What is your job title? How do you use social listening in your work?
As a Senior Data Strategist at TBWA/Media Arts Lab, I’m challenged with social listening for one of the most talked about brands in the world - Apple. When a new product comes out, people talk. When an ad goes live, people talk. When Apple sneezes, people talk. But the most interesting part of social listening in my work is finding all the corners and crevices where Apple influences culture. Even if we’re not explicitly showing up in that space, people will find a way to bring us in.
What attracted you to social listening?
I got my start working in social media management, making recommendations based solely on post performance and vibes. When I was given the opportunity to work on a brand market research project, I found a lot of satisfaction from reading through thoughts and feelings shared in focus groups and surveys and consolidating them into actionable insights. But when working in market research, you can’t help but wonder what people would say if we weren’t in the room. And so when I found a role in social listening, I suddenly had access to the world’s largest, most unhinged, unsupervised focus group. The insights are endless, the mentions make me laugh out loud, and, as a soft science, I get to exercise the best of my left and right brain on a day to day basis.
What’s the hardest thing you have learned or challenge you’ve overcome? How did you do it?
The hardest thing about working in social listening can often be proving the value and validity of your work. I get it. To those who have to think big picture, there are other metrics that might be more tried-and-true for proving business challenges or how work has moved the needle than a few thousand tweets. The instinct is to fill a slide with mention volumes and sentiment metrics and SOVs and say “See? We can be just as data-heavy as paid media or market research teams!” Working with the smart, extremely talented people at TBWA/Media Arts Lab has taught me the best lesson in data (and life) - Simplify, simplify, simplify. And I’ve had moments where a slide with one verbatim and a headline my mom could understand has influenced a whole room.
What’s your career highlight to date?
There’s no better feeling than being acknowledged by your team. This past December I was honored to receive the TBWA/Media Arts Lab agency award, the Golden Bear. Awards are announced in this massive theater on a huge screen - it’s probably the closest I’ve been to feeling like a real data rockstar.
What key skills did you need to get started in social listening?
Anyone can get started in social listening with a healthy dose of curiosity. Of course, there are things you learn on your first day on the job - how to write a query, how to use whatever social listening tool your organization uses, and managing quirks that each tool comes with. I find that those who are able to stand out in social listening bring a natural aptitude for storytelling, are speedy with pattern recognition, and have a strong understanding of social behaviors - either from being an avid user or working in social media beforehand.
Is working in social listening what you expected?
I never thought I would actually enjoy working with data as much as I do. For those that aren’t “numbers people”, social listening, especially social analytics, can feel intimidating but it's surprisingly personal. It's easier to work with data when every data point has a name. It allows you to feel more connected and empathetic to the numbers you are working with vs other fields.
Is there anyone in the industry you look up to?
I admire the teachers. I’ve experienced first hand how tricky it can be to train a newbie to a skilled analyst, and then turn them from good to great. I was lucky enough to have an incredible teacher when I first got started in social listening - Larisa Kluchman who now works as a Director of Enterprise Social Media Operations at Merck. She taught me everything I needed to know to get started and excel as a social analyst. Now, I work with another incredible mentor, Justin Karch, who emphasizes data strategy, integrity, and pushing the limit of how we can use social listening to solve business challenges and capture culture. I can’t express how much I appreciate and admire the people who have mentored me throughout my career.
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