Universal Information Services

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Let me start off by saying at Universal Information Services there are some clients I do not want to date. Not because they are too much work, or a pain in the neck, or their margin is too low, but rather because they are already in a love affair with their current vendor. This post briefly explores the accelerating nature of marketing through the #newtools of social media, but focuses more on the #samerules of a positive customer relationship and why that leads to lasting love between client and vendor.

In the news monitoring industry, there are only a handful of services that provide complete news monitoring, media contact management and releasing, plus the ability to analyze all your media exposure...some would call that the whole package. There are many more news monitoring services that service a part of our industry by focusing on broadcast news, or media measurement, but few who can do it all. Therefore, in order to grow we must feed off of each others clients for a certain percentage of client base growth.

Through social media tools like Youtube, Facebook, and especially Twitter, we can amplify our message related to our strengths and relay testimonials from existing clients to prospective clients. I would call that advertising that we are "available to date". Primarily a "pull" marketing tool, the fun social media tools actually provide some great inbound opportunities. Yet, we still maintain a "push" marketing effort to reach out to those who haven't yet found the value in social media. Being honest with myself, I estimate 80% of our prospects are using one of our competitors. Therefore, in order to get to that 80% we must pull them away from a service like cision, Critical Mention, or TVEyes. At Universal Information Services I can tell you we don't want most of their clients. We only want clients who are unhappy and considering some kind of change. I would call those clients "available and hot".

As a user of services, news monitoring or otherwise, you should really think twice before dumping your current vendor for the "promise" of something better. Ask yourself these two questions before entertaining a pitch from a service competing against your current vendor.
1. Am I satisfied that I'm paying a fair price to my vendor in exchange for the services they are giving me?
2. Am I satisfied and pleased with the level of customer service, support and results my current vendor is giving me?

When we find a prospect that is happy on both accounts with their current vendor, that is a signal to move on. Realistically, my service will always be competing against what was considered by this client to be a good service. Not that I can't compete and surpass the quality of my competitors, but it is not the best position to be in when you will always be compared to an enjoyable relationship. It's kind of like dating a new person and having them continually talk about how great their old boyfriend or girlfriend was. Fundamentally, no news monitoring service can keep all of their clients happy all of the time. At Universal Information Services we hope to help those who are looking for better quality, faster turnaround times, or a more competitive cost for the services they need. In other words, we want to only "date" those clients that are really ready to move on or are unattached.

If you answered yes to the above two questions, I would suggest you tell the next competing vendor, "I'm flattered, but I'm seeing someone else". This can help save you much time spent listening to pitches for services you don't need to change, and will also let the competing vendor move on to a better prospect...not that anyone wants to be "that guy" at the bar.

Simply, if you are happy with your vendor stay with them...reward them for breaking their back to make sure you get the best service possible. If you find a competitor pitching a tool you need, ask your current vendor if they can provide that tool as well. Open communication is the key to any relationship. More often than not, your current vendor has all the same tools AND knows exactly how you want to work...already. This is in your best interest as you've invested months or even years into a relationship with your current vendor. How much is that investment worth to you and how long might it take to establish a functional relationship with a new vendor? Changing vendors does not come without costs.

I'm very interested in the psychology of "change". I'd love to hear your thoughts on why you change or don't change when a new vendor comes calling. Of course, if you're not seeing anyone, metaphorically, give me a call. I'd love to meet you.

At Universal I take calls, emails and tweets all the time asking about our news monitoring and media analysis services. When I think in terms of #samerules and #newtools, it strikes me that almost no two clients have the exact same need. Sure, many of our clients need TV clips and press clippings, or their media exposure analyzed, but rarely do they need their information in the exact same manner as another client.

I originally set out to provide a primer on the various news monitoring services like Critical Mention and Cision, as well as other News Data Service affiliates like Utah News Clips. An overview of what each news tracking, media measurement, or even media contacts platform provides would be helpful to clients. But seriously, who is going to read a blog post that runs 10 pages long? What I've presented below are the three main types of vendors to consider when discerning which news monitoring and media analysis service is best for your organization.

