Blog-Related Analysis

Blog-Related Analysis

Whether or not you have a blog, the related analysis is important to track how your business and brand are being discussed to better understand your consumers' perspective:

• Monitor the Web for references to your brand, key officers, and major competitors:
  Set up tracking on Google News Alerts, Technorati, and PubSub. You must be able to react to relevant topics brewing in the blogosphere before they become full-blown issues. Involve PR in this process, and respond quickly and decisively to engage bloggers.
  
• Analyze comments, links, and trackbacks (define) to determine the relative importance of audience perceptions. Use tools such as Intelliseek's BlogPulse or a firm such as BuzzMetrics. This analysis will help determine who the influencers are and what their connectivity level is.
  Analyze broader category or product information. Consumers may discuss products in general terms, without using brand names or model numbers. So narrow tracking may not reveal the full picture. Monitor the information landscape to determine the macro trends and issues that influence buyers and the language they use. A food producer may check for terms such as "diet" and "low carb," for example. According to Julie Woods, Cymfony EVP, "Ongoing trend analysis examines the conversations to find relevant information that can be used to guide marketing strategy." It can reveal pain points, consumer language around your product, market changes, and competitive actions. In turn, these findings can direct your marketing and creative approach. They may also reveal other terms you should be tracking.
  
• Blogs create more opportunities, and more challenges. As with any communications strategy, consider what you hope to achieve from consumer engagement. Don't ignore blogs until something blows up! Use them as another way to listen to and involve customers. People talk about you in the blogosphere; use the opportunity to influence the conversation.