PR leaders are in the driver’s seat when it comes to building excess mindshare and measuring the corresponding SOV. The keys to success include understanding your buyer’s persona and journey and crafting the right assets activated across all the channels where SOV is measured. Aligning/coordinating with campaigners is key; they focus on buyers, and PR focuses on the other constituents – investors/ shareholders, influencers, media, etc. to keep your brand top of mind.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- Our research shows that as a PR lead starts to implement a Share of Voice (SOV) campaign, they face many obstacles including:
- A lack of alignment and understanding by leadership about how Share of Value affects market share.
- A baseline of SOV and market share and budget to pay for a SOV measurement platform.
- Budget to hire external resources to write and produce content.
Impact and Result
This SoftwareReviews blueprint provides the PR lead with guidance and tools to develop and execute an SOV campaign, the guidance to determine current market share and tips on selecting a platform to track changes.
Use this blueprint to:
- Gain alignment between C-suite and Sales on a PR campaign to build SOV.
- Identify tools to establish a baseline of SOV and market share and to track changes.
- Implement the needed systems integration to ensure top-of-funnel arrivals attracted by PR awareness campaigns get tagged with PR attribution.
Workshop: Turn Share of Voice Growth Into a Strategic Weapon
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Alignment and Ideal Investor Defined
The Purpose
Educate, gain alignment, and validate.
Key Benefits Achieved
Key stakeholders are educated and aligned, Share of Voice contribution to market share is validated.
Activities
Outputs
Discuss the value of leadership in understanding the relationship between SOV and market share.
- Leadership understands the influence a strong SOV has on growing market share.
Outline the value of an omnichannel PR campaign to build a SOV and influence the market share.
Review the validated buyer persona and journey, brand health, and value prop.
- The buyer persona and journey are documented.
Module 2: Master Investor List and Gathering Information
The Purpose
Define the campaign, resources, and budget.
Key Benefits Achieved
Budget is defined and resources are identified.
Activities
Outputs
Research current trends and topics. Create a list of potential topics.
- Current trends are researched and documented.
Create a calendar and list the amount and type of content and needed resources to produce.
Evaluate SOV platforms and select one.
- An SOV platform is selected and approved.
Create a budget based on the needed resources and cost of the platform.
- A budget to cover expenses has been created and approved.
Module 3: Build Assets and Gain Input
The Purpose
Develop content and coaching spokespersons.
Key Benefits Achieved
Content is defined and developed. Spokespersons are prepared.
Activities
Outputs
Discuss the assignment of content development based on the available resources.
- A content development process is defined, resources determined, and the review/approval process outlined.
Discuss the review and approval process for this content.
Discuss the need to coach key spokespersons. Verify bios and photos are accurate across all platforms.
- Mock coaching sessions for key spokespersons. Published bios and photos are current.
Discuss developing a list of media contacts and key influencers and the need to keep it current.
Module 4: Verify Data Sources are Accurate and Interview Is Ready
The Purpose
Establish baseline SOV and explore media.
Key Benefits Achieved
Final preparations are completed.
Activities
Outputs
Discuss the implementation of the SOV platform and of setting a baseline.
- A baseline SOV is established for your company and your main competitors.
Discuss the roles each department will play in the release of content.
- The first wave of content is ready for release and roles have been assigned.
Discuss the tracking of sales wins and understand how the campaign is affecting them.
- SOV tracking is defined and ready to be implemented.
Module 5: Final Prep Completed and Spokesperson Prepared
The Purpose
Launch, track outcomes, and refresh content.
Key Benefits Achieved
Confidence that everything is ready.
Activities
Outputs
Hold a “mock” release of assets and discuss tracking of outcomes to be used in the executive presentation deck.
- The first wave of content has been released.
Practice a “mock” presentation of the outcomes of the campaign.
Discuss ongoing posts and outcome tracking.
- Tracking has begun and a process to modify content is defined.
Discuss how needed changes in content will be determined.
- The SOV Executive Presentation deck is ready to be updated and presented monthly.
Turn Share of Voice Growth Into a Strategic Weapon
PR leaders that build brand Share of Voice across paid, earned, and owned media that exceeds actual market share will enable market share growth vs. key competitors.
Analyst Perspective
Use Share of Voice as a Strategic Weapon
Research shows that a brand with a share of voice (SOV) that is greater than its market share will likely gain additional market share. With a greater SOV, opportunity is turned into sales wins and a company can capture a great market share. Excess SOV (eSOV) for small companies is especially important as it creates the conditions to increase market share when sales wins occur against a stronger competitor.
PR leaders are in the driver's seat when it comes to building excess mindshare and measuring the corresponding SOV. The keys to success include understanding your buyer's persona and journey and crafting the right assets activated across all the channels where SOV is measured. Aligning/coordinating with campaigners is key; they focus on buyers, and PR focuses on the other constituents – investors/ shareholders, influencers, media, etc. to keep your brand top of mind.
