Social Media Monitoring Tools: Track Your Brand Across Platforms

Why Social Media Monitoring Is Essential

Eighty percent of brand mentions on social media go unanswered. Every unanswered mention is a missed opportunity — to help a customer, thank a fan, or correct misinformation. Social media monitoring ensures you never miss a conversation about your brand.

What to Monitor

Direct Mentions

When someone tags or @mentions your brand. Most platforms notify you of these, but tools help you track them centrally.

Indirect Mentions

When someone talks about your brand without tagging you. "Just tried that new coffee from [brand name] and it's amazing" — you'd never see this without monitoring tools.

Hashtags

Branded hashtags (#YourBrand) and campaign-specific tags (#YourBrandLaunch).

Competitors

What people say about your competitors reveals market opportunities and threats.

Industry Keywords

Terms related to your industry help you find potential customers and trending topics.

Free Social Media Monitoring Tools

Native Platform Tools

Each platform has built-in monitoring:

Twitter/X: Advanced search (search.twitter.com) lets you filter by keyword, date, location, and sentiment
Instagram: Search by hashtags and location; check tagged photos
Facebook: Page mentions, reviews, and comments
LinkedIn: Company page analytics and mentions
TikTok: Search by keyword and hashtag

Google Alerts (with Social Operators)

While not social-specific, you can create alerts with site operators:

site:twitter.com "your brand"
site:reddit.com "your brand"

Social Searcher

Free tool that searches multiple social networks simultaneously. Limited but useful for spot-checking brand mentions.

TweetDeck (X Pro)

Free tool for monitoring Twitter/X. Create columns for brand mentions, hashtags, and keywords. Essential for brands active on Twitter/X.

Paid Social Media Monitoring Tools

Hootsuite ($99/month and up)

Monitor multiple platforms from one dashboard
Schedule posts and respond to mentions
Basic analytics and reporting

Sprout Social ($249/month and up)

Comprehensive social listening
Sentiment analysis
Competitive benchmarking
Detailed reporting

Brand24 ($79/month and up)

Real-time monitoring across social and web
Sentiment analysis
Influence scoring
Affordable for small brands

Mention ($29/month and up)

Real-time alerts for brand mentions
Social and web monitoring
Competitive analysis
Good starting point for growing brands

Brandwatch (Enterprise pricing)

AI-powered social listening
Deep analytics and trend identification
Best for large brands with significant social presence

Setting Up a Monitoring System

Step 1: Define Your Keywords

List everything you want to track:

Brand name and variations
Product names
Key personnel names
Campaign hashtags
Competitor names
Industry terms

Step 2: Choose Your Tools

For most new brands, start with:

Native platform notifications (free)
Google Alerts for web coverage (free)
One monitoring tool for centralized tracking (free trial or affordable paid)

Step 3: Create a Response Protocol

Define how your team handles different types of mentions:

Positive reviews: Thank within 24 hours, share if appropriate
Customer complaints: Respond within one hour during business hours
Brand misinformation: Correct politely with facts
Crisis mentions: Escalate immediately to designated team member

Step 4: Establish a Routine

Check monitoring dashboard three times daily (morning, midday, evening)
Review weekly summary reports
Adjust keywords monthly based on what you're finding

Social Media Monitoring Metrics

Track these KPIs:

Volume: How often is your brand mentioned?
Sentiment: What percentage is positive, negative, neutral?
Reach: How many people see mentions of your brand?
Response time: How quickly do you respond?
Share of voice: How do your mentions compare to competitors?

Common Monitoring Mistakes

Only tracking @mentions — Most brand conversations happen without tags
Ignoring negative sentiment — Silence amplifies complaints
Over-monitoring without acting — Data is useless without response
Not monitoring visual mentions — Your logo in images without text mentions

Your Social Media Monitoring Checklist

[ ] Keywords and brand variations listed
[ ] Monitoring tools selected and configured
[ ] Response protocol documented
[ ] Team responsibilities assigned
[ ] Daily monitoring routine established
[ ] Monthly performance review scheduled

A unique, memorable brand name makes monitoring easier. Use BrandScout to find a distinctive name that's easy to track and protect across social media.