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Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Guide

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is transforming how brands show up in AI-powered search. Explore insights, strategies, and best practices to help your content rank and resonate across conversational engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot.

Explore insights and strategies for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to help your brand stay visible and discoverable in AI-powered search.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Blog Collection | Meltwater

Media monitoring helps organizations stay informed about what’s being said across online news, print, broadcast, podcasts, and other media channels. Whether you're tracking brand mentions, measuring PR performance, monitoring competitors, or identifying emerging trends, our expert guides, best practices, and industry insights will help you build a smarter media monitoring strategy and make more informed communications decisions.

Discover expert media monitoring guides, best practices, and industry insights to track brand mentions, monitor competitors, and stay ahead of the news.

Media Monitoring: Guides, Best Practices & Industry Insights

Every day billions of conversations take place on social media: tweets, posts, comments, blogs, reviews, podcasts, and much more.

Learn how to use social listening to make sense of all of that data.

On our social listening category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around social listening and social media monitoring. Read more.

Social Listening Blogs | Category

Business Reputation Management: What does it take to add reputation management to your marketing strategy? More importantly, how do you keep your reputation sparkly and shiny? Here’s your all-access guide to online reputation management for the long term.

On our reputation management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around business reputation management. Read more.

Reputation Management Blogs | Category

From your brand's logo to your website, your social media presence to your customer support—these elements combined are what constitutes a brand in the minds of customers. But, there are thousands of other businesses that have a logo, website, social media presence, and website. So, how can you position your business on the market and make it stand out from the competition?

The key to success is branding & brand management!

On our brand management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around brand management. Build your strategy and reach your goals!

Brand Management Blogs | Category

Competitive intelligence and the act of collecting competitive data can be seen as growth drivers for a company. Our guide will help you understand the concept of competitive intelligence (CI) by answering questions such as: What is the definition of competitive intelligence? How is competitive intelligence useful to organizations? What is the goal of competitive intelligence? And more.

On our competitive intelligence category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around competitive intelligence. Learn how to stay ahead.

Competitive Intelligence Blogs | Category

Let’s dive into the customer journey framework and how to optimize the process by creating a customer journey map and using metrics that matter when analyzing the customer journey.

On our customer journey category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Customer Journey Blogs | Category

How do customers interact with my newly launched product?

How do I increase the productivity of my employees?

How do I know if my marketing efforts are working?

We have just two words for you...Data analytics!

On our data analytics category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around AI and data analytics. Technical and still easy to understand.

AI & Data Analytics Blogs | Category

Public relations and media relations can add impact to any marketing strategy. It’s an opportunity for brands to grow their reach beyond traditional sales messages. PR helps to shape the image you want people to have of your brand.

So, what is PR and how do you use it? This guide shows you everything you need to know to build a strong public relations foundation.

On our public relations (PR) category page, you find all our blogs covering public relations and communications topics. Step up your PR game.

Public Relations (PR) Blogs | Category

We all know exactly what the roles of sales or accounting are in a company, right? We might even have a slight idea of what the IT guys are doing.

But there is another business discipline, that plays a crucial role in organizations, even more so during the pandemic – internal communications!

But what exactly do we mean by that, what purpose does it serve and what steps can you take to ensure you and your employees will communicate effectively?

On our internal communications category page, you find all our blogs about internal comms topics. Learn about the intranet, internal newsletters, and more.

Internal Communications Blogs | Category

As the internet has taken root in more areas of our lives — everything from entertainment to shopping to paying bills and more — traditional marketing is becoming less impactful. As any marketer knows, you need to focus on where your audience is if you want to reach them. Since the average person spends about seven hours a day online, it’s no surprise that content has maintained its hold on marketers.

Here's a closer look at what content marketing is and why it matters more than ever in our digital-first economy.

On our content marketing category page, you find blogs about content marketing topics. Learn about strategies, KPIs, tips, and more. Make your content king!