1. Free solutions: In this category you find search engines with basic functionality for storing some keywords and returning results to you. Free services like Google News Alerts or Bing act as search agents informing you of some of the news you want to hear. The most recent studies indicate these free services contain about 30% of the published or broadcast news in the United States. If you just need some information, and aren't picky about the specific media outlets that ran the story, these free services can be a great tool. You can track a lot of news for free. For organizations that need more comprehensive media monitoring, or media measurement beyond basic quantitative metrics, the paid monitoring services are essential.

2. Paid solutions: The most comprehensive services come in two flavors. You have the monitoring services that provide all the online tools you need, plus true customer service to support special needs and ad hoc requests. Companies like Universal Information Services or Cision fall into this category. Then you have the SaaS companies like Critical Mention and TVEyes. SaaS vendors provide a login to their platform where you perform the work yourself.

Comprehensive services that offer service and support generally have the following benefits over their SaaS competitors.
Backsearching for ad hoc orders
Support staff to handle questions and special requests
Crisis management contacts to assist with after hours needs
The ability customize your service package to specifically fit your needs

SaaS services are very good at:
Providing a single platform for reviewing and editing TV clips
Offering competitive pricing, although options and features are reduced
Delivering a nice looking interface to their platform.

3. Executive Summary Services This category represents the newest breed of news monitoring services. The goal of these services is to filter through the entire information sphere, pulling only the most strategic news stories as defined by the client. In a sense, this type of news monitoring cuts through the noise for the client so they don't have to filter their own results. In constructing our Executive Reports we still look at virtually all media outlets for print, broadcast, web and social media stories, but then select only the news that is most critical to our client. Although Executive Summary services come at a premium over the "all you can eat" models, the time and resources saved by the client can make up for that additional cost.

Our most recent analysis shows that most prospects are looking for flexibility, options, and the ability to modify orders with the help of support staff. However, not all users need that kind of help. In the end, you need to decide what your real needs are and what vendor can fulfill them now, or evolve with you in the future. If I can answer any questions, please leave a comment. I'm listening.

For those in public relations, corporate communications, or investor relations, you most likely have heard the news that Video Monitoring Services, VMS, closed last Friday with Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Since the story first broke on commpro.biz, many industry newsletters have posted their view of what caused the fall of the largest broadcast monitoring service. Looking in the rear view mirror is always far easier than projecting where one needs to be. Unfortunately it is too late for VMS, but here are some comments that have been said publicly, and my opinion on those speculative thoughts.

1. Said: VMS could not keep up with the competitive platforms built solely on a computerized infrastructure. Opinion: Probably not true. VMS had a very good system in the Quickview reports and were first to market with such a product. VMS had many integrated products that helped correlate efforts to results. Technology, when comparable, is rarely the reason a company fails.
2. Said: VMS couldn't pay their vendors and this led to a death spiral. Opinion: I'm not sure about all vendors, but since VMS purchased some of their broadcast content from Universal Information Services I know they stayed current with us.
3. Said: VMS management didn't know what they were doing. Opinion: I can't speak to the most recent management hires, but many of the people I knew and worked with at VMS were extremely bright and had a great intuition for the industry. In the end, a loss of mission or direction is probably the most likely culprit for this failure, but to say VMS had a history of poor management would dismiss the many years they were the market leader.
4. Said: Better services passed VMS by. Opinion: Consider the source of these statements. If you are a competitor who has much to gain from the failure of VMS, then you may be tempted to yell, "We scared VMS out of the water because we are awesome". Competition rarely forces a company to liquidate. Restructure, reconfigure, retool, these are the hallmarks of a competitive company that has been a market leader in any industry.

