Chapter 2. Getting Started with 2.0 Research

I don't think there's enough time in a day to gather, organize, and absorb all the information you can obtain on the Internet. You have the ability to be wired with knowledge from the time you wake up in the morning until the moment you fall asleep at night. There's your home desktop computer, PDA, work computer, wireless laptop, and Apple iPhone—you can log on just about anywhere, anyplace, to find any piece of obscure information you need. Because the Web is an open source channel, and the new way to interact online is through social networking and blogging, you have greater access to more information and opinions that can be captured by brands who want to stay "close" to their customers and watch their every move.

One of the first lessons you should have learned early in your career is that most of the time you're looking for very targeted information—the more targeted, the better. The key to a successful public relations program is reaching the right groups and avoiding the mass communications effort. When it comes to the type of intelligence you need, take a moment to reflect on your average busy day. How much targeted information (daily) do you need to be successful? There's intelligence that helps you to create new business, keep up-to-date on your brand's marketplace and competitors, understand your key influencers such as the media, research audiences' behavioral patterns, and monitor and analyze tracking information to determine whether your brand is well received in the market. The answer is—you need a tremendous amount of specific information.

At first, you might think it would be extremely easy to pull an abundance of statistics and facts in the least amount of time because the Internet is rich with information. Well, that all depends on the type of resources available, time constraints you might have, and the research methods you employ. If yours is a smaller company on a restricted budget, you might be attempting to gather the research online, on your own without the help of an outside firm. I definitely don't discourage the creative, "home grown" kind of research—defined as research you do on your own, without the help of an outside research vendor or paid software programs. Or, perhaps you're in a larger company and you have the resources to contract with a third-party vendor to assist you. No matter what size company or the options you choose, chances are you will still want more time in the day to soak up the abundance of information available. Certainly, there are far worse problems for a professional to have.

The Best Commitment You'll Ever Make

One thing to keep in mind: In a Web 2.0 world, you need to do your research. It's not a question of whether you should research; the question is, what approach are you going to take and why didn't you start the program a long time ago. Your brand deserves constant research, at many different intervals. Some brands research at inception, thinking it's acceptable to strike the market hard at launch and not at any other time—or other times when the brand feels threatened and it's a matter of survival, perhaps as a result of a significant change in the brand's competitive landscape (due to social, technological, legal, or economic changes). Then, some brands research constantly for growth opportunity, and yet others research simply to maintain their position in the market.

It doesn't matter how big or how small you are, if your brand is known or just starting to become recognized. You can never sit back and watch the world change without keeping yourself well informed and your company loaded with intelligence. And sharing the intelligence is just as important—not only with your entire public relations team, but also other areas of the company, which could include senior management, other marketing professionals, and those in charge of new business development.

Your research also depends on your customers' technological acceptance rates. Are they a "wired" group and are most of your marketing programs online? Also, what resources (time and employees) will you devote to a research program and when are they available to you? I always try to keep in mind the varying levels of acceptance of technology. If your customers are spending a great deal of time on the Internet, interacting in new ways on blogs, social networks, and wikis (that is, the innovators, the early adopters, or the early majority) and you use online programs to reach these groups, then the newer research methods are an absolute must. Remember that the percentages of groups online have changed considerably.

According to PEW Internet's December 2005 study on Generations Online, "Internet users ages 12–28 are more likely to Instant Message (IM), play online games, and create blogs. Internet users over age 28 (but younger than 70) are more likely to make travel arrangements and bank online." Online research strategies capture the different groups and help you listen carefully to what these consumers are saying much more quickly than traditional research methods.

Today, research strategies provide instant access to real-time data and detailed transcripts of communication that used to take weeks to collect, analyze, and compile in a report. With instant access to information, you can listen carefully, react quickly, and then improve your brand's product/service by placing the research back into the product development cycle. JVC Professional Products Company is a great example of how a company is actively listening on user groups and forums. JVC executives spend a significant portion of their day listening to the positive and/or negative feedback on their broadcast equipment on these forums. JVC uses online strategies by tracking the user group comments and placing the information right back into the product development cycle. They use the information to enhance their broadcast quality camcorders and broadcast equipment.

