How to monitor brand mentions across social media for free

Social Media, Analytics & Optimization

Brand mentions show what people say about your brand. Free methods can reveal trends, spikes, and sentiment without expensive software.

This task outlines a practical, repeatable approach you can implement today.

Who is this for?

- Marketing teams seeking public visibility insights
- Community managers handling customer conversations
- Public relations staff tracking media sentiment
- Small business owners monitoring brand health
- Content creators needing audience feedback

Before you start

- Basic familiarity with social platforms
- Spreadsheet app or note-taking tool
- Defined keywords or brand names to monitor

General Process (How it works)

  1. Define goals and success metrics Decide what counts as a meaningful mention and what insights you want (volume, sentiment, sources).
  2. List listening sources Choose free sources like platform search, RSS feeds, blogs, and forums relevant to your brand.
  3. Collect mentions Capture mentions with manual checks or simple dashboards and store results in a sheet.
  4. Filter noise Exclude self-promotions and unrelated topics using keywords, negations, and date filters.
  5. Analyze sentiment and trends Note sentiment and volume changes; look for spikes around events and campaigns.
  6. Summarize findings Create a concise weekly report with top sources, sentiment, and recommended actions.
  7. Act on insights Draft responses or messaging adjustments based on findings and share with stakeholders.

Common beginner mistakes

❌ Relying on a single source
❌ Ignoring negative mentions
❌ Not defining keywords clearly
❌ Not setting clear time windows
❌ Failing to segment data by channel
❌ Overreacting to short spikes
❌ Not documenting findings
❌ Skipping data quality checks
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