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Generative AI is everywhere now. You see it in content, campaigns, customer experiences, and even internal workflows. It promises speed, scale, and efficiency, but there’s a harder question sitting underneath all that progress; Do your audiences actually trust it?

Trust in the Age of AI: What Consumers Really Think About AI Generated Content

Today, PR teams aren’t just tracking media coverage and share of voice. They’re also measuring how their brand shows up in AI-generated answers, search summaries, and large language models (LLMs). This new LLM visibility layer is quickly becoming a critical part of PR performance.

15 Must-Have PR KPIs and How to Track Them

See how one platform can power every decision across PR, communications, and marketing.

The Meltwater Blog

Blog Topics: Generative Engine Optimization, Media Intelligence, Media Relations, Social Listening, Consumer Intelligence, Influencer Marketing

Find out how you can leverage Facebook to boost your brand's online presence and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

Facebook Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage Instagram to boost your brand's visual appeal and gain a competitive edge. Explore our category page today!

Instagram Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage LinkedIN to grow your professional network and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

LinkedIn Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage TikTok to elevate your brand with creative content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

TikTok Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage X / Twitter to engage your audience effectively and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

X / Twitter Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage YouTube to create engaging video content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

YouTube Blog | Meltwater

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is transforming how brands show up in AI-powered search. Explore insights, strategies, and best practices to help your content rank and resonate across conversational engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot.

Explore insights and strategies for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to help your brand stay visible and discoverable in AI-powered search.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Blog Collection | Meltwater

Every day billions of conversations take place on social media: tweets, posts, comments, blogs, reviews, podcasts, and much more.
Learn how to use social listening to make sense of all of that data.

On our social listening category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around social listening and social media monitoring. Read more.

Social Listening Blogs | Category

Business Reputation Management: What does it take to add reputation management to your marketing strategy? More importantly, how do you keep your reputation sparkly and shiny? Here’s your all-access guide to online reputation management for the long term.

On our reputation management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around business reputation management. Read more.

Reputation Management Blogs | Category

From your brand's logo to your website, your social media presence to your customer support—these elements combined are what constitutes a brand in the minds of customers. But, there are thousands of other businesses that have a logo, website, social media presence, and website. So, how can you position your business on the market and make it stand out from the competition?
The key to success is branding & brand management!

On our brand management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around brand management. Build your strategy and reach your goals!

Brand Management Blogs | Category

Competitive intelligence and the act of collecting competitive data can be seen as growth drivers for a company. Our guide will help you understand the concept of competitive intelligence (CI) by answering questions such as: What is the definition of competitive intelligence? How is competitive intelligence useful to organizations? What is the goal of competitive intelligence? And more.

On our competitive intelligence category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around competitive intelligence. Learn how to stay ahead.

Competitive Intelligence Blogs | Category

Let’s dive into the customer journey framework and how to optimize the process by creating a customer journey map and using metrics that matter when analyzing the customer journey.

On our customer journey category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Customer Journey Blogs | Category

What Is Data Analytics? [Beginner’s Guide 2023]
How can I grow my business? 
How do customers interact with my newly launched product?
How do I increase the productivity of my employees?
How do I know if my marketing efforts are working?
We have just two words for you...Data analytics!

On our data analytics category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around AI and data analytics. Technical and still easy to understand.

AI & Data Analytics Blogs | Category

Public relations and media relations can add impact to any marketing strategy. It’s an opportunity for brands to grow their reach beyond traditional sales messages. PR helps to shape the image you want people to have of your brand.
So, what is PR and how do you use it? This guide shows you everything you need to know to build a strong public relations foundation.

On our public relations (PR) category page, you find all our blogs covering public relations and communications topics. Step up your PR game.

Public Relations (PR) Blogs | Category

We all know exactly what the roles of sales or accounting are in a company, right? We might even have a slight idea of what the IT guys are doing.
But there is another business discipline, that plays a crucial role in organizations, even more so during the pandemic – internal communications!
But what exactly do we mean by that, what purpose does it serve and what steps can you take to ensure you and your employees will communicate effectively?

On our internal communications category page, you find all our blogs about internal comms topics. Learn about the intranet, internal newsletters, and more.