Online research strategies enable you to clear up issues before they escalate out of control. However, beware as you are obtaining your intelligence. When you join a forum or user group, or a group within a social network, you need to be transparent. It appears very obvious to other forum participants if you are from a company monitoring conversations, or a marketer, planting information and steering the conversation to promote your brand. Years ago, you would need to have your ears pinned to the ground to hear what the market was saying to understand brand expectations. Of course, now you should have your eyes and ears glued to your computer screen, PDA, or other wired devices, to make sure you listen to everything your customers say.

JVC is a good example of a brand that listens to the market and as a result, the company has successfully created high quality, affordable products for end-users who want to transition from standard definition (SD) camcorders to camcorders that capture the finest quality video footage in high definition (HD). Similar to JVC, with immediate access to intelligence, you can formulate your strategy quickly and respond to those needs appropriately. The only way to actually listen is to have some sort of ongoing research or monitoring program in place (24/7, if possible, because the Internet never sleeps). Today's online research methods enable you to have the most sophisticated tools to do the job.

Are You Ready for Research?

You're not ready for 2.0 research unless you have thoroughly evaluated the resources you have available, including the people who can review and analyze the information, and the money you need to invest in your research program. You might have only one in-house marketing person who can spend a couple hours a day on research, or perhaps you have a small team of researchers who can devote their entire day to research. Then again, maybe you're part of a huge multinational company with a large department focused on intelligence gathering. The commitment to research means knowing who is best suited to run and manage the research program; these are the professionals charged to gather the information, analyze, and report on the findings. Even if you have the budget to invest in a large research program (such as a third-party research firm for primary research through web surveys, polls, or online focus groups), it's important to recognize that if you outsource to such a firm, there still needs to be a person from your team who is the liaison between the brand and the third-party vendor. It is this professional's responsibility to manage the research process and then share the information for the purpose of integrating the results into new programs moving forward.

So many levels of research can be applied in a Web 2.0 world. For example, the levels vary for small, medium, and large companies and for start-ups versus the company that has been in business for 100 years. Keep in mind that research for the start-up or small company is definitely different from research that you might employ for the more established company (a mid-to-large size company) that makes a considerable investment and has deep pockets for research strategies. Obviously, the more time and money you invest, the more you expect in ROI. Colleagues of mine, from small start-ups to larger firms, have asked me the same questions, "How do I begin a research program for my brand, and what do I need to start?"

A research program needs to be part of a yearly or six-month planning process. Most companies do their budgeting in the 4th quarter of the year and know exactly what type of investment they are going to make in research for the year ahead. For the start-up or small company, beginning a research program usually means more of a commitment in terms of a person's time. The dollar investment is small at the onset and as research proves valuable, more time and money is invested. Mid-to-large size companies conduct strategy and planning upfront and then charge either their marketing communications department or the PR/marketing agency with the responsibility to scope out the research options.

When beginning a research program, it's important to determine the following: the type of research necessary for a campaign (market research, competitive intelligence, audience opinion research, media research, and monitoring of communication and editorial coverage), if the research is within budget (see the following list broken into small cost effective and more extensive resources for larger companies), and what firm (if outsourcing) is the right partner for the job. The selection of the right research partner is critical. Although technology provides you with incredible, interactive, and visual research tools, if you don't have the right partner, you will not be able to achieve your desired results. The right partner will lead you through the research process and help you every step of the way to interpret the data accurately. A few best-pick, no-cost, or very cost-effective resources for the small or medium to the large size company that's looking for effective research tools are as follows:

