Latest / Social Media Marketing with Fexingo: Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Platform Strategy / Why Brands Are Using Social Media as Their New Customer Research Lab
Transcript
- Lucas: You know, I was reading about how Peach & Lily, the skincare brand, recently launched a new serum — and the entire formulation was driven by what customers were saying in Instagram comments. Not a focus group, not a survey. Just thousands of comments over six months. Luna: That's interesting because we usually talk about brands using social media to push messages out. This is pulling insights in. Lucas: Exactly. And it's not just them. More brands are treating their social feeds as a continuous research lab — analyzing comments, DMs, even reviews on their posts to figure out what customers actually want. If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used, listener support is what keeps this show ad-free. You can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Anyway, back to this — Peach & Lily's team flagged a recurring mention of 'niacinamide' and 'brightening' in comments, cross-referenced that with product return data, and fast-tracked a serum that became one of their top sellers. Luna: So they basically turned Instagram into a focus group that runs 24/7. But is that really reliable? I mean, the people who comment are a very specific subset — usually the most engaged or the most frustrated. Lucas: That's the fair critique. But brands are getting smarter about weighting the data. They're not just counting mentions; they're looking at sentiment, frequency, and whether the same request comes from different demographics. Some are even running polls in Stories to validate what they're seeing in comments. Luna: Yeah, that makes sense. So it's like a two-step process: mine comments for themes, then test with a broader sample using polls or DMs. Lucas: Right. And the speed advantage is huge. A traditional focus group takes weeks to set up, recruit, run, and analyze. On social, you can spot a trend on Monday and have a concept test out by Wednesday. I think that's why we're seeing more brands shift budget from conventional research to social listening tools. Luna: What kind of tools are they using? Is this something a small brand can do without a big budget? Lucas: Absolutely. At the basic level, you can do it manually — just search your brand name or relevant keywords on Instagram and read through comments. But at scale, brands use platforms like Brandwatch, Sprout Social, or even native analytics if you're small. The key is having a system to tag and categorize feedback, not just scroll aimlessly. Luna: I remember a DTC luggage brand — I think it was Away — they used Twitter DMs to decide which color to launch next. They asked followers to DM their vote, and the winner got fast-tracked. That's incredibly direct. Lucas: That's a great example. And it builds community engagement at the same time. People feel heard, so they're more likely to buy the product they helped choose. There's a whole behavioral economics principle there — the IKEA effect, where people value things more when they've contributed to creating them. Luna: So it's not just research, it's also a loyalty play. But let me push back a bit — what about the risk of only hearing from the loudest voices? If a brand only listens to people who comment, they might miss the silent majority who actually buy the product. Lucas: That's a real danger. I think the best approach is triangulation. Use social comments for ideas and urgency, but validate with sales data, customer support logs, and maybe a quick survey to your email list. Peach & Lily's team didn't just rely on comments; they cross-checked with return rates and purchase data. So it's one input, not the only input. Luna: Okay, that makes sense. So for a small business listening to this, what's the one thing they should do this week to start treating their social media as a research lab? Lucas: I'd say pick one product or service and spend 30 minutes reading the comments on your last five posts. Look for patterns. Are three people asking for a vegan version? Are five people complaining about the size? Write it down. Then go to your DMs and look for the same themes. That's your starting data set. Luna: And don't forget to actually respond to those comments while you're there. That's how you keep the conversation going. Lucas: Exactly. And if you see a clear signal, you can even post a poll saying, 'We've heard you want X — would you buy it?' That gives you a quick quantitative check. I've seen brands do that and get thousands of responses in a day. Luna: It's almost like social media has become the world's largest, messiest, most honest focus group. Lucas: Yeah, and that messiness is actually the value. People are less filtered in comments than in a survey. They're speaking in the moment, often emotionally. That raw data can be gold if you know how to read it. Luna: So what about the ethical side? Is it okay to use someone's comment as research without asking? I mean, technically it's public, but people might not expect their complaint to end up in a product meeting. Lucas: That's a really good point. I think the line is drawn at anonymization and aggregation. If you're quoting someone directly, you should ask permission. But if you're just tracking that 'size' was mentioned 40 times, that's fair game. Some brands are even transparent about it — they'll say in their bio or a pinned post, 'We read every comment to improve our products.' Luna: That transparency probably builds trust, too. It's like, 'Hey, we're listening.' Lucas: Absolutely. And I think we're moving toward a world where customers expect brands to listen. If you ignore what people are saying on your social posts, you're leaving money on the table. The research is already there — you just have to collect it. Luna: So final thought — do you think this replaces traditional market research entirely, or is it just a supplement? Lucas: I think it's a supplement, but a powerful one. Traditional research gives you statistical rigor and representativeness. Social media gives you speed and authenticity. The best brands use both. But if I had to pick one for a small business just starting out, I'd pick social media every time. It's free, it's real-time, and your customers are already talking.