Content Marketing Blogs | Category

The rise of the influencer marketing space – today a $10 billion industry, growing 50% per year – is one of the clearest examples of how social media is transforming traditional marketing. These days having a business website, presence on social, PR coverage, and your own content isn’t enough to compete.

We'll dive into the intricacies of influencer marketing to help ensure that you're equipped with the insights needed to be successful in this space.

On our influencer marketing category page, you find blogs about influencer marketing topics. Build your strategy, find influencers, and measure results.

Influencer Marketing Blogs | Category

Have you just launched a new product or service that you want to get the word out about? Maybe you want to share with consumers why it is awesome and how it is so much better than the one your competitors offer.

Well, then, there is one thing you can't do without...Marketing!

On our marketing category page, you find blogs about marketing topics. Learn about all the different angles and types of marketing and improve your results.

Marketing Blogs | Category

Building a following and using social media platforms to reach a wider audience requires a well-planned social media marketing strategy. In this guide, we’ll be looking at why social media marketing is so essential and how you can make it work for your business.

On our social media marketing category page, you find blogs about social media marketing topics. Learn how to get the highest paid social ROI!

Social Media Marketing Blogs | Category

In the fast-evolving realm of digital marketing and public relations, utilizing the right tools is crucial for success. Our interdisciplinary category showcases all the pertinent tools for digital marketing & PR. These tools help in enhancing your online presence and effectively reaching target groups, whether through reputation management, influencer marketing, or social media management.

On our digital marketing and PR tools category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Digital Marketing & PR Tools Blogs | Category

AI adoption is no longer the challenge—trusted context is. Most organizations have AI tools, but many still rely on disconnected, stale, or unverified data, limiting the quality and trustworthiness of AI-generated outputs. Meltwater MCP brings trusted, real-time intelligence into AI assistants.

Your Best Context is Already in the Room

Today, PR teams aren’t just tracking media coverage and share of voice. They’re also measuring how their brand shows up in AI-generated answers, search summaries, and large language models (LLMs). This new LLM visibility layer is quickly becoming a critical part of PR performance.

15 Must-Have PR KPIs and How to Track Them

See how one platform can power every decision across PR, communications, and marketing.

The Meltwater Blog

Blog Topics: Generative Engine Optimization, Media Intelligence, Media Relations, Social Listening, Consumer Intelligence, Influencer Marketing

Find out how you can leverage Facebook to boost your brand's online presence and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

Facebook Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage Instagram to boost your brand's visual appeal and gain a competitive edge. Explore our category page today!

Instagram Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage LinkedIn to grow your professional network and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

LinkedIn Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage TikTok to elevate your brand with creative content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

TikTok Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage X / Twitter to engage your audience effectively and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

X / Twitter Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage YouTube to create engaging video content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

YouTube Blog | Meltwater

Want an easy way to get knowledge, insights, and practical tips for social media marketing? A social media podcast delivers value and inspiration on demand.

Listening to podcasts is a shortcut to learning. Hear from industry experts and experienced professionals who are successfully navigating the ever-changing landscape of social media. Learn from their trials and errors so you can power your own strategy.

We’ve rounded up the best social media podcasts to help you gain a deeper understanding of various social media platforms, audience behavior, content creation, advertising techniques, and engagement strategies.

We will focus on this list of social media and social media marketing podcasts:

Facebook expert Jon Loomer shares tips, strategies, and case studies on how to leverage Facebook and other social media platforms.

With more than 10 years of episodes, this podcast has covered just about every aspect of Facebook for business purposes, from making algorithm-friendly content to ethical considerations.

Further Facebook Resources: Facebook Marketing Tips For A Successful Brand, Facebook Management Guide: How To Post on Facebook, How to Get More Likes for Your Brand's Facebook Page, Using Facebook Interest Lists for Business, How to Leverage Facebook Recommendations for Your Business, How to Use Facebook Lead Generation Ads

Curious to learn the “why” of social media marketing? The Savvy Social Podcast was made to answer this very question.

Ideal for aspiring entrepreneurs, the podcast breaks down the reasons that having a social presence is a must, then covers a wide range of in-depth topics on how to go about making social media work for you.