New Research Methods to Reach the Influencers

The media is one of our most important and powerful groups. In the case of the small company needing media research for a campaign, it might take only one person using a free search engine, such as Google, Yahoo!, or MSN, for news searches. There are also Web sites, such as HighBeam (www.highbeam.com), to access articles written by journalists. Any editor who you pitch will appreciate that you take the time to research and learn more about his or her area of interest. HighBeam is an easy research tool that I discovered a few years ago by doing a quick search on the Internet. If you go to www.highbeam.com, you can sign up for the free basic membership. The free basic membership enables you to search parts of the HighBeam library, use the HighBeam BlogEnhancer, use HighBeam RSS feeds, and search the HighBeam Web (but up to only five sources). Of course, you can also receive full access to HighBeam's award-winning library for less than $200.00 per year.

At a larger company you might tap into Vocus (www.vocus.com) or Cision (www.cision.com) media resources. Vocus provides a web-based software suite to help organizations manage local and global relationships and communications with key groups including journalists, analysts, and public officials. Cision has an excellent media information-gathering software program called Cision MediaSource. Sure, Cision's MediaSource enables professionals to compile general and targeted media lists online (more than 300,000 media representatives with 5,000 new updates daily), but it also enables you to dig deep into pitching strategies, which is valuable knowledge about your audience. The ability to know exactly what editors want and the best ways to reach them saves time and energy. For a smaller boutique, the subscription is approximately $3,000 for the year. Of course, the yearly fee increases with more users. With the licensed software, research assistants or PR account managers are able to log on to the Internet (even remotely when they are on the road) to access information on journalists. Regardless of the type of effort, free search engine, or paid for online database subscription, you want to be able to find your key media, learn the best ways to reach them, and discover what topics are of the most interest to them.

An Interview with the Cision Experts

Peter Granat, Executive Vice President of Cision, and Vanessa Bugasch, Director of Product Marketing, discussed in detail how Cision has become a trusted source for PR research. Over the last several years, a company called The Observer Group out of Stockholm, Sweden acquired Cision, formerly Bacon's Information. The Observer Group is a consolidation of the largest print monitoring clipping companies around the world, as well as the largest media research and analytic companies. The Cision brand, under the new parent company, will move forward with a much larger portfolio of services. In North America alone, Cision acquired a company called MediaMap about five years ago, and then bought Delahaye, which specializes in brand measuring and analysis. Cision also entered the broadcast monitoring space last year with the acquisition of Multivision, becoming the number-two spot in North America against Video Monitoring Services (VMS) in broadcast TV and radio monitoring. A number of smaller acquisitions, both in Canada and then also in Europe, are rounding out Cision's overall portfolio of services. According to Granat, "It's actually a really exciting time. I joined Cision through an acquisition of MediaMap. We competed with Bacon's for a number of years in the same directory space, but more focused on technology and financial services, and that was about three years. I now run the Marketing, Product Marketing, Sales, and Services for the Company."

Granat and Bugasch agree that PR professionals need to closely monitor brand communications and analyze how the brand is being received in the marketplace. Many of the tools that are out there support this idea. One of the things Cision does through Delahaye is a Brand Audit. They recommend that you start with a baseline program. You have the ability to capture traditional media research as well as social media and consumer generated media in the form of an audit. You can also do some survey research to understand what the perceptions are about the brand in the marketplace today and what consumers are saying. The larger brands focus primarily on the consumer space and the social media, but that's a good way to kick off any type of a project to understand where you are, and then be able to measure against that over time. Cision typically recommends this as a starting point to really understand what is being said about your brand in the market place, online, offline, through traditional media, and through consumer generated media. This is not just blogs: it's discussion groups, and even review sites.