Looking back over the past week I see a couple lessons to be learned. First, the VMS employees caught in the bankruptcy are great people. I'm glad to see quality services like cision hiring some of these employees. Soon we hope to also be working with former VMS staff. Second, don't believe all that you read...especially in advertising. Whether a blog or an ad, some lofty claims are being made. Phrases like "biggest", "best", and "only" are hollow terms that don't tell you a thing about the level of service and support you can expect from vendor. Finally, if you are a former VMS client the best thing you can do is interview prospective monitors. If you are a local or regional organization, there is undoubtedly a monitoring service better located to serve your needs. Local and regional monitors know the news that is important to you. They know your city, state, issues, problems, etc.

Use the wonderful search of Google to locate news monitoring services that may be better positioned to provide what you need. Yes, I think Universal Information Services is the best company in the world. I would not be able to fake passion for what I do if I did not truly believe in the team I work with and the client missions we serve. I also own Utah News Clips, a news monitoring company located on the west coast so we can better serve the Western time zones. The team at Utah News Clips shares the same core values as Universal, we make your news our business.

Please comment where you think I've missed the boat on what has been said, or leave additional comments on what you think happened to VMS.

Comments (6)

Updated: 8/27/11

The morning of August 26th, Twitter erupted over rumors that the oldest tv and radio monitoring service was filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. If these rumors are correct [they were], Video Monitoring Services closed their doors today at noon eastern [8/26/11].

What does this mean for their clients. Unfortunately, they will need to find a new vendor they can initially trust...then build a new relationship over time. Universal Information Services has been fielding calls and tweets from former VMS clients that need uninterrupted news tracking for themselves or their clients.

Our sister company, Utah News Clips, is also spreading out to assist VMS clients who know the show must go on.

It is a terribly sad day for us and our friends at VMS. I've worked personally with their CEOs, production, and sales team. Many of these people are my close friends. I hope the best for my friends at VMS and pledge my companies to continue the level of service they established for the news monitoring industry.

Please contact us if you need help in finding a new, best-fit solution for news monitoring. (800) 408-3178

Note

The twittersphere is ripe with allegations that the software-as-a-service (SaaS) competitors killed VMS. As an innovator in this industry I think that notion is dangerous. There was no mass exodus of clients from VMS, it sounds like they simply loss direction from a management perspective. I am not on the inside, by the title of this blog is #SameRules #NewTools. This philosophy applies here in that VMS set the benchmark for quality client relations. All in the industry, including Critical Mention, Cision, and Universal bench-marked ourselves against VMS. The customer experience is still the number one issue to a client. We all have real-time reports, preview video, and edit on demand. I think the real difference now is between those who still offer true customer support, and those who don't. I believe the clients of VMS chose VMS because they wanted a team to call, someone to make things happen, and help when they didn't have time or didn't understand the interface. These things are all good and still available through companies like mine. The SaaS model exists for those who want to serve themselves, or think they won't need help.

As you review new vendors, think what your needs truly are. Have they changed just because VMS has closed their doors? Probably not.

Comments (22)

Over the last few months Universal Information Services has had the opportunity to acquire two outstanding news monitoring companies. On December 31st we acquired Worldwide News Monitor out of Wisconsin and on February 28th we acquired Quality Services of Alaska.

For some, including myself, I always viewed acquisitions as points in time when companies felt expansion was important to their bottom line. After completing three of these acquisitions over the past two years, I have found that buying a going concern, someone's business, has very little to do with expansion and almost everything to do with adding new relationships.

In this economy, the companies that succeed have found a way to maintain relationships with their customers and users. Relationships, whether with your product or your service, is all that you have to sell. I'm sure there are atypical scenarios contrary to this statement, but they would be the extreme exception to the rule.

A good relationship with your customer is worth far more than the dollars they spend with you. Your happy clients become your greatest advocates and most credible evangelists. Sure, one can engage the #newtools of social media or hire a PR firm to bolster their brand in the business segment of their choice, but that all pales when compared to organically expanding your base of happy customers.

