Turning News Into Knowledge

This is the first in a series of blog posts by MediaMiser CEO Brett Serjeantson on measuring prominence in media analysis.

Prominence is a very important concept in media analysis. Accurately measuring prominence can help establish awareness of your brand, or even identify an issue which could have implications for your organization.

For our purposes, prominence is defined as “the state or quality of being prominent.” As well, “prominent” is defined as “something that is leading, important, or well-known.”

I fully realize this seems like common sense. But here’s where prominence gets tricky: How, exactly, does one measure prominence and measure it accurately?

Do you measure how many mentions a brand or an issue received within an individual article or video clip? Or, do you try to measure prominence in the context of a publication, as in the placement of that story or video clip within the larger layout or schedule of a particular newspaper, broadcast station or website? Or do you measure prominence in the context of the media as a whole, such as the popularity, reach or readership of the media property in which the mention ran.

When it comes to analysis, it’s imperative to focus on deriving understanding from the data and providing context and explanation to the target audience. (It should be noted that measuring prominence is not an exact science. However, I would argue that it can be fairly representational and if analyzed thoroughly and properly.)

But in reality, you can apply prominence to any one of the above contexts. When applying prominence at macro-level or to the media as a whole, it can potentially tell you how many people could be actively aware of an issue or brand. And by correlating that information with sentiment, we can roughly figure out that issue or brand’s impact – the approximate number of people who perceive a brand or issue to be either negative or positive.

You can even measure how good or bad a brand or issue is perceived, whether it’s a politically-charged news issue such as the Keystone XL pipeline or a personal brand such as that of NHL hockey players (click on the links to see some of our recent media analysis reports).

At the micro-level, we can use prominence to determine what actions can or should be taken to increase the understanding of a brand or issue. Do you need to be speaking with certain influencers? Do you need to connect with particular publications, bloggers or outlets?

And potentially, how can you increase or lessen the impact of the issue (depending whether your issue is positive or negative, and your intentions)?

Prominence can be a difficult concept to grasp, but can be simplified if you place your analytical results in the context of brand awareness at the macro-level, and as an agent of change at the micro-level

In a rapidly-evolving world packed with self-proclaimed social media gurus, ninjas, rock stars, titans, evangelists, experts, consultants and online marketing whizzes, you might be excused if you thought the traditional media had lost its influence.

After all, many will confidently tell you just that – that mainstream media is dead or dying, having been mortally wounded by legions of citizen journalists not beholden to the pressures of advertisers or friends in high places.

They may even claim that prominent social media users have replaced media professionals as the new agenda-setters. And in some cases, especially among some trending topics, that could even be true.

But here’s the thing: In topics where actual news is involved, it’s not true at all.

Instead of killing traditional media, as this TechCrunch post (about Osama Bin Laden) along with a series of MediaMiser reports have shown, social media has rather become an amplifier of traditional media and its journalists (while at the same time allowing everyone else a chance to voice their opinions too).

The reasons for this are simple, in my view: the traditional media – at least most of it – is still viewed as a trusted source and one that’s relatively objective. Bloggers and Twitter users with hundreds of thousands of followers, while wildly popular, just don’t have that same level of trust with the public (some do, but it’s a small minority).

Just take a look at the influence ratings derived from some of our recent reports such as Keystone XL: A social media and online news analysis (January 2012), our infographic on January’s Liberal Convention, or our December 2011 report on the Beyond the Border initiative, in which seven out of the top ten and four of the top five influencers were either media outlets or journalists.

These journalists and outlets might not even have as many followers as others, but that doesn’t seem to matter – their message still gets disseminated farther than anything Lady Gaga has to say. This is similar to what a New York Times writer found when he did a similar analysis.

All this should be taken in context, of course; while driving web traffic and interest certainly helps build and maintain credibility, it doesn’t necessarily pay the bills. Online advertising is still in many ways in its infancy, while readerships and viewerships in many cases still seem to be dropping. while print media, especially, has considerable challenges ahead. It likely will never be as profitable as it was during its heyday.

But it should cheer media outlets and journalists somewhat to know that, rather than being replaced by social media, they’re in fact dominating it. And for good reason.

This just in, fans of the NHL: the ladies dig Joffrey Lupul.

That’s at least what we’ve discovered after analyzing tweets mentioning the Toronto Maple Leafs sniper during our analysis of the All-Star Weekend in Ottawa.