Internal Communications Blogs | Category

As the internet has taken root in more areas of our lives — everything from entertainment to shopping to paying bills and more — traditional marketing is becoming less impactful. As any marketer knows, you need to focus on where your audience is if you want to reach them. Since the average person spends about seven hours a day online, it’s no surprise that content has maintained its hold on marketers.

Here's a closer look at what content marketing is and why it matters more than ever in our digital-first economy.

On our content marketing category page, you find blogs about content marketing topics. Learn about strategies, KPIs, tips, and more. Make your content king!

Content Marketing Blogs | Category

The rise of the influencer marketing space – today a $10 billion industry, growing 50% per year – is one of the clearest examples of how social media is transforming traditional marketing. These days having a business website, presence on social, PR coverage, and your own content isn’t enough to compete.
We'll dive into the intricacies of influencer marketing to help ensure that you're equipped with the insights needed to be successful in this space.

On our influencer marketing category page, you find blogs about influencer marketing topics. Build your strategy, find influencers, and measure results.

Influencer Marketing Blogs | Category

Have you just launched a new product or service that you want to get the word out about? Maybe you want to share with consumers why it is awesome and how it is so much better than the one your competitors offer.

Well, then, there is one thing you can't do without...Marketing!

On our marketing category page, you find blogs about marketing topics. Learn about all the different angles and types of marketing and improve your results.

Marketing Blogs | Category

In this guide, we want to give you a peek into the definition of social media management, the daily schedule of a social media manager, social media platforms to promote your business, and the do’s & don’ts of social media management.
Are you ready to begin the journey of becoming a social media superstar?

On our social media management category page, you find blogs about social media management topics. Build and manage your online community.

Social Media Management Blogs | Category

Building a following and using social media platforms to reach a wider audience requires a well-planned social media marketing strategy. In this guide, we’ll be looking at why social media marketing is so essential and how you can make it work for your business.

On our social media marketing category page, you find blogs about social media marketing topics. Learn how to get the highest paid social ROI!

Social Media Marketing Blogs | Category

In the fast-evolving realm of digital marketing and public relations, utilizing the right tools is crucial for success. Our interdisciplinary category showcases all the pertinent tools for digital marketing & PR. These tools help in enhancing your online presence and effectively reaching target groups, whether through reputation management, influencer marketing, or social media management.

On our digital marketing and PR tools category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Digital Marketing & PR Tools Blogs | Category

If you’re a reality show lover who wasn’t watching Love Island USA this summer, you may have felt a little out of the loop. In the pop culture world, it seems like everyone has been watching the American version of this dating reality show, which started in the UK, currently in its seventh season. The premise brings single people together to couple up and try to win a $100,000 prize. 

Having aired every single day except Wednesdays from June 3 to July 13 on Peacock, the show has generated significant online discourse, spawning a number of viral memes. Plus, Peacock reports that Love Island is its “most-watched entertainment series on mobile devices, with nearly 30% of viewership happening on phones and tablets.”

With such a large mobile-first audience, it’s no wonder that Love Island has also been a boon to brands, both official partners and not, looking to tap into the zeitgeist and engage with heavily online consumers. We used our social listening and influencer marketing solutions to get the data behind the booming discussion and see which brands successfully rode the Love Island wave.

Dive deeper into the trends shaping the streaming industry in our Consumer Insights: Video Streaming Market report.

How big was the online buzz around Love Island USA season 7?

Mentions of Love Island from June 3 to July 13, 2025, on 17 social media channels including X, Reddit, Bluesky, Snapchat, and Pinterest

First, let’s start with some perspective. Remember the NBA Finals? From Game 1 to Game 7, the Finals generated about 2.51 million social media mentions. In those same weeks, Love Island generated about 4.39 million mentions on social media. 

Over the entire course of Love Island season seven, from June 3 to July 13, the show racked up nearly 13 million social media mentions in total. These are bigger-than-Labubu volumes. And interestingly, the Love Island discussion didn’t peak with the finale. Instead, the biggest night of show-related buzz was July 1 with the airing of a particularly drama-filled episode 26, during which contestants received anonymous letters from one another filled with grievances and criticism. Around 9pm central time, just as episode 26 ended, online discussion spiked to about 180,000 mentions (a 10x increase from the day before) as viewers processed, debated, and analyzed what had just unfolded. 