In our recent acquisitions we looked at two things before moving forward: Our relationship with the selling party and the relationships they've established with their clients. A relationship based on mutual respect and shared values can ensure a positive process during what can be an emotional time...selling someone's well built business. If the seller has focused on building relationships with their customers, then the buyer will be gaining loyal customers.

When Universal acquires a news monitoring company the care of their existing customers is our primary focus. We keep it simple. Only after we have begun the process of building our relationship with them do we discuss new services that are now available to them through Universal Information Services.

In this way we've found growth through expanding relationships is the best way for us to expand our client base. I'm sure there are other ways to grow, but if you aspire to be the best in your industry I don't think there's a better way. Whether you acquire new relationships through an acquisition, or you let your existing clients help you grow your business, it still comes down to the power of that relationship. See our video welcome to our new clients in Alaska.

Tell me what you think. I welcome any thoughts or illustrations that underscore or take exception with the power of the client relationship.

Comments (1)

At Universal Information Services we have several core values that reinforce our mission and vision. One of our core values is to be "honest and direct with all clients and teammates". For the team at Universal, as well as our quality competitors: Cision, Burrelle's/Luce, and VMS, this means we're not going to purposely mislead a client into thinking that we cover all media: Print, Broadcast, Web, and Social Media, if we don't...but we do. Some "news monitoring" services are guilty of the bait & switch when portraying themselves as complete. However I have no problem naming my competitors that do provide quality services, that's just part of being honest and direct.

The bait & switch occurs when a prospective client becomes enamored with a pretty report, a slick proposal, or even the promise of a great service rate. In these cases, service rates can be tied to an extended contract that is ironclad so you can't get out once you learn you've fallen victim to the bait & switch. When you ask if they cover all media, these services offer a "yes" in that they do cover print, broadcast, and other sources as long as those sources can be found freely and openly on the web! Again, the buyer must really understand the answers they are getting...#samerules for the #newtools.

Services that really only offer online monitoring can be missing much of the local public affairs and news content clients need, plus the high-end sources behind paywalls. And since these vendors operate primarily as a SaaS (software-as-a-service), the ability to get customer support can be limited. As the saying goes, "buyer beware". We are all trained to trust, but verify when comparing products from different vendors. There are real savings out there for companies, government agencies, PR firms, and non-profit organizations. These savings can be substantial when you bundle multiple services with a news monitoring vendor, as long as that vendor truly has what you need.

Our core values support our brand promise to provide a fantastic customer experience to all clients. To that end, if Universal can't help you with a specific need, we have no problem directing you to a vendor who can help you. If we can help you navigate the landscape of news monitoring and media analysis, give us a call. If you need a good reference for the finest cupcakes in the world, give us a call. We don't do cupcakes, and we'll tell you that, but we do know where to get them.

Leave your comments about pricing models, truth in marketing, or where to get the best cupcakes. Cheers!

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I am guilty. I too have asked our sales people to structure our news monitoring prices into "bundles" so that we can offer discounted rates. In our case, we do this in order to entice clients to use Universal Information Services. In the news monitoring industry there are now two types of companies. Some companies are able to discount one or more of their higher margin services, when taken in a package of services (aka "bundle"). I believe this is a good practice for the vendor as well as the client receiving the discount. Some competitors to these benevolent bundles sometimes bristle at this approach and lament to their prospect, as they slip away, that "you are paying for that discount somewhere". Well that's not always the case. In our case, and that of other quality services, we want to earn clients by providing great value for all their needs.

I know that Cision, Burrelle's/Luce, VMS, and even Vocus can offer some cost efficiencies when a client takes multiples services in a discounted bundle. Vocus is a bit different in that they are only an aggregator of others news tracking tools, and those tracking results are then paired with their very nice media contacts database and distribution system. So when speaking of the true news monitoring services, I'm speaking of Cision, VMS, and of course my own company (insert questions of bias here), Universal Information Services. For the aforementioned companies it is true that you can save money when bundling services from them. No bait and switch here.

