Cision's Media Analysis Methodology

Best-in-class methodology

Objective measurement of PR results has become a standard requirement for many organizations. Cision (formerly Delahaye) pioneered the quantitative assessment of media relations campaigns through its Impact Score and Net Effect metrics – which have been adopted by global Fortune 500 companies and incorporated into Six Sigma quality control processes.

Cision’s methodology stands out in a variety of ways:

We measure the impact media coverage has on its audiences

The aim of media relations is not to reach media; it’s to reach people. Cision’s method measures not only who is reached with specific information via the media, but also how these audiences are receiving and responding to this information. The impact of media exposure on its intended audience is incorporated into the Net Effect calculation which is determined for each news item. Cision’s methodology is unique in being able to quantify the influence media information has on opinions and behavior.

We employ a rigorous reputation measurement methodology

Every story we read, every broadcast we watch, impacts an organization’s reputation in some way. By following a core method and message framework for all of our clients, we have created a valuable set of benchmarks and case studies which place current news in context, and enable us to define reputation drivers. By maintaining rigorous reputation measurement standards, we also ensure consistency and quality in the coding of news items.

We rely on automated content analysis as well as people

While we have owned computerized content analysis technology for a decade, we still rely on trained readers to capture and measure the nuances of tone and messages which automated systems simply cannot determine. In our experience only the combination of coding by automated systems and human beings can deliver optimal results.

We have extensive native-language capabilities in-house

Each news item is read in the language in which it was originally published and coded by native language speakers. After the news item is coded, an English language summary is written for each news item. We have in-house native language reading and coding capabilities for more than 20 languages spoken throughout the world.