Shaping Corporate Communications with Digital Media Intelligen…

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Shaping Corporate Communications with Digital Media Intelligence -- with guest Philippa Levenberg

July 06, 2023

Philippa Levenberg

Shaping Corporate Communications

with Digital Media Intelligence

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What Is Digital Media Intelligence?

Digital media intelligence is the real-time capturing of public data and intelligence regarding an organization.
At a basic level, this can look like mentions or tags of an organization's social media or an examination of competitors.
Additionally, digital media intelligence can mean tracking legal, regulatory, or legislative issues that impact a company.
Outside of the regulatory landscape affecting a business or organization, it also explores larger trends that may impact a business or industry.
An organization should view digital media intelligence gathering as a form of insurance.
Per Ms. Levenberg: “I see [digital media intelligence] as an early warning system … You may not have to act on what shows up as a part of these reports, but you want to be the first to know about it if it does so that you can get out in front of it.”
Digital media intelligence can measure several KPIs, which can include
Number of views or impressions
Specific keywords
Sentiment

Managing Workplace Issues Through Digital Media Intelligence Strategies

When a company or organization faces any kind of workplace issue that spills over into the public eye, a solid digital media strategy can help.
When an issue or crisis becomes public, it impacts the organization (leadership and employees), the media, policymakers, regulators, and investors.
That’s why it’s critical to have a digital media intelligence strategy to help pull all information into one place. This makes it easier to develop a strategic approach.
Examples of workplace issues that benefit from digital media intelligence strategies include:
Labor Organizing
Leadership Changes
Merger and Acquisition Activity
Workplace Safety Problems
Financial Irregularity
Sexual Harassment
DE&I
Companies, if faced with a challenging workplace issue, should monitor a conversation’s:
Ebbs and Flows
Sentiment
Key Voices and Contributors
If a company is committed to keeping a pulse on these conversations, this can help them evaluate the scope of a crisis and the platforms and accounts you need to engage with to help shape the narrative in your favor.
For labor and labor organizing issues specifically, it’s important to understand that employees may not feel comfortable talking about issues they're having at work with their managers or within an employee satisfaction survey.
As a result of this discomfort, employees will enjoy the anonymity of certain social media platforms (like Reddit) to discuss their issues.
Labor unions often frequent anonymous social media platforms, so organizations must have a handle on the issues discussed on these platforms.

The Process of Collecting Digital Media Intelligence

Due to the fact this information is public, there are usually no legal issues surrounding the capture of this information. But it’s always important to check current federal, state, and local regulations that would impact the use of this data.
Many social media platforms have public APIs allowing automated data pull from these sites. However, not all platforms have this functionality – TikTok and Snapchat are examples.
Companies and organizations must develop a digital media intelligence process that works for them.
A byproduct of collecting this data is often a report of key findings. A digital media intelligence findings report often includes:
A summary of critical platforms and topics to monitor
An examination of key themes and issues that are being discussed
Examples of top posts to watch relating to these themes
Commentary and discussions relating to top posts
An analysis of spikes in conversation and theorizing as to why said spikes occur
A platform-by-platform breakdown of where this conversation is active
Key players within these conversations
These reports can be pulled as often as needed. If a client faces an active issue, this report can be run daily or multiple times daily. If not, a weekly or quarterly report can help paint a full picture of the client's issue.
Artificial Intelligence can be factored into this collection process to help automate it, but for the nuances in the stories being told, it’s important to have human analysis.

Why Ms. Levenberg Works In Digital Media

Ms. Levenberg started her career in broadcast journalism but soon pivoted to focus on online news outlets and social media.
She has extensive expertise in digital, social, and paid media strategies for many previous clients with work experiences across multiple industries.
Her previous work taught her that communication with internal and external audiences is equally important for an organization’s reputation management and long-term growth.
“The digital landscape moves at lightning speed, and the rules of engagement, the goalposts are changing literally every day. The unknown and unpredictable, can be intimidating and scary for some clients to jump into. But I think the most rewarding thing for me is instilling that sense of curiosity, enthusiasm, and love for this work in them, ideally, so they don't need me anymore.”

How IRI Consultants Helps With Digital Media Intelligence

Digital media intelligence collection can be managed in-house, but sometimes it is useful to pull in a consultant to manage this effort on an organization’s behalf. This is especially useful if an internal issue spills into outside channels.
For example, IRI Consultants offers digital media intelligence services, including customizable daily and weekly reports with quarterly analysis.
Daily and weekly reports are highly customizable, examining the client’s desired KPIs. Usually, IRI chooses four KPIs to monitor and track at the beginning of the client relationship.
Quarterly reports look at the overall trends over the past three months and provide in-depth competitor analysis. This analysis will capture earned content (3rd-party mentions or tags) and owned content (the client’s online presence).
This quarterly report will measure a client against their competitors in the domain of:
Posting Frequency
Follower Growth
Top Three Quarterly Posts
Additionally, it includes analysis, recommendations, and opportunities for growth.
To learn more about IRI Consultant’s communication services, visit iriconsultants.com.

Philippa Levenberg Background

MA in Communication, Journalism, and Public Affairs from American University
BA/Honors in Journalism and Political Communication from the University of Cape Town
Ms. Levenberg began her career as a Producer with Voice of America
She served as Digital Communications Manager for America Abroad Media
She worked as Senior Account Executive, Digital with LEVICK, Creative Strategist with iStrategyLabs, and Senior Director, Digital Communications and Advertising with Story Partners
She served as the Director, Digital Media for North Bridge Communications
Ms. Levenberg also worked as Senior Vice President and Head of Digital for Qorvis Communications
She is the Co-Founder & Managing Partner of Sable Strategy
Currently, she serves as Director of Digital Strategy for IRI Consultants

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