Media monitoring is the process of watching, listening or reading to content from media sources. As well as, identifying and analyzing said content that contains specific topics or keywords. Nowadays, most companies, organizations, government agencies, and individuals like celebrities and authors utilize media monitoring. They especially use it as a tool to identify mentions of their businesses, brands, and executives in the media.
A few of the most popular ways that media monitoring is used are listed below:
- to find information about competitors,
- to benchmark their performance against competitors,
- manage corporate or brand reputation,
- gather industry intelligence,
- better understand strengths and weaknesses of corporate communication,
- identify new business opportunities,
- and find out about specific issues regarding, or relevant, to the organization.
However, by far the most popular use of media monitoring comes from the content of newspapers, magazines, trade journals, radio stations, television, and the Internet. This type of media monitoring is referred to as ‘News Monitoring’.
In addition to news, monitoring social medias has been proven to be very effective in the success of a business. Organizations can monitor their social medias on the internet and track word-of-mouth mentions online. Whether it’s published or uploaded in blogs, message boards, newsgroups, forums, or social media sites, data on all platforms has gained credence and influence. Organizations have found it beneficial to track social media for plaudits, criticism, and complaints to better understand consumers’ opinions and thoughts about their business, brand and customer services. There are commercial and in-house tools to monitor social medias, though commercial tools are often seen as being more comprehensive, time-saving and having a lower overall cost.
A comprehensive media monitoring strategy should include the following:
- Learn who is talking about your brand
- Create communication between the consumer and the brand
- Cover a large range of platforms
- Gauge sentiments of bloggers, tweeters, and readers
- Combine digital and traditional media
- Increase your reach
- Gain insights
- Report on performance
There are many reasons why having an effective media monitoring strategy is vital for a business. The data that is collected could provide valuable insight to the organizations on which strategy should be implemented. It can determine the most effective and ineffective features. The process is more precise, faster and economical compared to traditional information gathering method. It can be used to manage the company’s reputation, as well as detecting any event, issue or crisis and managing that. Additionally, it can be beneficial whilst you undergo competitor analysis and market research.
Overall, it’s a tool that has been, and continues to be, effective for business and individuals whilst promoting their brands. Through word-of-mouth and customer management, media monitoring has allowed businesses to grow with their customers. These tools enable you to listen to what is being said about specific keywords and/or topics relating to your industry and business. Through the valuable insights that the data provides, businesses are able to take that information and adjust their strategies accordingly.
