Analyzing the Media Landscape

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Analyzing the Media Landscape orStrategic Advantage

Vocus White Paper

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Vocus White PaperAnalyzing the Media Landscape or Strategic Advantage

Analyzing the Media Landscape or Strategic Advantage

Ever have a reporter tell you they loved the inormation you sent, which is why they posted the news earlier that day? Watched your product director get blindsided by a new product rom your biggest competitor? Seen the look o surprise rom your CMOwhen he realized the company’s reputation among key inuencers has slipped? Been there when the CFO missed hearingabout investors looking or companies in your industry?Scanning the headlines and reading industry articles has always been an integral part o everyday public relations. In act,it has been engrained in most PR proessionals rom the day they began their career to “read your publications,” “track yourindustry” and “look or trends.” While the traditional value o news monitoring is clear--identiy new opportunities, increasecoverage and know your reporters--the value to the company is much greater.While traditionally media monitoring has been used to track the company’s news coverage, including how many mentions ithas received and how much buzz has been generated, when used correctly, today’s media landscape provides the means ora much more powerul assessment. The inormation gathered through the news, such as new products on the market, eectivemessages with consumers and the organization’s ranking within the industry, can prove to be invaluable in other areas o thebusiness as well.So how can news monitoring be used to gain a competitive advantage or the company? Monitoring the news and currentheadlines keeps the company in-tune with the industry, the big players and the current trends. Through media monitoring,PR proessionals can uncover new trends or product directors, gather market and competitive activity or the executive team,discover customer satisaction blogs and messages or the head o customer service and demonstrate a value to the businessbeyond their traditional role.This whitepaper will oer tips and techniques to analyze the media landscape and how to apply it not just to public relationscampaigns but to gain a strategic advantage or the company.

The Growing Media Landscape

As media has moved online, PR proessionals are not only monitoring what traditional journalists have to say but are alsogetting eedback directly rom their consumers.With company perceptions owing onto the Internet, it is now possible to get insight into all aspects o the organizationthrough monitoring both online and oine media. PR proessionals can not only track their own reputation but also that otheir competition. The rise in consumer-generated media in blogs and other social media orums has led to added insightinto customer service problems and other corporate image issues and with no lead time and 24/7 availability, this onlinemove oers access to the inormation beore it reaches the mainstream media. As consumers post entries on everything romcustomer service to new product announcements to general observations, savvy PR proessionals are able to take that valuableinormation and distribute it throughout their organization to not only gauge the industries’ latest announcements but to learnrom the reactions.While PR proessionals are learning to maneuver the new media landscape and manage their online reputation, recent studiesshow that more understanding o the benefts o this new online inormation source may be necessary:72% o PR proessionals say they have NO ormal system or monitoring buzz in the blogosphere, only 19% say they do

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(Kent State/BurrellesLuce survey)53% agree that measuring and monitoring their reputation is a strategic priority in 2008 (Reputation Management or

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New Media Survey, Paul Dunay, 2008)58% do not have a strategic plan in place to manage its online reputation (Reputation Management or New Media

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Survey, Paul Dunay, 2008)The inormation that can be gleaned rom the Internet as well as traditional media is invaluable to the company and its position-ing. As companies put solid media monitoring strategies in place, they will fnd the inormation necessary to help gauge theircurrent strategies as well as develop a plan or their uture approach.

Understanding the Landscape

Many key areas need to be taken into consideration to develop a sound strategy employing the inormation PR proessionalsgather. It is important to establish an understanding o the landscape itsel and your organization’s place in it to see whatinormation will be most inuential to the company’s uture direction.

Competition -

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Monitoring not only the coverage your company receives but that o the competition will provide a airevaluation o where the organization alls within the industry. As competitors emerge as the clear “media darlings,” it isimportant to identiy their strengths. Are they using more compelling messages, have they ocused on a newsworthy trend?The inormation you learn can identiy what the competition is doing well and why it is working.

Industry -

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Monitoring the industry as a whole can accomplish two goals, to see how the industry is shiting as well aswhat trends are emerging. As the industry and trends shit, so do the players within it. For example, new players emergeas industries break into niches. By tracking the industry and these shits, your company can stay one step ahead o thecurve and adjust its message and approach accordingly.

Message and Reach -

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Traditionally, news coverage has been monitored to see the number o clips and impressions orcompanies. In today’s world, it is not just about the clips themselves, but the message that resonates. While getting cover-age is important, getting targeted clips that drive home the right message to the right audience is more important to thecompany’s success. With the addition o social media and online publications, those key messages are now able to reacheven urther and permeate throughout key industries. Monitoring your company messages will allow the organization toevaluate its media and online perception.

Monitoring, Tracking and Evaluating

As media has become a 24/7 source o inormation with new online publications and blogs appearing daily, the importanceo determining and understanding what is important to the company is growing. Siting through articles and postings cansometimes lead to more questions than answers without clearly defned values and an understanding o what is most importantor your organization.

News by Source -

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Print, online publications, broadcast,blogs etc… the media universe is rapidly expanding andwith it, so has the coverage area or monitoring. Most PRproessionals are amiliar with the general tactics or moni-toring traditional media such as print and broadcast, aswell as the complications with each. However, monitoringonline publications and blogs presents a new challenge.With 1000’s o new outlets appearing online, it is increas-ingly overwhelming to monitor and evaluate each. But,managing and defning the process oers some relie. Getstarted with a small subset o blogs that are important tothe company and/or industry and use them to move orward and grow your online universe. As new blogs are discoveredin the company’s industry, determine the impact on the business and thereore, the impact on your strategy.

Announcements to Monitor -

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Look or insight into the industry as well as into the competition’s strategy. As newproducts are unveiled and launched, evaluate their eects on the industry and gauge the reaction. This inormation willserve as reerence points or uture development or the organization as new services and upgrades are evaluated. Ad-ditionally, monitoring the organization’s news will also provide a gauge o the messages in the market. Has the company’smessage resonated? Is the organization gaining momentum with the media? Are your spokespeople seen as authorities?

Monitoring Frequency -

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The online shit has turned the media into a 24/7 source o inormation. How requently you monitor the news depends on your resources and priorities. Every company is dierent and needs to evaluate theirresources. While monitoring in real-time is ideal or the most accurate picture, it is important to set a system that worksor your organization. While print and broadcast will appear with less requency and ollow a schedule, online news canhappen at any time. Doing a thorough media check each morning and distributing a report to the executives and otherinterested parties is a good start. Using readily available technologies, PR proessionals are able to check throughout theday to stay on top o breaking news that may aect the company.

Evaluating Importance -

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As with anything, value is determined by the goals o the company. While it is important toget quantity, that cannot replace the quality o the message. Each article must be evaluated or both tone and prominence.As we know, not all outlets and articles are created equal, so why would the ront page o a daily newspaper and a briein an obscure blog with limited readership each count the same? Additionally, not all news is good. What i that ront

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Vocus White PaperAnalyzing the Media Landscape or Strategic Advantage

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