Interview with Thomas Vejlemand, CEO of Infomedia Huset A/S

What’s the buzz?We live in the information age. The Internet has given anyone and everyone a platform to sound off about absolutely anything. Word of mouth is no longer confined to someone’s neighbours and close friends; it is a global phenomenon, and everyone is an expert. Knowing what is being said about a company’s brand, organizational management, products or services is vital to its success. Favourable reviews can be promoted to create a positive buzz, and criticism can be countered and remedied. Media intelligence is the name given to monitoring communications media for pertinent chatter, and one of its leading proponents is Infomedia Huset A/S in Denmark.

When Infomedia Huset was found-

ed around 15 years ago, the media

landscape was very different to

today. “There were fewer news

outlets, no social media, virtually

no web and fewer TV channels,”

says CEO Thomas Vejlemand. “Our

business involved clipping relevant

print articles. Then, there were

fewer articles, but it took greater

resources to find them. Today, with

so many print media having an

online presence, we hardly have

physical press clippings anymore.

Thanks to Internet searches, the

whole process has been digital-

ized. I would say that 50% of the

information we use comes from

print media while the other 50%

comes from social media, the In-

ternet and other digital sources.”

As a result of the Internet revolu-

tion, a large part of Infomedia’s

content comes from web and

social media monitoring. “We sift

through traditional print media,

web media, radio and television

as well as social media to find

exactly the right content that is

important to our clients,” explains

Mr. Vejlemand. “This is information

that is invaluable to their organi-

zation, helping them to evaluate

the success of activities such as

brand communications, product

launches and publicity campaigns

and helping them improve their

performance in the future.” Know-

ing what is being said about them

or being the first to hear market-

relevant information or the latest

news affecting their business also

has an important impact on day-to-

day decision-making. The media

flows being monitored in this way

are becoming increasingly global

while the demands from clients are

for an ever-more tailored yet cut-

price service. “We face increasing

pressure to deliver not just raw

data but also analysis and insight,”

says Mr. Vejlemand. “For example,

we were asked by one of the main

Danish political parties to monitor

how the party was covered in the

run-up to the elections held last

spring. They had identified five key

issues on which they wanted to

base their campaign and asked us

to analyze how the leading politi-

cians were perceived in relation to

these issues in order to see how

their candidate stood in compari-

son.”

One of Infomedia’s greatest

strengths is that it covers media

across all channels to provide

a truly full picture of the media

flow. It has a wealth of experience

in dealing with the media and

enjoys unrivalled access through

its media agreements. Through a

global network of media partners,

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Infomedia employs an enthusiastic team of around 200 people engaged in searching for the proverbial needle in a haystack

Infomedia Huset A/SPilestræde 58,3 1112 Copenhagen Denmark

+45 33 476112 +45 33 115628

support@infomedia.dk www.infomedia.dk

Infomedia has access to more than

500,000 media sources, enabling

their global monitoring. More chal-

lenging is monitoring social media

channels. “The flow of information

is different across social media

than across news channels,” ex-

plains Mr. Vejlemand. “In social

media, people don’t communicate

their opinions via lengthy articles

they tweet in communication

strings of no more than 140 char-

acters. A company name might

be mentioned 300 times and still

not be significant for the company

management. On the other hand, a

significant message can quickly go

viral, and a response can become

necessary. That is why monitoring

social media is such an important

part of our work.”

Understanding how people com-

municate across the various plat-

forms helps inform a company’s

communication strategy. The way

that information is communicated

can initiate a certain type of con-

versation that is beneficial to the

company. This is another area in

which Infomedia excels. “Insight

into industries is becoming more

and more important,” says Mr.

Vejlemand. “The future holds even

more challenges and opportunities

as we move to 24/7 feedback and

new software solutions as part of

our own growth strategy.” ❙

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An example of how media monitoring can be used to analyze election outcomes

Social media platforms have proven to be instrumental in building positive buzz