Love Island official partnerships and the Duolingo campaign

Love Island had integrated brand partners — including Cerave, Maybelline New York, and Coffee-Mate — whose products were featured in the show. Plus, it partnered with brands like Jose Cuervo, Instacart, Pepsi Wild Cherry, and TheraBreathe to create commercials starring the contestants.

Perhaps most surprising was the show’s social media activation with Duolingo. Instead of featuring the brand’s app, the posts feature its mascot Duo (whom the brand “killed” earlier this year) as a contestant on the show with the help of some creative video editing. 

Our influencer marketing analysis found that Duolingo’s six Love Island Instagram posts reached an estimated 8.9 million social media users and generated about 124,000 engagement actions.

The brand’s unconventional, story- and humor-driven approach paid off. Our analysis of the campaign within our influencer marketing solution found that Duolingo’s six Love Island Instagram posts (published just before and in the first week of season seven) generated about $400,700 in Estimated Media Value (EMV). 

How brands joined the Love Island conversation

Beyond official partnerships, many brands engaged with the thriving Love Island conversation by offering their own takes on the memes and trends that popped along the way. Here are just some of the many successful examples.

One of the most-memed moments of Love Island USA came on episode 12 when one contestant, Huda, reveals to another, Nic, that she has a daughter. The conversation, in which Huda says “I’m a mommy” to a misunderstanding Nic, who replies “Mamacita” and “Mommy?”, went viral online. Urban Outfitters took the meme for a spin to promote the also viral Micro Hydro Flask available at its stores. The clever take on the format generated more than 14,300 likes and about $19,700 in EMV.

That “I’m a mommy” meme we just talked about? It was a big one! Scrub Daddy’s video take featuring audio from the show has gotten more than 29,000 likes, achieving an impressive 4.37% engagement rate and over $41,200 in EMV.

Reality dating shows are often thought to have overwhelmingly female viewership, but Love Island has gotten attention for revealing the cracks in those assumptions. The NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers highlighted the overlap in their audiences in one popular Instagram post in which players shared their opinions about the show. It generated about $18,000 in EMV.

Its namesake holiday is months away, but Spirit Halloween used the “dream date” meme that originated from Love Island USA episode 13 to stay in the conversation. Its version of the viral screenshot format generated over 37,000 likes, a 3.12% engagement rate, and about $44,800 in EMV.

Learn more about hopping onto viral trends in our Ultimate Guide to Trendjacking.

This summer, Love Island USA did more than just dominate streaming, it took over social media and the internet at large. The brands that took notice in time to leverage the moment were those attuned to their audience’s interests, even when they crept beyond their traditional realms, as with the Los Angeles Chargers and Spirit Halloween.  

While official partners like Duolingo got in on the ground floor with the hit season, many others captured significant engagement by following the discussion in real time. Let this be a lesson to marketers everywhere: Brands don’t necessarily need formal partnerships to make a splash with trending topics and content if they have an agile, culturally intelligent and aware social strategy. 

How Love Island USA Was a Marketing Goldmine for Brands in Summer 2025

It’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere, so you know what that means. Time to get a cold drink, put on some sunscreen, and determine the song of the summer for 2025! Like last year, we used our social listening and analytics solution to dive into the online conversation about this season’s hottest songs. We used the top 10 tracks from the Billboard Songs of the Summer chart as it stood at Week 5 ending on July 7, 2025, as the basis of our comparison. Read on for definitive data on which song has gotten the most people talking (and typing) so far this summer.

What is the top song of the summer for 2025 according to social media buzz?

Social media mentions from June 1 to July 7, 2025 of the top 10 songs from Billboard’s Songs of the Summer chart as of week 5, ending on July 7, 2025.

