CommentCrateHow to build a comment report for a brand or client
An export is raw material. A report answers a question the client actually has.
Start with the question
Before you open the file, write down what the client wants to know: how people reacted to a launch, which questions keep coming up, whether a campaign changed the tone. The question decides what you count.
Export the same way every time
Scan each post when you are ready to count, because comments keep arriving. Note the date and time of the scan, and use the same plan and settings for every post you compare. The free plan reads up to 200 top-level comments per post. For a busy post you need Pro, which has no limit and also exports replies.
What to put in the report
- The post, the date of the scan and how many comments you captured. If the platform shows a higher number, say so: hidden or filtered comments do not reach the file.
- Volume over time, as comments per day or per hour, from the
createdAtcolumn (YouTube gives only relative times). The formulas are in analyze comments. - The most liked comments and the most active commenters, as counts.
- The questions people ask: filter the text column for question marks, then group what is left by topic.
- A tone summary that you tag yourself. Read a sample, mark each comment positive, neutral or negative, and report the shares together with how many you read.
Quotes and names
Comments belong to the people who wrote them. In a report, quote sparingly and leave out usernames unless the client really needs them and you may share them. Delete the export when the project is over.
Say what the numbers cannot show
- A scan shows the comments the page displayed that day, not everyone who saw the post.
- Likes and comment counts are not sales or reach.
- One post is a sample. Compare several before you draw conclusions.
Where to start
Look at the columns in the sample export file, bring the data into Google Sheets or Excel, and follow how to export Instagram comments for the first scan.