Targeted business intelligence makes your communications smarter

Media monitoring and intelligence gathering can be even more effective if you apply a targeted approach. No matter in which company or environment you work, resources continue to be limited. So you will need to plan and allocate them carefully - where it matters most. Your success will be determined by your selection of communication channels that matter and the relevance of your messaging.

You can strategize better if you know where, when and what is being said about your company, competitors, and industry as a whole. However, how do you filter out the clutter – so you can focus on the intelligence that matters?

The answer is that first you need to monitor the relevant media channels and online communities. Then you need to review and interpret the data, so you can use this information to develop and/or refine your communications strategy. If you have a summary of relevant information, topics and trends, it will be easier to analyse and understand and make informed decisions for your communications activities. Moreover, when managers want to know what they are getting for their investment in communications programmes, professional communicators should be able to demonstrate effectiveness and show results. In short, communication professionals must measure their work to ensure that messaging is effective, to be able to adapt a plan in time if it is not delivering the required results, and to help them garner buy-in for new initiatives.

Effective measurements are needed – now more than ever

Business Intelligence has always been important, never more so than today. There is a vast amount of information out there, so researching, validating, and interpreting data can be both time-consuming and costly.

However, the environment in which public relations and corporate communications operate today is increasingly frequented by management practices and techniques such as:

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Benchmarking
Balanced Score Card
Other systems of tracking key ‘metrics’ to evaluate activities

Demonstrating the impact of your PR efforts is no simple task. To maximize the value and benefits of a measurement programme, it is critical to set measurable and transparent objectives which support your organization’s strategic priorities.

If you want to measure your communication efforts, align PR objectives to business goals, and prove your value within your organization, EMG can help.

At EMG we handle communications for many clients – from media relations to product launches, from campaigns to fully integrated programmes - and in doing so monitor industry-specific digital, printed and social media on a daily basis to capture coverage, trending topics and business intelligence. Using the EMG Industry News Service we can help you to access business information more effectively. We have built on our capacity to index coverage based on filter criteria that meet the needs of our customers – we can search on specific companies, products and/or events tailored to your business – tracking information and news as and when it happens in industry sectors such as automation & control, building & construction, chemicals, materials, marine, oil & gas, packaging, plastics and power.

The EMG Portal

All data is captured in the EMG Portal and can be accessed 24/7. Our team uses its in-depth industry knowledge to analyse the data and to eliminate non-relevant items and duplication, and then categorize the information based on issues or campaigns, competitive intelligence and/or industry trends. Reporting is done on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, in consultation with our customers and depending on their specific needs. The aim is to simplify access to information, apply consistent categorization for easy filtering and analysis, and unlock media insights and business intelligence.

If you have a business topic that requires close monitoring and reporting, need to set a benchmark, track competitive activity and require help with the collection and/or validation of data, or would like recommendations for your communications planning, contact us now.

Supporting a leading global brand

One of the world’s leading specialty chemical companies uses the EMG Portal to help manage and monitor client communications activities. It provides tools to organize, track, and share information about events, campaigns, and media relations activities all in real time and without the administrative hassle of multiple spreadsheets.

Over 30 users have line of sight to all global activities and results, which are easily located in the Portal, enabling the team to increase efficiency, align positioning and messaging, and transfer and maintain knowledge. As a result, the team is spending more time delivering the company’s story and helping to build and maintain its global brand.