The official website of the "Savvy Social Podcast"

Reading Tip: If you want to learn more about social media marketing, take a look at our social media marketing blog category.

Social media guru Rachel Pedersen hosts a weekly podcast geared toward agency owners.

Pedersen spills the secrets to social media success, diving into platform-specific tips, skills, trends, algorithms, do’s and don’ts, and even leadership tips to help agencies start or grow their businesses.

Listen to the Social Media Secrets Podcast on

Further reading on social media for agencies: Meltwater Helps Agencies Grow, Free Guide: Profitable Social Media Services for Your Agency, Blog: Profitable Social Media Services for Your Agency, On-Demand Webinar: What Agencies Need to Know About Social Media

One of the best marketing podcasts for entrepreneurs and small business owners, the Social Media Marketing Happy Hour covers topics and tips you can apply today.

Conversations center on how to use social media as a marketing tool and a path to growth. Previous topics have included Facebook advertising, Instagram ads, growing your email list, scaling your business, sales funnels, and customer experiences, among others.

Listen to The Social Media Marketing Happy Hour Podcast on

Social media expert Gary Vaynerchuk (also known as GaryVee) shares his thoughts on all things social media, marketing, and business.

He’s built a solid reputation with his practical advice and motivation, making him a clear leader in the social media space. Episodes are about the length of a one-way commute (anywhere from 15-30 minutes or so), making it easy to work this podcast into your schedule.

Listen to The GaryVee Audio Experience on

A podcast created by social media management tool Agorapulse, Social Media Lab digs deep into the science of social media.

They bust the myths of social media marketing so listeners aren’t wasting time on tactics doomed to fail. Episodes answer real users’ questions and offer first-hand data to support various marketing methods and strategies.

Listen to the Social Media Lab Podcast on

Reading Tips: The Best Agorapulse Alternatives, The Best Social Media Management Tools

Hosted by Tier 11, this podcast delves into the world of paid traffic and social media advertising.

Experts discuss strategies and case studies and interview other big names in social media to help businesses optimize their paid ads. They’ve created more than 450 episodes to date, giving you plenty to listen to and learn from.

Listen to the Perpetual Traffic Podcast on

The official website of the "Perpetual Traffic" podcast by DigitalMarketer

Tip: Learn more about search engine optimization in one of the best SEO podcasts out there.

Created by Convince and Convert, the Social Pros Podcast is one of the longest-running podcasts of its kind.

Hosts Jay and Adam cover all aspects of social media content marketing and offer actionable tips to help you win in a crowded space.

They recently topped 500 episodes, with most episodes lasting less than an hour.

The official website of the "Social Pros"

Reading Tips: How to Create a Social First Content Marketing Strategy,  The Most Innovative Social Media Content Ideas, What Is Content Marketing, and Why Is It King?

Buffer’s podcast explores the latest social media trends, research, and strategies in social media marketing.

Each week, the Buffer team answers users’ questions and provides actionable tips to develop a marketing strategy that works. Episodes are typically short (about 10-15 minutes each) to give you bite-sized information without the fluff.

Listen to The Science of Social Media Podcast on

The 18 Best Social Media Podcasts 2025

Did you tune in to March Madness? If so, you were one of tens of millions of people who watched the NCAA college basketball tournament this year. In the end, the men’s team from the University of Connecticut took home their second championship trophy in a row. Meanwhile, the South Carolina Gamecocks, led by coach and WNBA alum Dawn Staley, became the women’s team champions. And though it’s clear who won March Madness on the court, marketers need to know who generated the most hype out in the world.

We used our social listening and analytics solution to look at which teams, topics, people, and brands got NCAA basketball fans talking most this year. Read on to learn more about how March Madness played out across social media, news, and other digital sources.

From March Madness’s start on March 19 through the men’s championship game on April 8, there were almost 3.4 million mentions of the tournament. That volume is lower than last year’s 4 million mentions.

