New acronyms seem to pop up all the time when it comes to technology, and the field of search engine optimisation (SEO – the clue is in the name) is one of the most guilty parties. It doesn’t help when two terms are given the same acronym, as has happened with SMM.

SMM is often used in conjunction with social media optimisation to mean social media marketing. There is another SMM, however, social media monitoring, and it is just as important as its associate.

Social media monitoring is a specific area of online reputation management. If your search engine optimisation and marketing campaigns are driven by a big budget, you will probably be spending a lot of time monitoring your online reputation. Even if your strategy for internet promotion isn’t quite that intensive, your online reputation needs watching. Online reputation management helps you to nip negative press in the bud, but it also lets a business know what they are doing right and can help them spy on the competition. If SEO refines the way your website communicates with the world, online reputation management helps you hear what the world is saying back to you.

Social media monitoring is, exactly as it sounds, the observation of the chatter relating to your business in social media networks. Even if you aren’t participating in a social media network, social media monitoring is necessary. Social media is often the water cooler of the net, where people gather to idly chat, air their views and question others. Companies that fail to address the social media side of things are, in essence, walking past the gossips without eavesdropping. This may involve the moral high ground in real life, but a smart business knows when to stop and listen.

SMM involves several forms of monitoring. The first, and most important, is the monitoring of your brand and product names, and any terms that are related to your company. You need to see if your brand is being misused in any way and keep an eye out for misappropriation of product names.

The next thing to monitor is mentions of your keywords. Social media can be a goldmine when it comes to keeping up with keywords and market research. SMM can help you to spot keyword variation on the horizon.

Sometimes, SMM involves some participation, particularly if negative things are being said about your company. Sometimes a negative comment is not worth a response, particularly if the debate is emotional and has a small following. Sometimes, failing to comment can lead to bad press. Participation in social media can be a great way to augment your SEO.

There are many tools available to monitor in social media. Some of these are free, some paid, and both have the usual pros and cons of free or paid-for software. Analysing the trends in social media often takes the eye of an expert. For help with analysis of social media outcomes, talk to us at SEO Consult. Social media monitoring can be a part of your overall SEO strategy and can be a powerful tool in directing your site’s optimisation.

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