Our social listening analysis of Billboard’s “Songs of the Summer” chart found that the most talked about song on social media is “Die with a Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars. From June 1 to July 7, it racked up about 30,000 mentions across 17 social media channels, including X, YouTube, and Sina Weibo. Notably, the song is far from the top of the Billboard chart, holding steady at #6. “Luther” by Kendrick Lamar and SZA is #4 on the Billboard chart, but ranks as the second most talked about song. It is followed by “Ordinary” by Alex Warren, which has been at #1 on the charts for the past five weeks.

Wondering where “Manchild” is? The Sabrina Carpenter song entered the Songs of the Summer top 10 on July 8, the day after the cutoff point for this analysis.

We see the biggest discrepancy between the charts in the rankings for “What I Want” by Morgan Wallen ft. Tate McRae and “Just in Case” by Wallen. Both songs dropped seven places on the social media mentions chart. Meanwhile, “Mutt” by Leon Thomas saw the biggest jump from 10th on the Billboard chart to 4th on ours.

2025 summer songs saw a 94% drop in social media mentions 

Social media mentions from June 1 to July 7, 2024 of 10 songs of the summer of 2024.

Multiple media outlets have meditated on the lack of a song of the summer for 2025, and the data halfway proves their point. Our top 10 songs of the summer analysis from last year not only had a clear winner, it had much higher mention volumes across the board. The top 2024 songs collectively generated about 2,095,900 mentions between June 1 and July 7, 2024. However, this year, our top 10 songs only generated 123,400 mentions in that same time period, a 94% decrease.

Interestingly, conversations about the concept of the song of the summer itself are up about 60% from last year. From June 1 to July 7, 2024, there were about 114,000 mentions of the phrase, compared to about 183,000 in the same time period of 2025.

2025’s top summer songs include releases from 2024, and earlier

The prestigious title of Song of the Summer is usually reserved for bops that came out in the spring or summer of the same year. However, four of the songs from the Billboard top 10 came out before this year.

“Die with a Smile,” “Luther,” and “Mutt” all came out in 2024. Meanwhile, “Pink Pony Club” was originally released as a single in 2020 before being included on Chappell Roan’s debut album in 2023. Finally, “Anxiety” came out in 2025, but only after fans rediscovered the original version that Doechii shared in a 2019 YouTube video. 

What marketers can learn from the song of the summer 2025 online buzz

With older songs topping our social listening ranking and lower mention volumes, it’s fair to say we’ve entered a new era in how summer mega hits are made. Unlike in fashion, where micro-trends come and go at a rapid pace, in music, we’re seeing some sleeper hits blow up over the course of months and years instead of weeks and days as fans discover and share “old” songs they find organically on social media. 

Does that mean Songs of the Summer are over? Likely not, but it does seem that music fans are more open to “rediscovering” songs from previous years, especially when it comes to the digital back catalogues of newer stars, as in the cases of Doechii and Chappell Roan. Looking forward, songs of the summer may align more with general, cultural vibes rather than release dates.

Additionally, our analysis reveals just how much charts based on sales, radio airplay, and streams diverge from consumer buzz online. The latter can give marketers a more predictive view of what is resonating with audiences organically. To stay relevant, marketers need to lean into cultural intelligence, embrace flexibility in timing, and pay attention to how social media is driving music discovery.

The Song of the Summer 2025 Based on Online Buzz

Studies have shown that workers lose an average of four hours per week because of toggling between too many programs — a concept called context switching. AI streamlines how you communicate with customers, clients, or internal employees so you will no longer be burdened by the inefficiencies of email, clunky spreadsheets, and never-ending Slack threads.

Adding AI to the process allows you to work more efficiently within your app or program. It does the heavy lifting for you, so even when you do need to switch between apps, you can easily make up for lost time and keep your work moving.

Let’s explore the growing role of communication AI tools and our top picks for 2025.

Unlocking the Power of Al for Smarter Communication

Using Meltwater for AI-powered Communications

We define AI communication tools as software or apps that use AI to improve and simplify how you communicate. AI has the power to predict trends, understand context, and automate tasks, all of which can help you be a better communicator.

Here are some ways you can use AI communication tools to improve how you work.

Analyze sentiments of messages, calls, or documents

Real businesses are applying AI-enhanced communication tools in these and other ways. They’re proving to be game-changers for how you handle daily tasks, plan ahead, and use data to make decisions.

