Late nights, a huge workload and tight deadlines. Who has the time to sift through countless news sources to find their company’s mentions? This is where media monitoring can help. We’ve outlined how this PR software can enable PR pros to stay ahead of the curve!
What do PR pros expect from getting media? They want news from all media types as quickly as possible. They only want to read the most relevant stories and coverage with positive sentiments. In a crisis communications situation, they want all the coverage their inbox can handle and some way to sort through it all. The problem? These days, information gets created in the blink of an eye. PR pros can’t keep on top of all of the data without the right tools. The content landscape is so vast that if you’re not careful, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of press.
For many organizations, a media monitoring platform may be the solution. Even for a small PR agency or department, such a platform can provide the ability to do thorough brand monitoring across numerous channels. Below we’ve provided insight into why it’s wise to invest in real-time media monitoring.
Having an all-in-one platform
Having an all-in-one platform is critical in monitoring media. You’re ensuring you’re getting the right information at the right time, allowing you to make informed business decisions. Media monitoring software will enable you to grab only the information you need to analyze and share exactly what you’re after. You’re just going to get the content that’s relevant to you and your business. Having everything in one place also helps you create a seamless process for you and your team. Rather than creating multiple, complex spreadsheets with an analyst parsing individual news clips, you have a system that does all of the work for you. Since the platform’s accessible by multiple people on your team, there’s less back and forth, leaving time to meet your company benchmarks rather than wasting time browsing through millions of articles.
Get news in real time
Getting news in real time is key to your company’s success. With up-to-the-minute news monitoring tools, you can monitor your brand via social media, online press, radio and broadcast. Media monitoring is an excellent tool for PR professionals looking to stay on top of the news for their company and industry. Many media monitoring services have alert settings where you can get notifications from your saved searches directly to your email. Social listening is also vital in crisis management situations. According to an article in Bulawayo published late last year, social media is helping news spread faster than ever. Unfortunately, it’s not only good news about your company that hits can spread across social channels; bad news can also spread like wildfire. So it’s critical to have visibility into how your company is being discussed on social media so you can respond to a controversy or crisis quickly and effectively.
Efficiently analyze, report and share
Having access to analytics makes it possible to make informed messaging decisions moving forward. It also makes it easier to make cases internally regarding where you need to go with your messaging. It’s one thing for a user to gain intelligence using media monitoring software, but it’s another for them to take that intelligence and empower their organizations. By measuring the news sentiment (positive, negative or neutral) around your company, you can continue to use what’s working and make adjustments to what’s not. PR metrics can be challenging to convey in general, but with access to analytics, the ability to create comprehensive reports and sharing these reports with your organization gives your department the boost that it needs to measure how your team is doing and making sure your company is informed on how to move forward.
With media monitoring, managing your brand’s reputation becomes that much easier. An all-in-one platform, real-time news updates and being able to analyze, report and share data will help you move up even higher in your PR career!
Until next time!
Critical Mention
Jolie Shapiro
Passionate about all things communications, Jolie found her dream job as a copywriter with Critical Mention, where she’s continuing her passion for writing and editing. With a background working for high-profile clients in the financial, hospitality and technology industries, she’s excited to bring her experience to Critical Mention. When she’s not writing you can find her at music festivals, hiking or snowboarding.
