Tracking Online Discussion: Social Media Monitoring and Market Research

by Lauren Begley

A few weeks ago, I attended a panel session on social media and market research. The panel consisted of social media gurus, market researchers and public relations specialists. It was interesting to see representatives from each camp defend their professional mode of evaluating consumer behavior in the digital space, as each brought something different to the table.

On one hand, the market researchers felt their work was valuable because they were able to answer the ‘who’ question. Who is saying what online? In their defense, the market researchers brought up the 1-9-99 Principle. This is the notion that one percent of people online are extremely vocal, meaning they regularly comment on blogs, message boards, forums, etc. Nine percent are somewhat vocal, meaning they occasionally share their opinion in digital form. That leaves 99 percent of online users who rarely or never share their opinion in the digital space.

Their argument was that merely analyzing the organic online discussion only captures one percent of the online population’s sentiment. This is where, they believe, market research comes in; professionally facilitated research studies are able to gain insight from a cross section of online consumers, and allow practitioners to pull information from those who are online but might not leave as obvious a paper trail.

On the other hand, the public relations camp supported their role in online sentiment monitoring, either manually or through paid search functions such as Compete or Radian 6. While it is important to determine the “who” when monitoring consumer sentiment in the digital space, the PR pros emphasized the fact that they are able to “listen in” on what consumers are saying to each other, as opposed to tracking what consumers might say in a focus group.

By tracking organic consumer sentiment—whether it’s negative or positive—we can understand the ‘buzz’ and where it is coming from. More importantly, these organic expressions come from consumers who are so compelled by a brand they feel the need to share their opinion. In a sense, they become brand ambassadors as soon as they post their comment publicly, so it is essential for the company to evaluate their opinions.

After listening to both sides, I see value in each. I think in order to be as informed about consumer sentiment in the digital space, it is important to understand both the organic ‘buzz’ while also finding a way to quantitatively measure the who, what, when and where online.

Comments

[Sam Ford]

You’re ultimately suggesting a nuanced approach: one that says looking at what people say online is valuable but likewise that it shouldn’t be seen as THE barometer for what your whole audience is thinking but rather a vocal minority. This vocal minority is particularly important, though, because their comments are not just customer feedback but likewise customer influence because they are publicly published…

[Warren Sukernek]

Lauren, agreed, there is value in both functions, however, understanding what the influential vocal 1 and 9 percents are doing online will really help inform the research and discussion with the "silent majority".

Warren Sukernek
Director of Content Marketing
Radian6

[Lauren Begley]

Thanks, Warren. I completely agree that it is extremely important to focus on the 'influencers' and those most willing to take action and share their opinions in the digital space.

[Lauren Begley]

Thanks, Sam. Glad you agree in the dual approach. We shouldn't diminish the value of the vocal minority. Rather, we should begin where the 'buzz' starts, otherwise the market research has no starting or reference point.