media update’s Aisling McCarthy chatted to media analysis company Focal Points about the importance of understanding the media coverage that your brand or business receives, and the value of media analysis. But first things first: what is media intelligence?
What is media intelligence and analysis?
Media intelligence is the process of gathering and analysing vast amounts of data generated by various media channels in order to gain insights into business performance, consumers, competitors and market sectors.
Media intelligence companies gather their data from the editorial content of print, broadcast and digital news media. They also gather content from other digital media platforms, such as non-news websites, blogs and social networks.
These companies then extract information that is of interest to their clients from this data. Clients can use the data to measure the performance of the PR or marketing content their brand has created. Media analysis is one of the ways that brands can gather intelligence on their media coverage.
Data revealing conversations on media channels and social media posts can also be analysed for insights. With this information, media intelligence providers identify trends, opportunities and issues relevant to their clients.
Why is media intelligence and analysis important?
In today’s world, data is being generated faster than anyone – or any technology – can aggregate and analyse it. This makes keeping track of your business’s media coverage extremely difficult. Media analysis, and media intelligence, serves as a fundamental solution.
The significance of media analysis, however, lies in how it is consumed and how it is used. A good media analysis will offer you actionable insights that can help make your business better at every step.
“Our reports are based on client-specific needs and objectives, and relationships are formed to co-create reports that meet these objectives,” explains Anja Van Schalkwyk, team leader of analysis and media intelligence at Focal Points.
“These reports provide clients with the necessary information to identify opportunities and set objectives, giving them a competitive advantage.”
Wondering if you should invest in media intelligence and analysis? Perhaps knowing what it can do for your business will help you decide.
Media intelligence and analysis can help you:
1. Understand your consumers on social media
Wondering if your social media campaign is doing as well as it should be? Social Insights reports can be especially valuable for campaigns and events that encourage social engagement.
“These kind of reports assist in measuring your social presence, as well as ensuring you stay up to date with key messaging of social conversions,” says Van Schalkwyk.
Understanding how your social campaigns have performed can assist you in reviewing and adjusting your campaign strategies to maximise effectiveness.
2. Gain insights into how consumers perceive your brand
Analysis that is based on the general sentiment around your brand is useful for gauging how consumers feel.
Sentiment analysis classifies your brand’s media coverage according to the way you are portrayed in the media.
“Our sentiment analysis reports include a statistical overview of your brand’s coverage as well as a narrative explanation of the findings,” Van Schalkwyk explains. “We have found that this combination is the most effective way for brands to get a comprehensive overview of their reputation in the media.”
3. Understand media trends
Trends in a business’s media coverage can give you an idea of what the brand is doing right, and what the brand is doing wrong.
Van Schalkwyk says that in order to accurately pick up on trends in the media, analysis and reporting companies need to be able to process vast amounts of data.
Focal Points uses artificially intelligent technology, coupled with human understanding, to identify the most prominent media trends at both a brand and industry level. These media trend reports can be extremely useful for businesses that need to report internally or to external committees.
4. Benchmark your brand against competitors
Every brand wants to know how they compare to their opponents. Media analysis companies, like Focal Points, can offer businesses a report that compares their media coverage with that of key players in their industry.
“Our benchmark reports give you actionable insights that can help you identify opportunities and stay up-to-date with the media activities of your competitors.” says Van Schalkwyk.
The most important fundamental of brand bechmarking is to use a common data mine. This ensures that you compare the same type of media coverage when looking at your brand in comparison to its competitors.
"The most important fundamental of brand benchmarking is to use a common data mine."
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Ready to get some media intelligence on your own business? Now all you need is to find the right provider for you. Find out more about what separates the great providers from the rest in our article, What to look for in a media intelligence provider.