The Toronto Maple Leafs' Joffrey Lupul. (photo by Getty Images)

Twitter sentiment around Lupul ran extremely high over the weekend: according to our analysis, the 29-year-old forward garnered a brand rating of 41.3. That’s certainly not as high as Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens, Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks or the Senators’ Daniel Alfredsson, but higher than other stars such as Zdeno Chara of the Bruins or Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin (see our player brand report, minus Lupul’s results, here).

The good vibes toward Lupul were flowing for a variety of reasons, from his remarkable comeback story after a long layoff following back surgery to his good-natured response during the All-Star Draft after being lustily booed by the Ottawa faithful. Even his “jersey tug” move at the beginning of the All Star Game itself provoked positive feedback.

But one of the most common comments we discovered, when drilling down into tweets about Lupul, was a little more base in nature.

Essentially, the girls think he’s really hot.

Here are just a few examples of the, shall we say, more congenial tweets surrounding the Leafs’ rejuvenated winger during the All-Star Weekend and beyond:

Published: 2012-01-28 23:37:03 User: rebeccaelliott9Tone: Positive

@MapleLeafs: Here is Joffrey Lupul speaking after the skills competition #NHLAllStar#Leafs http://t.co/MDcvK4cg? he’s soo damn sexy!

Published: 2012-01-29 20:21:43 User: KTBarnes3

Tone:  Positive @shahirj yeah #teamchara!!! Lupul is a babe!

Published: 2012-01-28 21:56:20 User: Krys04Tone:  Positive

Yep def HOT!!! RT @MapleLeafs: Here is Joffrey Lupul speaking after the skills competition #NHLAllStar #Leafs http://t.co/wlrAGfio

Published: 2012-01-29 18:50:37 User: marina_lekocajTone: Positive

saw this one comming #TeamChara lupul you babee <3

Published: 2012-02-07 19:34:40 User: wilmalex4Tone: Positive

#10sexiestmales Carey Price, Karlsson, Jamie McGinn, L. Couture, Adam Gregory, Iginla, Patty Caine, Lupul, Toews, Brian Elliot! hot!

 Published: 2012-02-07 16:09:28 User: chantelvalliereTone  Multiple

#10sexiestmales sidney crosby, kris letang, joffery lupul & all hockey players <3

But it’s not just about the tweets mentioned above – far from it. The study of Joffrey Lupul’s brand during All-Star Weekend is, rather, a great example of how anyone can rejuvenate themselves in the public eye if they do and say the right things.

Check out this tweet from @DaNucklhead, a self-proclaimed “die-hard Canucks fan”:

Published: 2012-02-06 20:37:27 User: DaNucklheadTone:  Positive 

All star draft & weekend made me a fan of Lupul. He relished playing the villian for the Ottawa crowd. Loved it #confessions

This tweet is even more remarkable considering the extent to which many Canucks fans dislike the Leafs.

But to think that just last year, Lupul was considered by some to be a “throw in” in the trade with Anaheim that brought him to Toronto – essentially, a guy perhaps even on his way out of the league thanks to some bad luck and medical complications.  Now, however, he’s a superstar (and rightfully so).

Compare that with the seemingly downward spiral of Alexander Ovechkin, one of the NHL’s money superstars for the past several years, and it becomes apparent just how fragile – but, at the same time, repairable – player brands in professional sports really are.

And of course, having the ladies on your side always helps.

It seems too often those involved in data analysis rely on only science when conducting a study. Which is fair enough, in some cases – science is, after all, a crucial part of any analysis.

As well, it seems there’s usually a heavy emphasis placed on process, methodology and even on the academic or scientific credentials of those conducting the study.

An ice sculpture at the 2012 All-Star Game at Scotiabank Place.

I certainly don’t want to take away from the importance of this. However, the coolest and most valuable analysis comes from determining the nuances of an issue and not just the numbers.

This is what I call “the art of analysis.”

In my opinion, the best results are derived from multiple data sources. When overlaid on top of one another patterns begin to emerge and real insights can be gleaned. Indeed, those looking to conduct the most valuable analysis need to get up close and personal with the information, and even more granular with the data to understand its nuances.

A good example of this was our recent report on the Keystone XL debate in the United States. After doing a deep dive into the data, we discovered that most opponents of the pipeline used the term “tar sands” when describing its proposed energy source. Supporters, on the other hand, typically used the term “oil sands.”