AI tools for communication can vary in size, scope, cost, and purpose. Let’s review 12 of the best tools that have infused AI and can contribute to a stronger communication plan.

AI in marketing is helping professionals stay a step ahead of their competitors, and Meltwater gives you a comprehensive way to apply it. The Meltwater platform uses AI consumer intelligence capabilities to identify and understand what people are talking about online and how they’re discussing it.

Social listening and consumer insights are powerful. They give you a chance to hear relevant conversations, even when your brand isn’t included. You can dig deeper into your audiences to learn their preferences, find new segments, and know how they think and feel, making it one of the best social media monitoring tools.

AI brings contextual understanding to the process. You gain a more complete picture of your brand and audience. Meltwater connects the dots to find hidden patterns in data you might have missed or didn’t know existed. Get alerts when trends and sentiments shift, or tap into custom data reports to figure out your next best steps.

Introducing Mira - The Power of Meltwater AI, Unleashed

Mira is your AI companion within Meltwater, here to streamline your workflow and bring you deeper insights in a fraction of the time. Using provided prompts, or designing your own, you can ask Mira for consumer insight analysis such as "consumer sentiments for a brand/product/topic" or "top performing hashtags". 

Mira can also assist in your PR comms flow, by pinpointing relevant journalists, drafting emails, and creating press releases. 

Want to see Mira and Meltwater's powerful AI communication tools in action? Click here and fill out the form below for a personalized demo!

Customer service platform Zendesk uses AI to help businesses serve customers faster and more efficiently. AI enables more personalized experiences so that customers feel valued as individuals. 

Zendesk includes AI agents that offer the benefits of automation without sacrificing personalized support. Customers can “self-service” to get faster resolutions, which reduces wait time and increases satisfaction. AI agents are also available around the clock, allowing customers to reach out anytime they have a problem or question.

TIP: Learn more about all of the exciting new AI features we've added to the Meltwater suite of solutions in our Mid-Year and Year-End Product Releases!

Grammarly is a free AI communication tool that helps you become a better writer with little or no effort. Using the browser version or the browser extension, Grammarly reviews your writing and makes suggestions on word choice, spelling and grammar, and tone of voice. 

It’s also easy to use. Just click the highlighted text to Grammarly’s suggestions. A single click will make the change, or you can choose to dismiss the suggestion.

Designed for AI-powered transcriptions, Otter.ai turns audio and video into transcripts. This gives you another way to make use of your content and tailor it for audiences who prefer reading over listening.

Otter.ai integrates with popular tools like DropBox, Google Docs, and Slack and can serve as a copilot within those tools. For example, if you’re having a Slack meeting, Otter can recap the meeting notes and create a list of action items based on the transcript. 

One of the most widely used AI communication tools, ChatGPT offers a low barrier to entry for AI adoption. ChatGPT is a large language model that uses plain text inputs and uploaded files to generate new content. Anyone can start using ChatGPT (there’s a free version) to create content, such as emails, blog post drafts, ad copy, or social media posts.

While ChatGPT does make quick work of content creation, users should be wary of using its outputs as is. They typically require editing and fact-checking, and may appear too similar to content that’s already been published.

TIP: Our Data-Driven PR Toolkit contains ChatGPT prompts designed specifically for PR and communications professionals. Download it for free!

Taskade lets you build and deploy AI agents that can work in the background while employees focus on other tasks. AI agents can handle a wide range of requests, from planning itineraries to developing presentation materials. 

You can also use Taskade to organize your tasks and set up searchable knowledge bases. This allows users to make the best use of their time and not have to second-guess themselves or waste time trying to find solutions.

Zohodesk is an AI customer service desk software that can help resolve customer complaints faster. Similar to other help desk solutions, tickets enter the system for employees to review. AI features can analyze the context of the ticket, detect sentiments, and provide appropriate responses automatically.

Agents can resolve issues based on the context of the ticket details. This saves businesses from having to involve human employees for every issue while ensuring customers get a satisfactory solution.

For AI-driven project management, ClickUp combines common features like chats, tasks, goals, and documents into a single interface. Users have complete control over their workflows and how they organize their content. 

