Location Analytics and Social Media Hyperlink Analytics

Diving into location analytics

This week, I explored location analytics as well as social media hyperlink analytics. I began my journey with Google Maps. I became much more familiar with the platform as I created my own map of my hometown. Google Maps allows you to add layers to your maps to create a more broken down and specific view of an area. I added layers to my own map with each layer representing a different kind of place in town, from Restaurants to Schools to Coffee shops. 

I broke my map into a total of 10 layers, which is the maximum amount that Google allows. That is one aspect I didn’t particularly like when creating my map. If I were able to, I would have made even more layers and broken things down further. For example, I would have broken down “Salons” into “Nail Salons” and “Hair Salons”. I would have broken down schools into “Preschools/Daycares”, “Elementary Schools”, “Middle Schools”, and “High Schools”. While this specificity may not really seem necessary, I think it could be helpful, especially for someone who recently moved into town or is unfamiliar with the area.

This brief exercise helped me get more of a gauge on analyzing a specific location and the importance of the data that goes into these areas.

Using location analytics on social media

After acquiring a better understanding of location analytics and using online maps and location data to my advantage, I decided to put my knowledge to the test with social media. I used a program called Mentionmapp, which is a program centralized around social media engagement and network analytics. It focuses primarily on Twitter analytics. Instead of researching keywords as I did a few weeks ago, I decided to take a different approach and research companies.

I started by looking up the American Eagle brand in the Mentionmapp search bar. Right away, I was shown many profiles linked to the brand as well as hashtags like #AEJeans and #AESweeps. My goal was to find influencers or relevant online personas that could represent a company. I clicked through a few connections on American Eagle but wasn’t really able to find anything (or anyone) super relevant. I was able to find a few notable American Eagle supporters who were linked to other brands, such as Bud Light, Raising Cane’s, and 7Eleven. However, these users did not generate enough of a following or engagement to be considered influencers that could represent a company.

I then decided that I would take another approach and research big-name influencers rather than brands. I looked up TikTokker Charli D’Amelio because I knew she had partnered with Hollister (American Eagle competitor) in the past. Right away, I was able to find many brands right away that she could represent. One example was Hulu, most likely because the new season of her family’s reality TV show has just been released on the streaming platform. The hashtag #DWTS for Dancing With The Stars was also a recurring theme since she is on the latest season of the show.

I concluded that, at least on Mentionmapp, it’s better to search for influencers that can target your audience for different companies and go from there, rather than looking for keywords or brands. This was a very insightful look into social media and location analytics and gave a good perspective on finding the best figures to represent your brand.