But sometimes even the data doesn’t give up the nuances. Sometimes, you may have to go directly to the source.

For example, we at MediaMiser recently conducted a report on the personal brands of various players at the NHL All-Star Game in Ottawa. Some of us were at the festivities at Scotiabank Place or watched them on CBC, and just being there gave us further insights into the data once we got back to the office.

Understanding those nuanced issues – such as the fact that the jokester Carey Price was a fan favourite, while Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin (who skipped the game) was clearly not – gave the report that extra edge. Having passion in what you are analyzing is extremely important, so much so that sometimes you need to completely immerse yourself in the issue.This helps spur truly great analysis.

There’s of course always the risk of not seeing the forest through the trees without a strong science-based foundation, which is why the science is also extremely important. After all, you don’t want to fall into a trap of being influenced by something coincidental.

But without paying attention to those nuances, you could be missing key insights. It’s the nuances that can help transform analysis simply from something credible, to something that people can’t live without.

For those of you who missed our open house and announcement of MediaMiser’s acquisition of InfoGlutton, we made a video!

Check out CEO Brett Serjeantson, newly-minted CTO David Nadeau and president Chris Morrison explaining their vision for the future, and what the acquisition means for the company:

MediaMiser Ltd., a leading media monitoring and analysis technology company, has released WIM News – an intelligent, mobile news reader that uses patented media analysis technology to sort and share only the news that interests users most.

Short for “What’s In Media,” the app uses analysis technology and a sleek interface to filter tens of millions of news headlines by preferred regions, topics and even by global or regional popularity. Users can read only stories that interest them the most, or broaden their news search and consume content from across the globe.

The app, developed in-house, will be sold on Apple’s App Store for 99 cents.

“The release of WIM News shows not only MediaMiser’s commitment to developing a suite of mobile tools for PR and marketing professionals, businesspeople and consumers,” said MediaMiser CEO Brett Serjeantson, “but also shows the diversity of MediaMiser’s talented development team.”

The app’s web link shortener feature – which allows users to rebroadcast quality, trusted news through a brand that stands for news and news only – provides for easy sharing without leaving the app via popular social networks or e-mail. Visit the WIM News website for more information.

MediaMiser, a leading media monitoring and analysis technology company, has acquired Gatineau-based social media and online reputation monitoring firm InfoGlutton Solutions.

The acquisition will provide MediaMiser with its own built-in, automated toning engine able to gauge the sentiment of news stories, tweets, blog posts and other content in multiple languages.

Previously, InfoGlutton’s technology had conducted online reputation management and social media listening specifically for the restaurant and hospitality industry. It was founded in 2009 and incubated via the Talent First Network’s Lead To Win program.

“This is our first acquisition and an extremely important one,” said MediaMiser CEO Brett Serjeantson. “Integrating InfoGlutton’s market-tested sentiment technology with MediaMiser’s own social media monitoring and analysis tools will help the company provide real-time, as-it-happens feedback to both large enterprises and SMEs.”

Mr. Serjeantson added the acquisition will allow MediaMiser to roll out a standalone social media product separate from its flagship software, MediaMiser Enterprise.

InfoGlutton co-founder and CEO David Nadeau, a PhD in computer sciences from the University of Ottawa, joins MediaMiser as Chief Technology Officer.

“We see this opportunity as a chance to grow from a relatively small firm into a large company almost overnight,” said Mr. Nadeau. “Working within MediaMiser gives us the means to achieve our ambitions.”

If you’re not already into measuring and analyzing your traditional media coverage and social media mentions – or if that task never materializes thanks to other things getting in the way – then you should rethink your approach to media campaigns.

Whatever your reasons for potentially holding off, it’s time to make 2012 the year to overcome your measurement phobia.  After all, if you track and know what kind of impact your PR efforts are making, you can then  make those efforts more efficient and cost-effective through the implementation of appropriate measures.

In my experience, the most common obstacle executives or PR practitioners have is not knowing where to start. And that’s not surprising, given the ever-growing and complex landscape of traditional and social media, questions of copyright and licensing, archiving all your content and, finally, finding the right people to help connect the dots.

But don’t let this deter you. There’s always a first step, and for this post I’d like to focus on that.

The first step to your PR or media analysis program is defining your objectives: why do you need to conduct a media analysis?  What do you hope to accomplish? What actionable results will come out of the analysis?

If your objectives are clear, the rest will follow.