Read our social listening analysis of the 2023 tournament.

Texas and California had the first- and second-highest volumes of March Madness mentions in 2024 and 2023.

The 2024 top 10 locations for March Madness conversations are similar to 2023, with New York and North Carolina rising in the ranks. This could be thanks to the NC State Wolfpack men’s and women’s teams making it to the Final Four. 

Texas and California had the first- and second-highest volumes of March Madness mentions. This may be due to both states having many different teams in the tournament. There were five California teams in the women’s March Madness bracket and three in the men’s. Texas sent five teams to the women’s tournament and six teams to the men’s. 

Interestingly, states that had teams in the finals — South Carolina, Iowa, Connecticut, and Indiana — were not in the top 10 locations for March Madness mentions. And Arizona, where the men’s finals took place this year, ranked 24th. 

Of the five top storylines across sources, two were about the men’s tournament and three were about the women’s.

Meltwater’s social listening platform uses LLM-powered clustering technology to detect popular topics and narratives across different content formats and platforms.

Most of the top stories from this year’s tournament were about the hype of the games themselves. However, one of the biggest stories of March Madness 2024 was the Utah women’s team having to switch hotels during the tournament after facing racist incidents at their original hotel in Idaho.

The top entities of this year’s March Madness conversation have one notable standout.

Only UConn came close to matching the NCAA’s prominence in March Madness conversations.

Caitlin Clark is the only individual in a sea of sports organizations. This is a testament to her star power and the value of her brand, even as she ends her college career never having won the NCAA Championship.

Overall, there were about 212,000 more mentions of the men’s teams than the women’s, but the trend of the conversations fluctuated as the tournament reached its final stages.

Mentions of the women’s teams were higher than those of the men’s teams on eight out of the 21 days of the tournament. 

From April 1 through April 5, as well as the day of the women’s finals on April 7, conversations about the women’s teams surpassed those about the men’s. Mentions about the men’s teams had notable spikes on March 21, the start of the first round, April 6, the day of the Final Four, and April 8, the day of the championship game.

The UConn Huskies had 35k more mentions than the Purdue Boilermakers.

Of the men’s teams, the UConn Huskies, the tournament winners, also had the highest volume of mentions. At times, the NC State Wolfpack and Purdue Boilermakers generated more mentions than UConn, but for the majority of March Madness, the Huskies were the most talked about team.

The UConn Huskies had 39k more mentions than the South Carolina Gamecocks.

On the women’s side, the most talked about team fluctuated more often. While the Huskies had the highest volume of mentions overall, the South Carolina Gamecocks champions were the most talked about team by the tournament’s end.

Collectively, though, it’s safe to say the UConn and NC State basketball programs are the true overall winners here.

Our visual analysis of team sponsor logos detected in images related to March Madness shows that Nike was the powerhouse of the tournament.

We used Meltwater's visual analytics features to detect sponsor logos in non-verbal/non-textual content posted across news and X.

The iconic sports brand sponsored three of the Final Four teams in the men’s tournament, including the UConn champions, and two of the Final Four teams in the women’s tournament. And though Under Armour sponsored the women’s champions, the South Carolina Gamecocks, Nike sponsored the second-place Iowa Hawkeyes. This meant that every time the camera was focused on star Caitlin Clark, viewers got an eyeful of the iconic swoosh.

In broad strokes, the “winners” of the March Madness conversation were:

Texas - a top state for communities of basketball fans

Caitlin Clark - the star player of the tournament

UConn - the most prominent of the March Madness schools

Looking forward to next year, there are some potential openings. Who will rise to become the new star of women’s college basketball? Which brand could give Nike a run for their money? And how could the next host city impact the top locations ranking?

