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Hi, I’m your host Laryssa Wirstiuk. Through this podcast I aim to empower and inspire jewelry entrepreneurs and professionals, so they can thrive while adding more beauty to the world. I’m passionate about digital marketing for jewelry brands, and I’m excited to share my passion with you. As we all know, “Jewelry is joy”, so I’ll gladly seize any opportunity to talk about it.

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This is episode #158, and today I’m going to answer the question “what is social listening?”. So former podcast guest Jen Cullen Williams along with her co-columnist Duvall O’Steen recently asked me to contribute my expertise for a column they wrote for National Jeweler about the topic of social listening. I’ll also share more about that article in the link roundup in just a couple of minutes. After sharing my thoughts with them, I thought, hey, this should be a podcast episode. All jewelry brands need to know about social listening not only about what it is but also about how they can best leverage it for their brands. So keep listening to learn more about this tool, which will be very important in 2022 and beyond.

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But before we get to the solid gold of this episode, I’d like to take a moment to remind you that this podcast has both an audio and video component. So you can either listen on your favorite podcast platform, or watch on YouTube by searching Joy Joya. I love creating this content for you as my act of service. And you can support the podcast for free by taking the time not only to subscribe, but also to leave a rating and review on iTunes which helps other jewelry dreamers find it too.

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I also want to give a heads up that this week I’m doing a joint book giveaway with Tracy Matthews, founder of Flourish and Thrive Academy. Tracy was a guest on episodes number 77 and 149. And you’ve probably heard of her if you don’t know her, you can enter to win a copy of both my book Jewelry Marketing Joy, and Tracy’s new book The Desired Brand Effect. For all the details you’re going to want to check my Instagram this week @joyjoyamarketing, and this week’s email from me for more information about how you can enter.

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So let’s discuss some recent news related to jewelry or marketing. Each week as you know, I share my thoughts about three relevant articles. And you can get those links by visiting joyjoya.com/signup. Once you’re on the VIP list, you’ll receive our weekly digest filled with new episode announcements.

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So first, of course, I’m going to share more information about that article I mentioned just a moment ago, it’s from National Jeweler. In this article, Duvall, O’Steen and Jen Cullen Williams explain why social listening is important for your jewelry brand. And it’s the whole inspiration for this podcast episode. So first, what is social monitoring? What is social listening? According to Rod Warli, who’s the president of jewelry consulting firm Four Grainer, social monitoring involves observing online discussions and charting their directions over time. Social listening, on the other hand, requires a desire to hear with focus, interpret within the context and understand in a way that is actionable. That sounds a little bit abstract. Don’t worry, we’re going to dive into it and just a little bit, and I’ll give you some more concrete ideas and examples. So social listening is really taking social monitoring one step further. It’s actively monitoring social media platforms for mentions, and conversations related not only to your brand and products, but also to your competitors and keywords related to your business and the industry. And then analyzing that information to help you discover actionable responses. Social listening is also about paying attention to your target customers, keeping your finger on the pulse of the jewelry industry, and understanding how you can really differentiate and position your brand.

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Next is an article from the website, The Next Web, and it’s about how Instagram carousels should be the center of your 2022 social media strategy. I think we’ve all heard that we should be doing more Reels, more video content. And I totally agree that those things are true. But carousels may be something that not enough people are taking advantage of. And the data shows that they are really impactful. So according to the results of a recent study about social media marketing, Instagram carousels should be the center of your social media strategy. Why? Here are four reasons. One, carousels lead to a higher average engagement rate, this is proven, especially for profiles under 5000 followers, they have the potential of reaching an average engagement rate of 4.9%. When choosing to post more carousels, larger accounts with more than 100,000 followers will also benefit from using carousels, maybe a little bit more. But let me tell you if you have under 5000 followers, and you can reach an engagement rate of 4.9%. That’s kind of stellar. So I’m saying yes, definitely start trying more carousels.

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They also help increase engagement per impression, right, and they end up generating more likes. They also lead to more comments, especially based on this study. If your account has less than 10,000 followers, choose to post a carousel and you will definitely get more comments. This study also found that carousels generate more sales by Instagram users. And finally, they increase the chances of a higher reach rate. That all sounds amazing to me. I’ve personally seen really great results from carousels. I think that if you have a product, and you want to show different product views, or you want to kind of tell a story with carousels, there are so many different ways to use them. Perhaps I’ll even do a future episode just on Instagram carousels.

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And lastly, 99 Designs shared an article about the 12 most inspiring graphic design trends for 2022. If you’re planning some marketing campaigns and thinking about the creative direction you’d like to communicate to your graphic designer, then you definitely need to know about the top graphic design trends for this year. Here are two and remember to always ask yourself before you choose to follow a design trend. Will this resonate with my target customer,? Just because it’s a trend doesn’t mean it’s right for your brand. So one really popular trend is the 90s retro comeback through simple emojis and primitive internet frames. They’re full of vibrance and nostalgia. Here’s a quote from the article, “Everything old and retro is new again. People want familiarity and comfort mixed with minimalism. Life was overwhelming pre pandemic, people want to slow down, reflect and have fun.” The other trend is intricate maximalism so this is like cluttered, but still chic and eye catching. It’s a representation of cumulative and clashing tastes. Quote, “a style that lacks shame putting all aspects of a designer’s artistic palette on display”. One possible idea for how a jewelry brand can possibly manifest this trend, carousel style inspiration post featuring a mix of new and outdated jewelry trends that are styled together. So I mean, really, at the end of the day, it’s about having fun and being engaging, and being playful with your visual brand style. Again, as long as it works for your brand and for your customers.