In order to define your objectives, start by asking some basic questions:

1)      What is it that you need to measure?

2)      Why do you need to measure it?

3)      What will you do with the results, and who should see them?

4)      Where are you currently spending your money?

5)      How often you want to measure?

Your answers to each of these questions will lead to more clearly defined objectives. If you’re from a brand-oriented company, for example, then there’s a range of measurements which may interest you:

- Share of voice for your brand vs. competitors’ brands;

- Share of voice among all of your company’s brands;

- What people are saying about the brand and in what tone (positive, neutral or negative);

- Are key messages being conveyed and who is talking about you and your competition;

- Which media channels (broadcast, print, social, etc.) are most effective for you; and

- How is the brand spokesperson perceived by the public.

And so on. You can then use this information to better target those in your space, and create strategies to better communicate key messages to the people that matter to you – this information is vital not only for communications staff, but also for your marketing and even sales departments. It takes the guesswork out of planning and allows you to determine ROI and outcomes. As a result, your approach naturally becomes more scientific and data-driven.

Depending on your organization and its objectives, you‘ll all have different answers to the above questions. The good news is these answers will help you determine your objectives, which will then lead you to the next steps in your measurement program (which I’ll discuss in an upcoming post).

Every event, whether it’s a major conference or wine-and-cheese function after work, has room for networking – and not just social networking behind the screen of your computer or mobile device, either. We’re talking real-life, in-the-flesh networking at actual business and social events. What a concept!

Indeed, now more than ever professionals need to take advantage of the many opportunities available to meet new people. MediaMiser employees know full well the value of getting out and meeting people at events such as Social Media Breakfast, Third Tuesday and various OCRI (Ottawa Centre for Regional Innovation) events.

Below are 10 reasons why we feel networking is a must:

1)      Networking is a great way to gain exposure for yourself, your brand, and your employer;

2)      It gives you exposure to industry leaders;

3)      It allows you to meet people in your field;

4)      It provides the opportunity to share innovative ideas with your peers;

5)      It is an easy and fun way to learn new things;

6)      It’s a great way to stay on top of what’s new in your field;

7)      It’s the perfect way to make important connections and foster business relationships;

8)      It’s great if you’re looking for a job, often making you aware of positions that haven’t yet been posted;

9)      It’s excellent for finding new business opportunities;

10)   Finally, it’s also a fun way to socialize outside of the office.

Wondering where you can go to get your networking on? If you’re in Ottawa, there are great online resources available to scope out future events such as the Ottawa Business Journal’s online events calendar and OCRI’s online calendar. Similar resources are available in other cities, of course, such as MaRS in Toronto, Communitech in Waterloo, and MakeItBusiness.com in Vancouver.

With contributions from Amy Campsall 

With less than a week before the holidays officially begin, the Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure video game has claimed top spot on MediaMiser’s hot toys on Twitter list for 2011!

Since November, we’ve been tracking the popularity of items of the ToysRUs Fab 15 holiday gift guide. The list includes items like the Leapfrog LeapPad Explorer learning tablet, Let’s Rock Elmo, Air Swimmers and other popular items.

And while the LeapPad Explorer jumped out to an early lead back in November, it has since sunk to second place as buzz surrounding the Skylanders game works itself into a fever pitch.

It’s a trend that made the Ottawa Citizen‘s Vito Pilieci take notice – see his article on the ongoing study here.

There are still a few days before the holidays begin, however, and it’s anyone’s guess which product could eventually come out on  top.

Here’s a breakdown on the popularity of the top eight items on ToysRUs’s Fab 15 on Twitter, as of Dec. 19:

Total tweets (from Dec. 1-19 overall)

Tweets over time (overall)

We’ve also taken the opportunity to track items Future Shop’s Must-Haves gift guide on Twitter, but in this case we’ve looked at tweets only sent from Canadian IP addresses.

As the chart below shows, entertainment and video game-related products, led by the PlayStation 3 but followed up by the Nintendo 3DS and Apple TV, have thus far been the most popular products (with the PS3 out to a very healthy lead indeed – however as the chart shows, its traction has been slipping recently).

Overall, we’ve found that a relatively large amount of overall tweets have come from what appear to be consumers, while a healthy chunk has also come from retailers pushing their products. However, where Canadian tweets are concerned, a far higher proportion seem to have come from consumers.

Stay tuned for the full report, coming out after the holidays!

Tech tweets over time (Canada only)