The deeper marketers dive into the data, the more insights emerge. Interested in digging further into the conversation about March Madness and other major events that impact your brand? Learn how with a demo of the Meltwater Suite:

March Madness 2024: Top Conversation Topics and Trends

With every move she makes, Beyoncé gets the world buzzing, and the release of her latest album, Cowboy Carter, is no exception. The highly anticipated country album — a follow-up to her 2022 disco/house/pop album Renaissance — has been driving discussion and excitement across the world since even before it dropped on March 29. And while the discussion centers on Queen Bey and her place in country music, her collaborators, inspirations, and related businesses are also seeing welcome boosts of attention. 

We used our social listening and analytics solution to explore just how big of a social media and PR impact the release of Cowboy Carter has had on the people and brands in Beyoncé’s orbit. Read on to see which entities really hit it big in social media and news coverage, thanks to a boost from one of the world’s biggest stars.

Willie Jones, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts, and Shaboozey

Whether she is releasing an album, headlining a tour, or simply posting on social media, Beyoncé is always a hot topic of conversation online. Still, mentions of her name (and her many nicknames) spiked dramatically on Friday, March 29, when she released Cowboy Carter, reaching a peak of more than 1.4 million mentions across social media and news. 

From March 27, the day she released the Cowboy Carter tracklist, through April 3, the weekend of the album release, the volume of conversations about her was 180% higher than in the week prior. Meanwhile, mentions of the album title peaked at nearly 324,000 mentions on release day. That gap of more than a million mentions shows just how much Beyoncé is the star of the show.

The release of Cowboy Carter arrived just over a month after the launch of Beyoncé’s haircare line Cécred. And while many artists would have used the album release to further promote their latest product, Cécred hasn’t had a major role in the rollout. 

Though the brand had a small rise in mentions on March 29, conversation about Cécred has yet to reach the level of buzz from its launch on February 20. 

Beyoncé’s athleisure line, Ivy Park, had an even more modest rise in conversation. 

Though the brand dates back to 2016, its last official collection drop was in 2021, explaining its decreased visibility in the swirl of excitement around Cowboy Carter.

One standout track from Cowboy Carter is “Levii’s Jeans”, featuring rapper/pop star Post Malone. Though the song title has a slightly different spelling from the denim apparel brand, she mentions it by name in the lyrics, singing, “Boy, I'll let you be my Levi's jeans…” And while the Levi’s x Beyoncé partnership is not official (yet?), the brand can thank the music superstar for some stellar promotion. 

Mentions of the brand spiked on March 27 when Beyoncé revealed the Cowboy Carter tracklist, which included “Levii’s Jeans.” They spiked again on March 31, when Levi’s embraced the reference by (temporarily) changing its name on social media. The bio of its Instagram account says it is “FKA Levi’s 🐝”, with the bee emoji referencing Beyoncé’s nickname. 

From the tracklist reveal on March 27, through the following week, mentions of Levi’s were 120% higher than those in the previous seven days. Overall, Cowboy Carter was a boon to the classic Western brand, thanks in part to the Levi’s social team’s quick and clever capitalization on the hype of the moment. 

Beyoncé also put her daughter, Rumi Carter, in the spotlight by featuring her on the song “Protector.” 

From the album drop on March 29 through April 4 the following week, mentions of the 6-year-old were up 131% from the previous week, peaking at more than 4,300 mentions.

As the featured artist on “Levii’s Jeans,” Post Malone also benefited from the Cowboy Carter boost. 

From the album release through April 4, mentions of him were 58% higher than the previous week, spiking above 47,000 on March 29. 

The most reposted X post about the rapper noted that “his manager deserves a raise so bad” in reference to his involvement in both Beyoncé and Taylor Swift’s latest albums. It garnered more than 50,000 likes and 2,200 reposts.

Country and pop legend Dolly Parton is featured prominently on Cowboy Carter, both directly via a spoken interlude titled “Dolly P,” as well as indirectly via Beyoncé’s cover of her hit song “Jolene.” 

Mentions of Dolly Parton rocketed to more than 84,600 mentions on the album’s release day. Plus, from the tracklist announcement on March 27 through the following week, mentions of her were 710% higher than in the previous week. Some of the most mentioned keywords included “new album,” as well as the phrases “flaming locks” and “auburn hair” from “Jolene.”