Another interesting point made by Granat and Bugasch is that it's very hard to get that aggregated today. Today's challenges are similar to the challenges people had with traditional media: Do you use a clipping service? Do you use Factiva? Where do you go to get everything that's being said about your brand, online and offline? The same thing is happening in blogosphere space. Granat stated, "I think that's going to work itself out over time, but I don't think there's an easy answer, so what we tend to do is focus on the influencers that matter, similar to how we handled traditional media. In the truthful media space, usually the marketers know the core media list, their top tier media that really has an influence on their buyers. That's typically a place that we start with, both for traditional media, but then there are some things that we can do now with social media to look at even the influencers that matter there." Granat explained that there are some tools that are being developed in that space. In traditional media space it's usually your top-tier trades and it really depends on the brand.

On the analysis and the monitoring side, with a combination of the Delahaye services, Cision goes out and basically looks at how your messages are being portrayed within the traditional media. Against your competitors you can look for issue development—there are many different tools put in place that can measure this over time. One of the things Cision tries to do is simplify measurement for all the different types of practitioners with a model called the communications cycle. It really starts with the research process, and not just researching your media, but identifying the baseline of what's being said about you today in the marketplace. Then you can use the online directory tools and databases, such as Cision's MediaSource portal, to go out and build your key constituent list you want to target with your messages. The tools today have really evolved from the directories, which used to take days to pull together. Now, in a single morning, you can sit down and build a very targeted media list with the Media Source platform.

With respect to targeted research on the media and reaching the media through blogs, Cision gets very detailed. Granat and Bugasch stressed, "There are bloggers that matter, and we've tried to focus on the top tiered reporters by industry. For instance, a couple of years ago blogs were very big in the technology industry. eWeek and PC Magazine went off on their own and set up their own blogs as well. We've actually created those as separate sites within the MediaSource platform and you can read about the focus of their blogs, which might be a different subject than what journalists write about in eWeek. We can even answer questions about whether they accept pitches at their blogs, and how they like to be contacted. We built up profiles on thousands of reporters that are focused on blogging outside of their traditional media outlets. That's relatively new in the last two years."

Granat and Bugasch touched on how the media went through a couple stages with a lot of different fragmentation of the outlets, with very small niche publications. What had died off before seems to be coming back again. They've been following that trend and continue to see electronic publications appear, whether they are blogs or publications that need to be added. If you get into a vertical or a niche that you're not familiar with, you can quickly identify the key publications that are important to that industry sector. Cision has taxonomy or a topical index that's built inside MediaSource for you to look through and become educated in the various media categories. This is extremely valuable if you're on the agency side, where you're juggling a couple different clients and you have to come up with key media contacts very quickly. With more and more online media outlets and bloggers, there is a continued fragmentation of the media.

Granat, who has been in the business for 15 years, stated, "I think that's one of the things that's very core to Cision. It's a proprietary methodology that we use: the content collection process, and how we reach out to the media. I would say that's one of the reasons that customers come back to us over and over again. From a competitive standpoint, a core differentiation for us is our collection process and how we keep it up to date. We've built a core team who really knows how to work with the media. I've heard things like, if you call the NY Times voicemail system and get into their editorial department, they actually refer back to Cision for contact information. Part of it is definitely just the brand we've built up, but definitely the way that we approach the collection process; even by using our customer base as an asset because we do hear about a lot of changes through our customers directly as well. It's a combination of all of these things. The way that we've automated the research process, collecting the information, verifying it, and then working with our customers to get it accurate."

Looking ahead, Granat and Bugasch offered their outlook for PR pros. They think there will be an expansion in the way we look at communications for global and local campaigns over the next ten years. A similar set of tools will be available to have both consistent messages but also targeted messages based on the audiences you're trying to reach on both a local and global basis. The new type of media they've seen emerge in the last two to three years, and that's really the social media area, is going to play a bigger role. There's going to be a shakeout in this area. You get numbers thrown around in the media, about 55 million blogs. It'll be similar to the traditional media in the sense that you have to go back and focus on the influencers that matter, whether they're bloggers or traditional media. If someone has a large audience and they're influencing and they're reaching out to your key constituents, those are the individuals you want to contact. There's a basic way of tracking these newcomers, and there will be much more sophisticated ways of doing it through survey research as well as through the tracking of threads through the Internet, which really hasn't taken hold yet. The Cision executives thought we'd see more of that through social media. This 55 million number that gets thrown around on Technorati and the other services is going to become less important for PR professionals over time—similar to the user groups in the early days of technology, back in the late 80s and 90s, and how they were so influential. There's always going to be a core group online who are passionate about your brand and who you need to communicate with over the next 10 years.

