Does everyone have on their listening ears? Remember when your parent or teacher would ask this question before announcing important information? Listening and monitoring across the web is the foundation for any solid, scalable social media strategy.

When we communicate with another person, we do so to fulfill an emotional need. When the other person receives the message, the process of decoding or interpreting it into understanding and meaning begins. Effective communication only exists when both the sender and receiver interprets and understands the message in the way intended. Easier said than done; especially in an online environment where verbal and non-verbal signals are often crossed.

“Listening to both sides of a story will convince you that there is more to a story than both sides.” – Frank Tyger

There is a time and place for both active and passive listening, but staying passive in the online communities talking about your company or brand does not assist in verifying information, guarantee understanding, assist building relationships or any produce empathy with the sender. When you are ready to engage in the conversation, start off on the right foot by actively listening to members of the community. Active listening requires interaction with the sender, seeking clarification to ensure both sender and receiver fully understand what is being said.

“Opportunities are often missed because we are broadcasting when we should be listening.” – Anonymous

Active listening is a powerful, complex process and learned skill. Recognize the importance of this skill and revitalize your community participation. Listening requires work, desire and self-discipline. The words “hear” and “listen” cannot be used interchangeably. To actively listen is to understand what is being communicated. So, how do you begin to actively listen?

Conduct a Reality Check

Prove your understanding by asking for clarification or restatement. Failure to retain information is not the problem; it’s failure to comprehend.

Common summarizing phrases include:

“Help me understand…”

“I hear you saying…”

“It sounds like you think…”

Focus

What is the speaker really saying? Invest time to become thoroughly familiar with the topic and speaker. Separate a speaker’s primary ideas from supporting material. Not every tweet or blog post is of equal importance. Identifying the intent and motive helps reveal the implicit. Listen to the cadence of the words and observe tale-telling body language for additional insights.

Take Notes

Do not be a stenographer. Regurgitating a speaker’s words is not the act of comprehending. Paraphrase and reword notes so you understand.

Resist Distractions

In an effort to increase efficiency, convenience, and mobility, are you sacrificing intelligent listening? Are you doing all the talking? Spend more time listening for information and solutions. Do not blame freedom of technology for shortchanging our memory and learning abilities.

Be Respectful

Keep an open mind. Harness intense emotions to avoid arguing with a speaker. Avoid anticipating next words and interjecting your thoughts. Think before you speak. Hear out the speaker then prepare your response.

Life is so much more interesting because each of us have our own opinions and beliefs. Foster trust, honesty and intimacy by following the Golden Rule of Listening: “Listen unto others as you would have others listen to you.”

Value Check

Make the speaker feel heard. In addition to asking questions, give feedback beginning with positive observations then constructive criticism, if necessary. Look for positive and negative aspects in every verbal exchange. In the words of Plutarch the Greek writer, “Know how to listen and you will profit even from those who talk badly.”

Additional Resources

Take a peek at the new Radian6 site and The Engaged Brand. Every month, we will tackle a new topic area in and around social media, complete with articles, podcasts, webinars, whitepapers, videos…all to help you get a handle on industry best practices. This month we are focusing on the foundations of listening and engagement. We have a lot of stuff to share with you! Snack on the items on the newly designed site and keep checking back here for more on listening and engagement from the Radian6 team and featured guest bloggers.