This blog post is part of “The Ultimate Guide to Public Relations” blog series.
Investing in a PR Platform is a big decision and hopefully one that will be a sound investment for several years. Each year, our agency evaluates the top choices on the market to keep tabs on changes and updates and make sure that we’re going with the best technology available.
Vetting out several platforms is a complex process with a lot of moving parts, so we’ve also developed a tip sheet of 50 questions that you should ask before you buy Vocus, Cision, or Meltwater, which you can download here.
This year looks to be a very interesting year for shopping PR database and analytics platforms for a couple of reasons – one being the upcoming unveil of a brand new and much improved Meltwater platform, and the second the recent merger of Vocus and Cision.
Recently, I was privy to a first look preview of the new Meltwater platform, expected to roll out in phases later this year. For this release, Meltwater plans to combine all of its platforms into one, including Meltwater Press for press database and distribution, Meltwater News for news monitoring and analytics, and Meltwater Buzz for social monitoring and analytics.
The new and improved platform will start to roll out this April to Meltwater News customers. The Press portion of the Platform is expected to be complete in September, so if you’re a customer of both News and Press, you’ll have to wait for Q3.
Overall, the new platform was super clean with a fresh new design and user interface that was like going from PC to Mac. Aside from consolidating platforms and brushing up the looks, Meltwater is baking in a very nice list of feature, quality and service enhancements.
Here’s a quick snapshot of what’s to come:
One Platform – Meltwater will consolidate its News, Press, and Buzz products into one integrated platform.
Mobile App – Meltwater is developing a mobile version of the platform.
User Interface – The new interface is super clean, featuring updated design, simplified user interface, and much faster response times.
News Search Functionality – Meltwater’s search functionality is both improved and simplified, and now features keyword suggestions, including secondary keywords, competitors, and more.
Data Insights – The new platform features broader data insights with interactive analysis and deeper drill down. Insights will also include real time, streaming data.
Reporting – The new platform will feature a fully customizable widgetized dashboard for custom reporting and automated email delivery.
Contact Database – Meltwater has doubled the size of their updating team over the last 12 months leading to improved integrity of contact database and better email delivery rates.
The new and improved platform promises to be very compelling reason to give Meltwater some serious thought. Aside from the platform upgrade, be sure not to overlook some of Meltwater’s distinguishing features (and its secret weapon) covered in this previous Meltwater review and to download our buyer’s guide to make sure that you cover all of your bases while you’re researching.
Please share your thoughts and experience in the comments section and shoot us a message if you’d like to talk PR tech!
This blog post is part of “The Ultimate Guide to Public Relations” blog series.
