Sunday’s Question: Are you using Google Alerts?

Are you using Google Alerts to monitor what people are saying about your brand?

Alerts allow you to actively monitor press coverage your company is receiving – positive and negative. Press doesn’t just come in the form of magazines and newspapers anymore. Bloggers, community forums and social networks contribute - things online consumers use on daily basis – toward negative and positive perception of your product/brand. Alerts are an easy and FREE way to monitor what the blogosphere is saying about you and your product/brand, delivered right to your inbox.

Do are you using Google Alerts to monitor your competitors and distributors?

As long as you have your company on Alerts, you should also have your competition and anyone who distributes your product on alert too. If it’s a brick and mortar store, then do an alert for name, like “Nordstrom”; if it’s a website, then have the site “ShopBop.com”.

• If you find that bloggers are giving a lot of coverage to your competitors, have your marketing/PR person offer incentives to the same individuals by giving them exclusive press coverage, secret discount codes or exclusive product givewaways. It’s great way to gain market share and visibility.
• If a distributor is receiving publicity, find ways to incentivize that relationship; their positive publicity fuels your product sales.

You would be amazed at what you can do with free tools and leveraging social media. You’ll have to keep reading to learn more!

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