The 5 best social listening tools for B2B

Keeping a pulse on what people are saying about your brand, your competitors, or the problem you are trying to solve is crucial. This applies not only to B2C but also increasingly to B2B products and services.

This includes B2B Software products. People are vocal about software products across many social platforms and forums, sharing their opinions, complaints, questions, and needs. As a software company, you’ll want to know when an important mention comes up so you have the opportunity to jump in.

While the sheer volume of online conversations can be overwhelming, social listening tools offer a solution. These tools allow businesses to monitor and analyze mentions across multiple platforms, providing valuable insights and opportunities for engagement. In this article, we'll explore the best social listening tools tailored for B2B companies.

The audience of B2B companies is spending time on different platforms, and these companies have different needs for social listening tools. This article will highlight the 5 best social listening tools on the market that cater to B2B companies.

Octolens is a social listening tool built specifically for B2B SaaS companies. With its AI-powered technology, Octolens offers comprehensive coverage of platforms relevant to B2B, including LinkedIn, Twitter, Reddit, Hacker News, Product Hunt, GitHub, and more. Its advanced features, such as AI-powered keyword suggestions and relevance scoring, make it a top choice for businesses looking to monitor online conversations effectively.

• Extensive platform coverage tailored for B2B, including Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit, GitHub, YouTube, and more.
• Affordable pricing, with individual plans starting at just $19/month.
• AI-powered features for enhanced relevance and usability.
• Email & Slack notifications for real-time updates.
• Modern user experience for seamless navigation and interaction.

• LinkedIn and Twitter monitoring available only in the Startup plan and above ($59/month).
• Some features are still in development, as Octolens is newly founded.

F5Bot is a free tool that businesses and individuals can use to track Reddit, Hacker News, and Lobster. You can enter a list of keywords and get email notifications when they are mentioned.

• Free to use for tracking Reddit, Hacker News, and Lobster.
• Email notifications for updates.

• Very limited platform coverage compared to other tools.
• Keyword limitations; if a keyword exceeds 50 mentions within 24 hours, it will be disabled.

Google Alerts provides a simple and free solution for monitoring mentions across indexed pages. Users can set up alerts for specific search terms and receive email notifications at their preferred frequency. While Google Alerts may lack the advanced features of dedicated social listening tools, it can still be a valuable addition to your monitoring toolkit.

• Free to use with no limitations on the number of keywords.
• Customizable email notifications for convenience.

• Limited accuracy and no coverage for most social platforms.
• Significant time lag for indexing new content, potentially missing real-time mentions.

Brand24 is mostly focused on brand reputation management with an emphasis on sentiment and emotion analysis. It has platforms like TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram making it especially useful for B2C companies.

• Covers a good amount of platforms for B2B and B2C.
• Includes Analytics features.
• Notifications for keyword mentions.

• High pricing, with individual plan starting at $99/month.
• Lack of AI features in lower-tier plans, such as emotion analysis and topic analysis.

Brandwatch is an extensive tool suite for brand management including a social mention tool. It is designed rather for B2C but can be used for B2B due to the broad platform coverage.

• Comprehensive tool suite covering social media intelligence, management, and influencer marketing.
• Broad coverage of both B2B and B2C platforms.

• Very expensive, only comes with custom pricing plans for enterprise.
• Tailored rather to B2C and late-stage companies.
• Social listening is just part of the offer, therefore it is not the focus of the company and comes with complexity.

In conclusion, social listening tools play a crucial role in helping B2B companies monitor online conversations, engage with their audience, and make informed decisions. Whether you're a startup, solo builder or an established company, finding the right social listening tool can help shape your digital strategy and drive business growth. Consider the features, pricing, and platform coverage of each tool to determine the best fit for your specific needs.

With Octolens, you can harness the power of AI-powered social listening tailored for B2B software companies. Try Octolens risk-free with 30-day money-back guarantee and unlock the full potential of social listening for your business today.