AI acts as your personal assistant as you navigate your tasks, files, and spaces. You can ask it questions, like whether any tasks are overdue or what email address you should use to contact a specific person. It can even organize your tasks for you and show you what to work on next, based on tasks assigned to you and their status.

Think ChatGPT, but specifically for marketing. Jasper.ai is a copywriting tool designed to craft blogs, web copy, social media posts, and other content in a brand’s unique voice. This is an area that basic language models like ChatGPT struggle with. Jasper has skewed its product to be more aligned with popular communication channels.

Something AI does well is improve over time, and this benefit is clearly seen in Jasper. As the tool learns more about your brand, tone, style, and audience, its outputs reflect its knowledge growth and can create content that needs less editing.

AI email assistant TryEllie gives you a clear path to inbox management. The AI tool writes emails on your behalf and can learn from your unique style so that your emails sound more like you.

TryEllie understands the context of emails and can write appropriate replies to incoming messages. You can try the browser extension for free before committing to a paid plan.

Whether you’re on a Zoom call or a Slack meeting, Notta can collect the important elements of each session and turn them into a transcript or notes. One of its most powerful features is its ability to translate text. Notta is multilingual and makes meetings more accessible for those who aren’t able to navigate language barriers in real time.

You can also upload pre-recorded audio to Notta for a complete transcript or highlights. It can differentiate between speakers, pick out key information, and create a list of the next best actions based on what was discussed.

Formerly known as Drift, SalesLoft uses AI to learn more about the experiences buyers want and expect. It looks at the customer journey and the content your customers are viewing on your website to find high-intent buying signals. It shows you how you can act on those signals to turn more visitors into customers.

SalesLoft helps you identify the most qualified leads and cater to them with experiences that convert. Personalize your chats and emails, start conversations on landing pages, and get data-driven insights into how your efforts are working.

No matter your communication strategy, AI can help you do it better. AI in marketing is becoming more common, but it’s still in its infancy. Capitalizing on it now gives you a competitive advantage over those who haven’t yet discovered its usefulness.

Meltwater is a leader among the best AI tools for communication, offering comprehensive data to power your comms strategy. Use Meltwater data to find trending topics, learn how people are talking about them, and understand their sentiments toward them. 

Our platform offers easy-to-understand insights, not just numbers, so you can learn what the data means and what to do next.

Learn more when you request a demo by filling out the form below!

AI communication tools offer game-changing ways to get ahead in your marketing and PR efforts.  Read more about the top 12 AI comms tools, and how they're used. 

Top 12 AI Communication Tools

If your brand ended up in a headline today, would you know it?

Earned media can build your reputation (or quietly break it) without costing you a dime in ad spend. But if you’re not monitoring it, you’re flying blind. 

Today’s news spreads fast and public opinion shifts faster. That’s why keeping tabs on what others are saying about you is a modern day public relations survival skill. Here’s how you can hone yours with earned media monitoring.

Best Practices for Effective Earned Media Monitoring

Earned Media Monitoring definition: the process of tracking and analyzing unpaid brand mentions across news outlets, blogs, social media, and other third-party sites.

Earned media monitoring watches for coverage you didn’t pay for or publish yourself. Think press mentions, influencer content, product reviews, and viral social media posts.

Earned media is what other people are saying about your brand to other people. When a journalist, influencer, or publication mentions your brand in a story, it feels authentic. 

In many cases, it’s what potential customers trust the most. Monitoring earned media gives you a real-time view of your brand’s reputation. It can also help you spot trends, measure PR impact, and catch issues before they become crises.

Every mention has the power to add to or detract from your brand image. When you actively track this coverage, you can spot opportunities to amplify press coverage, address negative feedback early, and learn how the public really sees you. 

These insights are gold for your PR and marketing. It tells you what messages are resonating and where your brand visibility is growing. It’s a core part of knowing who your audience is and how to stay relevant and in front of them.

All media holds value, but earned, paid, and owned media each bring something unique to your PR and marketing:

Earned media is what you don’t control. It’s organic coverage that comes from others talking about your brand.