Beyoncé didn’t forget about Dolly’s fellow country legend Willie Nelson, whom she featured on the tracks "Smoke Hour / Willie Nelson" and "Smoke Hour II." 

From the tracklist drop on March 27 through the following week, mentions of him were 976% higher than in the previous week, spiking above 30,000 upon the album’s release. Though Willie Nelson is popular in his own right, this jump suggests that Cowboy Carter may have introduced him to a wider (and likely younger) pop audience. 

Miley Cyrus is country royalty thanks to her dad, Billy Ray Cyrus, and godmother, Dolly Parton, but it was her own country appeal and vocal abilities that landed her a feature on the Cowboy Carter song "II Most Wanted." 

From March 27 through the following week, mentions of Miley Cyrus were 253% higher than the previous week with a significant bump, surpassing 120,000 mentions, on March 29. 

The sentiment of the conversations in that time were largely positive, with fan accounts using the moment to highlight her body of work, generating tens of thousands of likes, bookmarks, and reposts.

One of the biggest narratives surrounding the release of Cowboy Carter concerned Beyoncé’s ability to highlight other Black artists in country music. Two of her songs, “The Linda Martell Show” and "Spaghettii" feature and pay tribute to Linda Martell, a pioneering Black country artist. 

Linda Martell experienced the Beyoncé boost even before her involvement with Cowboy Carter became public. The release of the album’s first singles, “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em,” on February 11 led to renewed public interest in the first Black woman to perform at the Grand Ole Opry. Mentions of her spike again on February 22 after reports that the now 82-year-old artist received a huge boost in streams of her solo music. 

Mentions then skyrocketed with the release of the Cowboy Carter tracklist on March 27. From that day through April 2, mentions of Linda Martell were a whopping 65,011% higher than in the previous week, with overwhelmingly positive sentiment. That incredible jump in mentions illustrates the magnitude of attention Beyoncé can give other artists, as well as the public’s enthusiasm for learning about the Black roots and history of country music overall. 

Finally, Beyoncé also used Cowboy Carter as an opportunity to highlight contemporary Black country artists. She featured country singer-songwriters Brittney Spencer, Reyna Roberts, Tanner Adell, and Tiera Kennedy on the track “Blackbiird,” a cover of the famed Beatles song by the same name. Meanwhile, country singer and The X Factor alum Willie Jones appears on the song “Just for Fun” and Americana hip hop artist/producer Shaboozey features on "Sweet / Honey / Buckiin'" and joins Linda Martell on “Spaghettii.” 

Collective mentions of these artists from March 27 through April 2 were 2,820% higher than in the previous week, peaking at almost 47,000 mentions on March 29. The most shared link of the conversation was Tanner Adell’s X post from February 11 where she publicly hoped Beyoncé would reach out to her for a collaboration. After the release of Cowboy Carter, fans quoted and shared the post to highlight how Adell’s hope came true. 

Overall, the data illustrates just how valuable Beyoncé’s outputs and platform are to major brands and artists as well as to rising stars and overlooked trailblazers.  

Looking to dig deeper into how internet users and consumers engage with cultural events? See how to get consumer insights like these tailored to your needs with a Meltwater demo by filling out the form below:

The Cowboy Carter Impact: How Beyonce’s new album boosted her collaborators

Hashtags have been popular since the dawn of social media, serving both as a way to increase reach as well as to add personality to posts. Despite the myriad changes that every social channel has been through, hashtags have always been a constant.

In this blog piece we take a look at popular and trending hashtags and their influence on South African content. We have used our social listening capabilities to accrue the most trending hashtags across industries in South Africa from the beginning of January until early March.

The Importance of Hashtags in South Africa

Staying on Top of Trending Hashtags in South Africa

Reading Tips: Best Hashtags for #followers, How to Use Hashtags on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, The Best TikTok Hashtags For More Views, Hashtags for Health: Successful Social Media Campaigns, List of the Most Trending Hashtags in Australia

Hashtags are incredibly practical, helping people and programs sort through countless content. They make it easy to find what you’re looking for, and allow current content to gather organic hype. In South Africa, hashtags are often common phrases or colloquial sayings.