In recent years, several services have cropped up that only monitor news they can find online, but also offer bundled services where you can choose your services. The difference between these companies and those mentioned above is that they are web content only. If you consider one of these self proclaimed news monitoring services, be sure you ask the following questions as you entertain their news monitoring and media analysis.

1. When you track the printed media, are you actually searching published newspapers and magazines, or are you only finding the lesss than 40% of published content by searching the web?
2. When you monitor broadcast news, are you really monitoring what has aired, news that has been broadcast, or are you only searching TV and radio sites that have a presence on the web?
3. When you track websites for me, can you customize your data set so I can have you add online sources that may be small but are important to me?

If your prospective vendor can't answer these questions in an "honest and direct" manner, keep looking. If they attempt to blur the line with an answer like, "All of that content is available on the web, and we get it all", keep moving. Most print and broadcast content is NOT available on the web, or is not completely accessible, and therefore requires a truly complete news monitoring service.

I probably could have titled this post, "If it is too good to be true, it probably is". Yes, #samerules regardless of the #newtools. We do have more statistics and details on finding a news monitoring and analysis service that best fits your needs. Give us a call or contact us directly. Your comments are always welcome. Part two of this topic next week.

Comments (1)

With recent storms, high-profile shooting tragedies, and the ongoing political climate, the US news media has again reminded us they they have a hard time letting go of a story. Universal Information Services monitors all news media and analyzes content for organizations and government agencies. In our activities we observe trends within the news coverage, and have again seen how media persistence often keeps the news focused on a story, long after anything new is occurring. Although the cases I outline below are recent, they are intended as apolitical and should serve merely as recent illustrations of how the media will stay on a story long after they should move on.

Case 1: Apparently the broadcast networks believe the United States is comprised of about 12 states in the East and Northeast.

Evidence: An analysis of recent blizzards and heavy snow storms reveal that the heaviest snow fall does not actually occur in New York City, Boston, or Philadelphia. In fact, The upper Midwest and the Rocky Mountain states get far more snowfall per year than any of the aforementioned cities. But to hear Sam Champion (ABC), Al Roker (NBC), or whoever the current weather person is on CBS tell the story you would think snow only falls on the east coast. Amazingly, these three networks will devote nearly 40% of their newscasts telling us of the great difficulties facing our nation because of the east coast weather. By my math, there's at least 40 other states that are seemingly still in operation, even when our geo-centric networks believe the entire country has been shutdown because New York City got 8 inches of snow. Omaha got 8 inches of snow last weekend and the local news media gave balanced coverage on the impact from the storm. Locally, the news even found time to cover other local and national news stories and moved on after the storm stopped. Hmmm, so maybe in this case it is a network news issue and the local media can, well, localize the story more and knows when to move on to other issues.

Case 2: Tucson Tragedy: The Gabrielle Giffords Shooting

Evidence: Yes, by all accounts this was a horrible occurrence. Whether by gun, knife, or stone, the senseless killing of anyone should be condemned. This tragedy happened on Saturday morning, January 8th. From that evening through January 12th, the network news devoted the majority of their "news" programming to this one issue. Yes, several angles were covered from the act, to the politics, to who failed to do what. These issues definitely need to be covered, but in the situation of NBC's Today Show, do we need four hours on this one topic? In all fairness, NBC did sprinkle a few other stories in there, like the massive snow storm sweeping the East Coast. However, when hours after the incidents turn into days of coverage, news directors and assignment editors need to think about "story fatigue".

When you, the media, have nothing new to report...move on. Your viewers are people, not machines sucking in data no matter what the message. We crave variety. We have varying interests. We don't all live in New York, Boston, or Philadelphia. When your news story gets old, we move to different channels or mediums. If you're tired of losing viewers to reruns of The Office or the iPad, then program for people. The #samerules of human nature have not changed. We simply have #newtools at our disposal that make it easier to tune out and turn off...well maybe we're not turning off. The news consumer has and will continue to seek out the type and variety of news their mind needs as long as the media fails to move on when the story gets old.

