Wildfire launched a social media measurement tool called the Social Media Monitor today. The new service is set up on a web site to allow visitors to compare the performance of Facebook and Twitter accounts and will soon also include Places check-ins and overall fan/follower engagement.

In an example of the Social Media Monitor’s utility Wildfire recently ran a study comparing Target and Walmart. The Monitor showed that Target beat out Walmart in terms of captive Facebook audience during the summer, has extended its lead in recent weeks, particularly around Black Friday, putting Target 600,000 fans over Walmart.

Using the Monitor is very simple. A user just goes to the web site, enters the Twitter or Facebook URL for a particular company/brand and voilà, information that includes growth over the past 7 days, month and 3 months appears, along with a graph and the total number of fans/followers.

To help visitors to the Monitor take their social media reach to the next step, Wildfire also provides links to its other services along with these metrics. Learn more about strategies to increase your social media reach with the Inside Facebook Marketing Bible.

[Image Via Wildfire]