2.0 Changes for the Better

There have been so many changes over the last couple years. If you think back to just a few years ago about the data collection process, it really has changed dramatically. The data collection process has really changed the way PR people work. People are much more comfortable working from home. Many doors are open in terms of flexibility. You can do your job and be extremely efficient, too. I agree with the Cision executives when they said that change and efficiency has occurred in several industries, but more so in the PR industry where information is critical to the success of the job. Having access to all this information 24/7 from anywhere makes it much more successful today than any other period of time. With this comes many challenges. As you know, it's no longer a 9–5 job. But, then again, has it ever been? Because the news never stops, you need to be available and have access to these kinds of tools—not just Cision, but also everything from Google News Alert to other resources on the Internet. Trying to manage and sort through all this information has definitely changed the nature of your job but at the same time has made it the most exciting time to be a communications professional with powerful knowledge to leverage at any time.

The many PR pros coming out of universities today into an environment where the bar has been raised are expecting better tools to reach every single media outlet and journalist, traditional or Cyber-based. However, there are still regional newspapers and newsletters that aren't online, and even the most sophisticated service providers have to collect that information manually. Part of the challenge is making sure professionals understand what's possible and what's not. Just as the bar is raised for you, the bar has also been raised for all the providers in the industry that will serve your brands in the Web 2.0 world. The needs are real time, 24/7, with constant access and the desire to have speed of delivery. The way news moves around the globe, collecting information is a challenge. But the best providers in this market are forging ahead with new technology and platforms to give you the intelligence for successful brand communication.

Research will make or break your brand. It's not clichè, it's fact. If you were to ask any of your peers who have practiced public relations whether they are pre-Internet or work in the Web 2.0 world, they will tell you that your brand's survival is only as good as the research you feed into its lifecycle. So, from the time you have a concept in your head to the time you launch the concept in the market, it's your constant, targeted intelligence that gives you an edge over your competitor. You should never skimp on research, and your research needs to be steady during the life of your brand. You should keep several key points in mind as you embrace research in a 2.0 world.

  • Take advantage of the intelligence that's available on the Internet. There are research tools that can help you create new business, keep up-to-date on your brand's marketplace and competitors, understand your key influencers such as the media, research customer behavioral patterns, and monitor and analyze tracking information to determine if your brand is well received in the market.
  • Don't just sit back and watch the world change. You must keep yourself well informed and your company loaded with intelligence. Of course, you should also practice sharing the intelligence, not only with your entire public relations team, but also other groups in your company.
  • Make sure you have thoroughly evaluated the resources you have available (in terms of people and the hours they can spend a day reviewing the information and using it for continuing marketing efforts) and the money you have to invest in your research program.
  • Although PR 2.0 changes the way we communicate and has a heavy focus on direct-to-consumer communication, the media is still a powerful group (in traditional and online publications and in the blogosphere). Take the time to find out the most you can about your key influencers. You should use online research to learn exactly what editors want and the best ways to reach them, which saves time and energy in your approach.
  • Realize that the new type of media that's emerged in the social media area is going to play a bigger role in research 2.0. There's going to be a shakeout in this area. Although the numbers in the media are about 55 million blogs, the situation is similar to traditional media in the sense that you have to go back and focus on the key influencers that matter.
  • Use the flexible 2.0 research that's available on the Internet—from the free search engines to the paid service providers with amazing technological advances—to allow your brands to more than just survive, but to thrive in a fast-moving, highly competitive, and constantly changing environment.
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