Use customer language as evidence, not a definitive score
Use customer language as evidence of brand perception, rather than treating an AI-generated sentiment score as definitive. AI can analyse reviews and social media mentions to identify emotional tone, compare perceptions with competitors and highlight areas for improvement. Keep the interpretation tied to what customers say about your brand, rather than the general mood of a post.
A 2026 study by Laiyi Meng and co-authors found that document-level sentiment can obscure which company or asset a judgement concerns when several are mentioned. A 2025 study by Ljubiša Bojić and co-authors found that, in sentiment and emotion judgements, humans rated emotional intensity higher than models, and both struggled with sarcasm.
Use the analysis to identify language worth examining and questions worth investigating. Distinguish judgements about your brand from emotions expressed about a wider experience, and retain human judgement when interpreting ambiguous comments.