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As I mentioned, if you want to get the links to the articles I share in this segment of the podcast, you can become a Joy Joya VIP by visiting joyjoya.com/signup. Okay, so let’s get to the main content of this episode.

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Let me start off talking about social listening by defining what it is, in my own words, and kind of trying to simplify it for you without marketing jargon. We heard Rod Worley’s take earlier in the episode, but I’m going to summarize for you. So at its heart, social listening is all about paying attention to what people are saying about your brand. And then drawing conclusions from those messages with the goal of actively improving how you’re positioning your business in the marketplace. I hope that makes sense. You may want to rewind a couple of seconds and listen again. But that’s basically what it is.

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It’s not only paying attention, but it’s also taking action and implementing a plan. So it has all those elements involved. Let me share some examples of what social listening might look like for jewelry brands so you get a better idea. So one, your social media manager notices that your customers love sharing the individual ways they stack your bracelets from your core collection. So because of that you build it into your digital marketing strategy, that you’ll be showing more styled stacks as well as incorporating user generated content specifically about stacks.

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Another example you notice that your followers are always tagging friends in the comments on your posts, or you notice that your content gets a lot of shares. So the friends that are tagged seem to be super receptive and responsive when they’re tagged. Maybe this is time to implement a refer a friend program, because there’s a real opportunity there for your existing customers to share their love for your brand.

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And then a third example, maybe you’ve noticed that people on Instagram who match your target audience seem to really love a show. Like, let’s just take Emily in Paris, for example, because it’s really popular right now. But insert any show here, they’re always posting outfit inspo related to the show, or sharing memes or quotes from the show. Maybe it’s time for you to try to relate to those people and also post something related to the show or other cultural phenomenon, like, how would Emily wear our jewelry, because that would really resonate with people who are already interested in that topic. So those are three examples that hopefully, illustrate social listening a little better.

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So what are the benefits of social listening, if I need to convince you that this is something that you should start doing? One, you can potentially find influencers and brand ambassadors for your brand. Two, you can spot opportunities for maybe new products or collections that you’d like to develop? Three, you can identify some really creative ways to communicate with your target audience and engage with them. Four you can understand the buying trends out there in the marketplace, not just for jewelry, but also for fashion as well. Five, you can understand your target customer even more intimately. This is really one of the best ways to do some customer research, because you kind of see them out in the digital world, expressing themselves sharing the things that they’re passionate about the things that they like. And you can really take that in and make important decisions about how to better communicate with your target customer.

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Six, social listening to your competitors can really help you understand what they’re doing well and what they can improve. So that again, you can differentiate yourself from your competitors, or even learn from them. Seven, avoid crises or social media snafus. I mean, I hope that you don’t make any communication missteps out in the universe. But you can also learn from other brands mistakes, and not do the same. Or maybe just monitor like, what is the thing we should or shouldn’t be talking about right now. And really pay attention to that. Number eight. Along with finding influencers and brand ambassadors, you can potentially find opportunities for brand collaboration. Number nine, you’ll really be focused on keeping social media what it’s supposed to be. And that is social. Surprise! And finally, number 10, you will be improving the customer experience and customer service. Because you will be gaining a lot of insights about how your customers interact with your brand, about what they want, and how you can improve that experience for them.

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So now that you’re fully sold on the benefits, and you have like your ear up close to the speaker, and you’re like Laryssa oh please tell me how do I do social listening? Sure, I will tell you. So first, you really with any like with anything in marketing, you really want to have a an area of focus or goal in mind? Are you for example actively trying to improve customer service? Would you like to experience influencer partnerships or brand collaborations? If you have an idea of what you’d like to get out of social listening, then, of course, you’ll find it more productive and useful overall.

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Next, you and or your social media manager can use a social media management tool like Buffer or Sprout Social tools, which can help you consolidate all your customer conversations across your social media platforms in one central place. Both of these tools also have really powerful data and analytics built into them. So you can not only do all this monitoring, but you can measure specific outcomes for your brand that are based on the goals that you have set at the beginning for your social listening efforts. If you’re a solopreneur or small business owner, and you want to try to do this more in a more DIY way or a more casual way, then you can definitely do that. As a starting point for this exercise, so you can follow social media users who seem to be members of your target audience, you can follow hashtags that your customers seem to like and use. You can be responding to all comments, and DMs, and also keep notes about what people say about your brand and the process, follow publications related to jewelry, fashion, and retail and also make make notes about those trends. Pay attention to trends that your customers are loving, whether they’re related to jewelry or not.

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And the last point that I want to make is that social listening isn’t just about listening, even though it’s in the name. It’s about taking actions based on your observations and insights. So yeah, it’s one thing to listen to what people are saying about your brand and what’s happening in the industry and now in the world. But it’s another thing to devise a plan and then take action based on that plan. So don’t let this exercise stop at listening. And instead also implement your takeaways and insights into your marketing strategy and plan. Allow social listening to help you be more daring, experimental and innovative. Also, more customer centric.

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What did you think? You can always email me Laryssa, that’s laryssa@joyjoya.com. If you love this episode, please share it with a friend who’d appreciate it and don’t forget to subscribe as well as leave a review on iTunes to purchase a signed copy of my book Jewelry Marketing Joy, visit joyjoya.com.com/book for more information.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai