Unveiling Insights with Social Listening

We often hear from insights professionals and marketers that they know they should be using social listening as a research input to better understand their consumers, but they struggle with how to pull out actionable insights from social listening.  Today, I asked our brilliant Insights Manager, Julie Murphy, to share with us how she tackles this.

Julie has been hard at work pulling out insights for our  What's Next in Wellness Webinar and will share how she does this!

Unveiling Insights with Social Listening: A Guide by Julie Murphy 

Greetings, readers! Julie Murphy here from the Brightfield Group, eager to share some valuable insights on harnessing the power of social listening. As we were gearing up for an upcoming webinar delving into 2024 trends, it's the perfect opportunity to reflect on how we got there. Did you miss the webinar? No worries -  check out the video here. 

One trend piquing my interest is the notable decline in alcohol consumption. To complement our existing data, I turned to our social listening tool to explore the discourse surrounding nonalcoholic beverages. Allow me to walk you through my approach. 

Let's start with the dashboard itself—an invaluable resource capturing a wealth of information from diverse sources. From identifying spikes in discussions to tracking trending topics, it serves as a treasure trove of insights waiting to be unearthed. 

Beginning my exploration, I narrowed my focus to nonalcoholic beverages within the dashboard. By refining parameters such as time frames and social channels, I gained a comprehensive overview of the landscape. The surge of nonalcoholic spirits, boasting a 0.33% share of voice and remarkable growth, caught my attention. 

Delving deeper, the dashboard facilitates granular analysis of specific aspects like need states and ingredients. Understanding consumer preferences, whether it's the allure of ginseng and caffeine for energy or the appeal of melatonin, and functional mushrooms for relaxation, offers invaluable market insights.

People are also adding supplements or functional ingredients, like turmeric or probiotics and collagen. This tells me that consumers want to create mocktails that taste delicious but also offer other functional benefits like relaxation, energy, or promoting gut health. If you are developing an NA beverage, you should consider including functional ingredients.  

Moreover, the mentions feed feature provides direct access to real-time posts, offering a glimpse into consumer sentiments and emerging trends—from tantalizing tart cherry mocktails to discussions surrounding the sober curious movement. 

As we compile these insights for our upcoming webinar, I invite you to explore the data and embark on your own journey of discovery. With endless avenues for analysis, there's always something new to uncover. 

Thank you for joining me on this insightful expedition. Until next time, happy exploring! 

Published: 04/24/2024