If you need help analyzing your own news, or want to see the results of our news consumption studies, let me know. I also encourage you to comment, a variety of opinions is also good.

Comments (5)

For years Universal Information Services prepared a "Top News Stories of the Year" list based on our media analysis methodology. It was a great, unique approach to quantifying which news stories had the greatest impact. We measured viewership, circulation, audience and other metrics that went beyond that of most lists.

Most Top News Stories of the Year lists arbitrarily decide what they feel are most important...according to some criteria they set. Well the #newtools of the web, and especially social media, have made culling together lists very simple and powerful. This is great for those who curate this information themselves, thereby imparting true meaning via their personality. On the other side of the coin you have an explosion of automated applications that harvest data to compile lists. Sometimes these automated lists are magical in how well they hit the mark, but often times these lists are perplexing in how they managed to bring together such disparate topics.

Since the space for Top News Story lists has grown so crowded, Universal Information Services will use our news monitoring expertise to "WOW" you in other ways. This year you will not see a list from us detailing the top news stories. What you will see in 2011 are more tweets, blogs, Facebook posts and participation on Linkedin where we deliver statistics, insight, and reports on media exposure.

We are a news monitoring and media analysis service. We lead in comprehensive tracking of our client's media exposure and the detailed analysis of that content. From this vast array of information sprouts a wealth of data we can share with you. Great things are coming in 2011. You might as well subscribe to this blog now so you don't miss out on any great revelations in the coming year.

Happy "News" Year!

Comments (1)

Subtitle: Go Break Your Own Leg!

After a short conversation with a friend and fellow Downtown Omaha business inhabitant, Jeff Slobotski, I found myself considering possible social networking trends for the coming year, 2011. In line with my #samerules #newtools philosophy, Jeff and I had been discussing the importance of striking a balance within the virtual living of social networks. One needs to balance themselves on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and even Linkedin for the professionals, by actually getting out and participating in life so you can contribute original content to the living fabric of these social networks. Always at the top among lists of "how to be successful in social media" is the need for compelling content.

A potential downside that may develop into a trend in the next year, is that of social media addiction. You can find plenty of opinions on this newest addiction, and like other activities in which people over indulge, living solely within your social network(s) will have fundamental problems for some people (#samerules).

In my news monitoring and media analysis role at Universal Information Services we're seeing patterns develop where people are simply living vicariously through others within their social networks, without bringing new value to their network. The incidents of retweeting, rather than posting new content, is accelerating at an exponential pace. On Facebook you'll notice more people only taking the time to "Like This" rather than posting a newly formed thought, or comment, to a specific post. It seems that the great power of social networks also has the power to let us check out from actually doing something, and simply observing what others do. Is this healthy for you in mind and body? Is it healthy for your social network?

In an ironic twist, I chose the above subtitle to demonstrate the notion that be it good or bad, you must own your own experience...then let us know your thoughts on that experience. Whether for business or personal, social media and social networks are only effective when we have an understanding of the person behind the information. People do want to know you, your opinions, and what you can teach them through your social networks. Stated differently, go out and break your own leg.

I can tweet about how great skiing was until I broke my leg. I can even post pictures of the ski patrol, my cast, and even the look on my wife's face. But truthfully, I'm glad it was my leg...a real life experience I own and can appropriately share with others.

Now I don't want to break a leg all the time, but I do want to have enough real life experiences so I can contribute compelling content to my social networks. One must be able to seed their posts, comments, and tweets with interesting thoughts that come from their life or business. So metaphorically, go break your own leg...and let us know all about it. Your social network engagement will go up, your credibility will go up, and best of all, you'll see more of the World.

(Disclosure Statement: I did not actually break my own leg. Yes, it made for a better title than, "I broke my collar bone when I tripped over the soccer ball and hit a wall". Next post, "Credibility and Content: Does the truth still work?") Leave your comments and links to related topics. Your network will thank you.

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