provides value, making every interaction count.
Tapping into trends
Staying on top of current trends is a key part of social research. Tools like Google Alerts help you to keep your finger firmly on the pulse, providing fresh insights into what your audience is looking for by allowing you to be notified when people search for topics or other people that may be of interest to you.
When setting alerts for a topic, there are three main things to remember from the searcher’s point of view:
- Who is their audience?
- What is their strategy?
- How are people interacting with this content?
Social research is a continuous journey – far from being a ‘one and done’, tick that off your list situation, social research requires consistent engagement to stay connected with your audience’s evolving preferences.
Mastering the tools of the trade: GA4
Short for Google Analytics 4, GA4 is at the forefront of analysing user interactions and traffic, offering detailed insights that are crucial for savvy marketers. There are two main reporting categories in the Reports section of GA4 that you’ll likely want to tap into – Life Cycle and User Reports – both of which can help you understand user interactions and traffic sources better.
GA4 and Google Alerts can also be linked, so you can view details of user visits and conversations from the Acquisition Overview tab. By integrating Google Alerts with GA4, you can view user activities and track the effectiveness of your social media campaigns in real-time, ultimately helping you to make informed, data-driven decisions that will improve the overall marketing strategies of your business.
Competitive research - know what you’re up against!
Competitive research or competitor analysis isn’t just a tactic – it’s a strategy that provides a SWOT analysis to pinpoint opportunities your business can seize. From identifying key competitors to analysing market share and pricing strategies, every detail can help sharpen your competitive edge. By determining insights from social research data, you can capitalise on gaps in the market which can then be filled with your services or products.
To maximise the benefits of your competitive research, here are 4 of the key areas you’ll want to look at:
- Identifying Competitors: The first step in competitive research is to identify the key players in the industry. These competitors may vary based on the services or products they offer, market segments or geographic locations.
- Assessing Products and Services: Evaluating competitors’ services or products allows businesses to identify areas for improvement for their own services and products and find additional opportunities to enhance their own business.
- Analysing Market Share: Understanding each competitor’s market share (the amount of visibility a business has from search results) helps businesses gauge their position in the overall landscape of the industry.
- Pricing Strategies: Analysing competitor pricing can help position your business competitively in the market to stay desirable and affordable to customers.
By understanding consumer behaviour, targeting the right audience, and adapting to evolving trends, you can unlock the full potential of social research and achieve the results your business deserves.
Ready to connect more deeply with your audience?
STORY22 understand that managing social channels can feel like an overwhelming task – which is why they offer customer-focused social media management to save you time, lift the pressure and help boost your business. Find out more about STORY22 here.
