What does monitoring your brand on social media channels really mean?

This blog post from Beth Kanter describes the process of 'listening' to what people are saying about your brand through social media monitoring.

"Listening can help your organization craft messages/content, keep your finger on how your network thinks about your issue or brand, help with curation of content, identify influencers who you can transform into brand ambassadors, or address or understand a potential crisis early in the game." (Kanter, 2012)