Having worked in public relations for 20 or so years, one area that has been the bane of my existence (and probably everyone else in the industry) and that's media monitoring.
Whether from the point of view of just seeing what media coverage you've received from a campaign, or something more strategic - i.e. monitoring the competitive landscape looking for trends and potential 'red flags' that have potential to impact on your business - the process of monitoring the media has traditionally been considered expensive and less than comprehensive given the costs involved. Not all the time mind you, but as a general rule.
More sophisticated
Over the years improvements in technology has enabled the process of media monitoring to become more sophisticated; today, you can even "get fries with that" in the form of extra services built around media analysis - you've got heaps of digital 'clippings', but what does it all mean? What trends are emanating from the pile of editorial coverage researched?
Cubit Media Research is setting the pace in global media monitoring and analytics; the company uses a combination of cutting-edge technology along with with an overlay of 'human touch' in the analytical services it provides clients.
Interview with Warren Weeks, Cubit Media Research
I recently caught up with Warren Weeks, the founder and CEO of Cubit, with a view to demystifying (and making sense of) an area that has become increasingly complex.
- What constitutes media monitoring today in an era where Facebook, Twitter and blogs can be as influential as any newspaper or radio station?
- How is the media monitoring industry coping with a news environment that's getting more fragmented by the day?
"Referential and derivitative analytics" are mentioned during the course of the interview but both Warren and I agreed not to go there!
Suffice to say, Warren speaks candidly about a process that people in PR and communications need to understand, and takes us a step beyond and explains what's possible these days (the answer might surprise you) whether you're monitoring the traditional media space or just social media - or more likely these days, both (the question is are you combining your results and analytics across all forms of media?).
We dig down a bit into the topic, so sit back, grab a coffee and enjoy!
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