How Social Listening Helped a Content Writer Create Trending Posts That Actually Work

Overview

Meet Lina, a freelance content writer from Brazil. English is her second language. She writes blog posts and social media content for small businesses in health and beauty.

For months, she struggled to come up with content that connected. Her posts got a few likes, no comments, and very little traffic.

Then she discovered social listening - and everything changed.

What Is Social Listening (in Simple Words)?

Social listening means watching what real people say online - on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Reddit - to understand what they care about.

Instead of guessing what to write, you **see real questions, struggles, and trends**.

It’s like listening before you speak—so your words match the moment.

Before Social Listening: Guesswork and Frustration

Lina searched Google Trends and followed influencers to find topics like:

• “Skincare routine tips”
• “Hydration in summer”

But these ideas were too broad and overused.

Her content didn’t stand out. It didn’t convert.

It was like fishing in the ocean without knowing where the fish were.

After Social Listening: Relevance and Real Results

Lina started using brandingcat.com, an AI-powered social listening tool. She searched keywords like:

• “acne scars”
• “natural skincare”
• “retinol”

Within seconds, she found:

• Tweets from people struggling with retinol irritation
• Reddit questions about natural alternatives
• Viral Instagram posts about rice water toner

She discovered what was trending and why - directly from people’s real words.

How This Changed Her Content Strategy

Lina used these insights to create content that spoke to real needs:

✅ Blog Post

"Why Retinol Hurts—and 3 Natural Alternatives That Actually Work"

She used real Reddit quotes to add authenticity.

✅ Instagram Reel

A short video showing how to make **rice water toner** at home.

Inspired by a trend discovered via Brandingcat.

✅ LinkedIn Post

She shared her discovery process and the power of social listening in content writing.

The Results

• Blog post ranked #1 for a long-tail search
• Instagram reel got 14,000+ views (10x usual)
• LinkedIn brought her 400+ new followers

For the first time, Lina saw real engagement and traffic from her content.

How brandingcat.com Helped (Naturally)

Lina didn’t need to scroll endlessly or be fluent in internet slang.

With brandingcat.com, she could:

• See real conversations across platforms instantly
• Understand emotions and intent behind topics
• Get AI-powered content suggestions in her tone