Hashtags also help drive engagement and reach, as they allow content to fall within a popular search term. They increase and amplify content visibility - especially in South Africa where social media is used for sales, marketing, entertainment, and business.

Request a demo to discover trends and monitor your own hashtags.

Using the right hashtags for your business can make a difference across your audience reach, content uptake and brand awareness - especially when used correctly over the long term.

Below, we have used our social media monitoring tool to analyse the most popular South African hashtags across the following categories (from 1 Jan 2024 - 7 March 2024):

Entertainment is immediately noticeable as a common thread, with Big Brother Mzansi and AFCON 2023 dominating the list. Big Brother began on 24th January 2024, giving #bbmzansi the top spot with a use count of 914k. #afcon2023 garnered 274k, while the title sponsor hashtag, #totalenergiesafcon2023, also spiked with a use count of 160k.

Top Trending Hashtags in the Finance Industry

It’s not surprising to see that digital currency features in the top 2 spots, #bitcoin with 34.6k and #crypto close behind with 29.3k. Interestingly, Discovery bank featured 3 times in the top 6 - their hashtags #discoverybestbank, #treatmetuesday and #discoverymiles combine a collective 62.4k.

Tip: Learn more about financial services marketing trends in South Africa

Top Trending Hashtags in Beauty & Fitness

#bbmzansi features highly in the beauty and fitness sector, likely because of audience overlap, influencer marketing, or both. #fetchyourbody2024 encourages users to share their workouts, and, running during the week of February 26th, #parisfashionweek spiked as conversation around the event increased.

Top Trending Hashtags in the Arts & Entertainment Industry

Entertainment shows the domination of Big Brother Mzansi in terms of wide appeal. #khositwala and #zintlemofokeng are both hashtags of names of contestants on the show, with spin-off hashtags like #khosireigns also featuring highly.

Top Trending Hashtags in the Food & Drink Industry

Numerous brands feature in the South African food and beverage hashtag top 10. KFC has a collective use of 14.81k through #kfc and #kfcsa respectively. Carling Black Label are prominent with #mostawardedbeer at 3.7k, and West Pack and Spar represent outlets with #westpacklifestyle on 3.2k and #sparfreshlove on 2.95k.

Top Trending Hashtags in Law & Government 

Social Listening

The 18 Best Social Media Podcasts 2025

March Madness 2024: Top Conversation Topics and Trends

The Cowboy Carter Impact: How Beyonce’s new album boosted her collaborators

List of the Most Trending Hashtags in South Africa

South African Digital & Social Media Statistics 2024

The Oscars 2024: A Social Listening Analysis

What Marketers Can Learn from Paris Fashion Week 2024

Who 'Won' Football's Biggest Night? A Social and Media Intelligence Analysis

Grandpacore vs. Mob Wife Aesthetic: The Battle of the Microtrends

The 11 Best Branding Podcasts to Listen to in 2025

The Stanley Cup Craze — a Social Listening Analysis

How To Measure & Analyse Media Coverage

Social Listening

The 18 Best Social Media Podcasts 2025

March Madness 2024: Top Conversation Topics and Trends

The Cowboy Carter Impact: How Beyonce’s new album boosted her collaborators

List of the Most Trending Hashtags in South Africa

South African Digital & Social Media Statistics 2024

The Oscars 2024: A Social Listening Analysis

What Marketers Can Learn from Paris Fashion Week 2024

Who 'Won' Football's Biggest Night? A Social and Media Intelligence Analysis

Grandpacore vs. Mob Wife Aesthetic: The Battle of the Microtrends

The 11 Best Branding Podcasts to Listen to in 2025

The Stanley Cup Craze — a Social Listening Analysis

How To Measure & Analyse Media Coverage

Interested in learning how Meltwater can help you? Fill out the form to learn more.