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Hey Mom, I got a D because Harry Potter never
showed up with his magical wand
GOMC Blog
Theresa Sorenson
Link to the original article
I recently read a great article by Eric Hill, Co-founder & President, MyMediaInfo entitled: "Hey Mom, I got a D, can we go to Chuck E. Cheese's". Hill brought forth the question of Social Media Monitoring sentiment analysis - "When did a failing grade of 60% become a reason for celebration?" Social Media Monitoring tools are NOT perfect and they do NOT, at the click of the button, provide you with the answer. There is no magic way of knowing with the push of a button what insights are available for a brand or if that brand is positively or negatively received in social networks by social consumers. As @LongoMR states "Social Media Monitoring requires #mrx to add their special sauce to the mix to conduct Social Media Research" (Twitter).
Researchers have to bring their magic into the mix! Harry Potter will not be showing up and providing you with the answer with a wave of his wand. A social media monitoring tool is just that - a tool. It's a tool to collect data. As researchers, you must then apply your skills and expertise to making sense of that data, whether this is a qualitative, quantitative, or a mixed methodological approach. The data is only just data without you!
I agree with Hill when he states that "industry experts agree with (him) in that there are flaws in relying solely on automated sentiment analysis". Software does not pick up on the subtleties of the human language, to say the least, and a negative comment can and will be coded incorrectly. As researchers we need to ensure that the outputs we provide to our clients are reliable. It will take work to ensure that the data you are collecting is reliable and valid. You will need to review the content and reclassify sentiment when the computer makes an error. You will need to use coding techniques, a content analysis approach, and an array of other research techniques to make sense of the data. There is no easy answer. Social Media tools are directional, similar to qualitative research, and Social Media Research will take time!
Human interaction with the data collected is the value-add. Don't wait for Harry Potter, wave your magic wand.
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