Paid media includes anything you spend money on — ads, sponsored posts, influencer partnerships, etc.

Owned media is everything you control, like your website, blog, social media channels, and email newsletters.

The real power comes when earned, paid, and owned media work together. For example, earned and paid media drive traffic to your owned platforms. Owned media ensures a consistent voice and message. Earned media adds social proof and credibility, boosting your owned media.

Monitoring earned media ensures you’re not just pushing messages out, but also listening to what’s coming back in. When you align all three, you build a more effective, balanced media strategy your audience can trust.

TIP: Check out our Data-Driven PR Playbook to learn more about tools and strategies that can help your earned media monitoring efforts!

To track earned media mentions, you need to know where to look. Here’s how you can track mentions based on where they come from.

Traditional media includes newspapers, TV, radio, and magazines. These channels might seem old-school, but they still carry serious influence.

Tools like media clipping services or offline media monitoring platforms help you catch these mentions as they happen. However, solutions like Meltwater can help you combine traditional and digital media with social media data for a comprehensive view of your brand's coverage.

Digital media includes blogs, social media sites, podcasts, online news outlets, and forums like Reddit or Quora. These are fast-moving spaces where public opinion spreads quickly and virally. 

Tools like Google Alerts can catch basic mentions, but dedicated platforms like Meltwater scan millions of digital data points to give you real-time updates and analytics.

Beyond just counting mentions, smart media monitoring involves sentiment analysis and trend tracking. You should know how people are talking about your brand, and whether it’s positive, negative, or neutral.

This data gives you context, not just numbers. You can use these insights to find patterns, measure and analyze media coverage and its impact, and stay ahead of emerging trends before they shape your brand for you.

There are quite a few tools in the “earned media media monitoring” category. These stand out for their accuracy, reach, and features. 

Meltwater’s media intelligence covers traditional and digital media in one platform. It monitors more than 270,000 news sources, social media platforms, podcasts, newspapers, and other outlets.

AI-powered features and customizable dashboards and reports help you make sense of the numbers so you can see how your coverage impacts your strategy. 

See how Meltwater Media Intelligence makes comprehensive earned media monitoring easy! Just click here and fill out the form below for a personalized demo.

Brandwatch focuses on social listening and trend analysis. It analyzes conversations across social networks, blogs, and news, helping brands zero in on audience sentiment and overall brand image. 

Brandwatch makes it easy to compare data over time so you can track how your brand health evolves alongside media coverage.

Built for PR teams, Cision monitors media and manages outreach in one platform. It combines earned media tracking with press release distribution, journalist database access, and campaign management and measurement tools. 

Cision is ideal for strong brands that do a lot of media pitching. You can track each pitch within the platform and see how your outreach pays off.

Mention supports small businesses and growing brands with brand mentioning monitoring. It checks multiple sources, including blogs, news sites, and social media, to find mentions in real time.

A simple alert system combined with affordability makes it ideal for users who are new to media monitoring.

Features to look for in a media monitoring tool

Media monitoring should go beyond basic mention tracking. Other features to look for include:

Multi-channel coverage (traditional and digital)

AI provides one of the biggest advancements in media monitoring. Automation and AI can instantly sort through thousands of articles and posts, identify the tone of each mention, and flag emerging trends without human input. 

AI also helps with natural language processing, which means the system can understand context, not just keywords. This gives brands more accurate alerts, better insights, and less time spent digging through irrelevant noise. 

Tracking earned media is only half the battle. You also need to prove its value. 

To do this, you’ll need to track key performance indicators (KPIs) that illustrate each mention’s impact. Common KPIs include:

Volume of mentions (how often your brand is discussed)

Reach and impressions (how many people saw the mention)

Sentiment (positive, neutral, or negative tone)

Share of voice (how your brand stacks up against competitors in the media landscape)

Backlinks and SEO impact (how mentions drive traffic and improve search rankings)

Engagement (likes, shares, comments on social media posts or articles)

Earned media’s value doesn't always tie directly to sales, which is why attribution models are essential. A multi-touch attribution model works best here, especially in PR and marketing campaigns where earned media builds awareness at the top of the funnel. 

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