Social Listening Agency

Social listening that tells you what your audience really thinks

Updated October 2026.

Prohibition is a social listening agency in Leeds. We track what people say about your brand, your competitors and your category across social media, news, forums, podcasts and review sites, then turn it into decisions: what to post, which stories to pitch, which creators to work with and which issues to fix before they grow. For Black Sheep Brewery, listening and persona research led to The Breathe Inn, where 85% of social engagement came from people outside the usual cask audience.

Talk to us about social listening

Drive long-term engagement & growth

What is social listening?

Social listening is tracking and analysing online conversations about a brand, topic or market. Unlike basic monitoring, which counts mentions, listening looks at why people talk, how they feel (sentiment), who they are and which topics are rising, so you can act on it.

Better understand your customers

What can social listening tell you?

  • Whether your campaigns and content are landing, and with whom
  • Trending keywords, topics and questions in your category
  • Sentiment towards you and your competitors
  • Audience splits by age, gender and location
  • Early warning of an issue before it becomes a crisis

How does social listening help you join the conversation?

By spotting trends early. We watch for breakout topics and seasonal moments, then prepare content and comment before the rush. For Sealy we scanned ahead for heatwaves and prepared expert sleep advice, which ran in 11 national titles including The Sunday Times. That is the engine behind our media relations work.

Read the Sealy news agenda case study

Stay ahead of your competitors

Competitor analysis

We track your competitors’ mentions, campaigns and customer reactions, so you can see what works for them, where they are weak and where there is space for you to own the conversation.

Prevent a PR disaster from happening

Reputation and crisis monitoring

Spikes in mentions, hashtags or negative sentiment warn us early. For Keystone Brewing Group our corporate press office cut negative sentiment in its coverage from 16% to 8.7%. See our crisis management service.

Finding creators and brand advocates

Listening shows who already talks about your category and whose audience matches yours, so we choose influencers by audience fit, not follower count.

85%of Breathe Inn social engagement from a non-core cask audience
42%Respire sales ahead of the beer it replaced
11national titles for Sealy from heatwave advice planned in advance
16% to 8.7%negative coverage sentiment for Keystone Brewing Group

What tools do we use?

We use Meltwater for social and media listening, paired with Social 360, our audit that adds content analysis and audience data on 40,000 UK consumers.

Brands That Trust Us For Social Media

Why choose Prohibition for social listening?

We act on what we hear

For Black Sheep Brewery we combined research, social listening and persona analysis to understand younger drinkers. It showed a growing taste for unusual pop-up bars, so we opened The Breathe Inn, a one-beer pub beneath the Ribblehead Viaduct. 85% of social engagement came from a non-core cask audience, and Respire sold 42% ahead of the beer it replaced.

Read the Black Sheep Breathe Inn case study

Because listening sits with our social media, PR and social media strategy teams, insight goes straight into content and campaigns. Prohibition is a multi-award-winning PR agency in Leeds.

How much does social listening cost?

It depends on how many brands, competitors and topics we track, how many markets and languages, whether you want one-off research or ongoing monitoring, and how often you want reports. We give you a written quote after a first call, or you can contact us now.

Talk to us about social listening

Talk to Prohibition about social listening

Tell us what you want to understand about your audience, competitors or market. Prefer to talk? Call us on 0113 430 4160.


Social Media Marketing

Our Social Listening Work

CEWE: turning everyday photos into inspiring moments

Interflora: breaking the silence about loneliness

Birchwood Park: building profile to support occupier growth

Our PR & social sector expertise:

What is social listening?

Social listening is the process of monitoring social media channels and online platforms to track conversations and mentions of a brand, product, or industry. It involves using specialised tools to collect and analyze data from various social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and others.

Social listening involves monitoring not just your own social media accounts but also mentions of your brand or industry across the entire web. This includes blogs, news sites, forums, and other online communities.

Why is social listening important?

Social listening is an important tool for businesses looking to stay competitive in today’s digital landscape. By monitoring social media conversations and gaining insights into customer opinions and trends, businesses can make better-informed decisions about product development, marketing, and customer service.

How can social listening help my marketing strategy?

  1. Understand Your Audience: Social listening allows you to learn more about your audience’s interests, behaviors, and preferences. By analysing what they’re saying on social media, you can identify patterns and trends that can inform your marketing strategy.
  2. Monitor Competition: Social listening also gives you insights into what your competitors are doing and how they’re perceived by their audience. This information can help you adjust your own strategy to stay competitive and differentiate yourself in the market.
  3. Identify Opportunities: By monitoring conversations on social media, you may uncover new opportunities for your brand. For example, if you notice a lot of people complaining about a particular product or service in your industry, you could create a campaign that addresses these pain points.
  4. Crisis Management: Social listening can also be valuable in managing a crisis situation. By monitoring social media channels, you can quickly identify negative sentiment towards your brand and take action to mitigate the damage.
  5. Measure Campaign Effectiveness: Finally, social listening can help you measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns. By tracking conversations related to your campaign, you can assess how well it’s resonating with your audience and make adjustments as needed.