A social media myth: Do we really need to “listen to our customers?”

Sure, we need to listen to our customers. But how?

Here’s a familiar piece of advice posted by an ad agency executive last week:

“There are conversations taking place about your company or brand 24 hours a day, seven days a week in social media. Are you a part of these conversations? Or are you hoping that if you don’t hear them, they don’t exist?”

How many times have you read something like that? At least once a week?

It struck me that in many cases — perhaps in most cases — this advice is wrong, or at least misleading.

Although this has been one of the most pervasive “best practices” on the web and standard issue for every cookie-cutter plan developed by an advertising or PR agency, for most small businesses, there are few, if any, meaningful online conversations occurring that are truly going to drive some major change in direction.

Listen to our customers … but think

First, let me state the obvious — social media monitoring is absolutely essential for many companies and brands, especially large ones. It is ESSENTIAL. Social media “listening” can be a critical tool to detect consumer trends, unearth business intelligence and solve customer problems.