The coronavirus pandemic is an unprecedented global crisis that is significantly impacting every element of our daily lives. In times like these, access to comprehensive information and real-time updates via social media has never been more important. Here at Sprout, we want to equip our customers with the information they need in the moment it matters. 

We know that social listening is an incredibly powerful tool for understanding broader conversations around major events and crisis situations. With this in mind, the Sprout team has been hard at work creating a new Featured Topic centered around the coronavirus. This is a new type of Listening Topic that is now available for all Listening users.

We’re excited to launch this new Featured Topic, as it will benefit our customers in a few important ways:

  • The query is expertly crafted by the Sprout product team, so you can feel confident that you’re receiving the most optimized information.
  • It will not count towards the Topic allotment in your Listening plan (free data!) and includes more historical data than a typical Topic.
  • It includes categorizing Themes (such as CDC, World Health Organization and more) to help you stay organized and identify trends more quickly. 
  • It provides full filtering functionality, so you can narrow the data based on the specific insights you’re looking for.

During times of crisis, it’s important for brands to keep a finger on the pulse of the conversation. Using social listening for the coronavirus will help your team understand what your customers—and the world—are looking for right now, and identify how your brand can contribute in valuable, organic ways. This will enable your team to develop an effective response strategy and connect with your community through uncertain times. 

Leverage Featured Topics to navigate the coronavirus crisis

Listening can give your brand the actionable intelligence you need to identify the best approach for your business. Here are a few ways you can leverage the Coronavirus Featured Topic to inform your social strategy:

  • Gain a comprehensive perspective. Monitor conversations happening in real-time across Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, Tumblr and the Web. Features like the Word Cloud help you stay on top of the most pressing subjects within the larger conversation.
  • Assess your brand health. Use the Message Search Filters feature in the right rail of your Topic dashboard to drill down into the conversation and understand how “coronavirus” or “COVID-19” is being talked about in the context of your brand, your industry or the adjacent topics that matter to your brand.
  • Filter by demographics. While COVID-19 is a global pandemic, there are many differences in how certain countries and age groups are impacted and how they are reacting. Stay on top of these nuances in the conversation using Filters for age, gender, country and region.
  • Analyze sentiment. The coronavirus is obviously an emotional subject for everyone, and the worst thing a brand can do right now is release insensitive content. Sentiment Analysis helps you stay in tune with how your audience is feeling about certain subjects within the Topic like testing, government restrictions and more.

The insights you gain from Listening can inform your brand’s communications response strategy, help you quickly adapt your content strategy and inspire new ways to connect with your audience during this sensitive time. 

For more tips on leveraging Sprout’s tools for crisis management needs, check out this blog post.

For more detailed product information on the Coronavirus Featured Topic, please visit our Help Center.