Our blueprint will enable PR leaders to establish a baseline SOV, identify key audience members and their high-interest topics, and gain C-Suite support for a PR-led program and budget.
Barbara Riedel
Marketing Research Director, Public Relations
SoftwareReviews
Executive Summary
Your Challenge | Common Obstacles | SoftwareReviews' Approach |
PR leaders may face a number of challenges when growing SOV including:
| When implementing a SOV measurement and improvement program, PR leaders face certain obstacles such as:
| PR leaders successfully implementing this SoftwareReviews blueprint will equip themselves and their teams to:
|
SoftwareReviews Insight
Greater SOV than actual market share is critical to growing market share vs. key competitors. To be effective, PR leaders establish a current SOV baseline in paid, earned, and owned media, and run omnichannel campaigns to grow SOV that exceeds actual market share in order to win share from key competitors.
Why is SOV Important?
SOV directly impacts your brand's position in the marketplace
- Understanding your company's current "awareness."
- Measures how many people know or talk about your company and products.
- Shows how often your company name shows up in online searches in all channels.
- Shows if the audience is reading/listening to your announcements and posts.
- Knowledge of the available SOV and how to gain more.
- Provides a benchmark of your competitor's financial position.
- Can accelerate your growth.
- Give insight into what the audience wants to learn.
Measuring your brand's share of voice helps you see the bigger picture and where your brand fits into it. It adds context to your performance data, allowing you to pinpoint opportunities for growth and improvement.
– Sprout Social Blog, September 1, 2021
SOV and Market Share
Managing SOV has a strategic benefit – improve market share!
What is share of voice?
- Measures the exposure your marketing and advertising has given your company compared to your competitors'.
- Includes mentions in paid, earned, and owned media.
Formula: Total impressions all channels/total available ad impressions = all channels SOV.
What is market share?
- The percentage of a market's total sales earned by one company vs. the market.
- Enables you to set and adjust sales goals.
Formula: Total business revenue/total industry revenue = market share.
Conventionally, SOV was used alongside Peckham's Formula, which, in short, is to set your advertising budget to achieve an SOV at 1.5X what you'd like your market share to be by the end of your company's second year. Simply, by growing your SOV, you'll grow your market share. This was then extended by Binet & Field, who empirically proved that increasing SOV will increase market share when sustained over time.
– Sprout Social Blog, June 24, 2021
Excess SOV (eSOV) Leads to a Rise in Market Share
Excess Share of Voice (eSOV) is an important concept in marketing and media investment planning. The "excess" represents the degree to which your brand's Share of Voice exceeds its share of market. Numerous studies have examined this relationship and consistently found that an excess Share of Voice over share of market is likely to result in brand sales growth.
Source: Marketing IQ International
- SOV and Profits – all things being equal, a brand whose SOV is greater than its market share is more likely to grow.
- Compelling Content – eSOV tends to work much better when built with award-winning creative work.
- Marketing Mix – SOV or eSOV may not be the only explanatory variables in your mix. Analyze all areas, content, channels, etc.
- Product Advantage – SOV and market share calculations may exclude companies (for example Google, Facebook, etc.) who gained early market share through product advantage.
Adapted from LinkedIn
Effective Awareness Campaigns Increase Market Share
Challenger brands need to be 3.5 times more effective
Core Factors
- Small vs. large brand
- Challengers vs. market leaders
- Launch of new brands/product enhancements
- Quality of the content and perceived value of channels used
Key Principals
- Content – must be compelling to truly grow SOV
- Excess SOV (eSOV) – provides faster growth
- New launches or early-stage products – news of value or interest gains greater market share
- Long-game – consistent level of SOV + quality campaigns = stronger brands
Source: Nielsen blog
Case Study
INDUSTRY
SaaS CRM GTM
Platform
SOURCE
Demandbase
TopRank Marketing
How Demandbase Transformed B2B Influencers Into Superhero Story Tellers
Demandbase has been innovating account-based marketing for over 15 years. Now they have gone beyond ABM with a Go-to-Market platform that incorporates AI. The new AI-driven GTM platform points users to in-market accounts and their buying committees. It helps engage across channels with messages that are spot-on for where they are in their buying journey.
Challenges
Demandbase rebranded and launched the evolved ABM solution to solve marketers' longstanding challenges with data silos and spammy marketing messages. The new brand and solution meant an opportunity to break through the hype of the MarTech industry and reach the customers that the new product would help most.
Results
Demandbase hired the external agency TopRank Marketing for a stellar creative hook and a powerful tactical strategy. Within two months of launch, this unique influencer campaign drove superhero results to include the following:
- 8.4M in potential reach via active influencers
- 460+ engagements by industry influencers
- 800% greater page views over the benchmark
Key Results Achieved
An external agency created a stellar creative story and a powerful tactical strategy
Well-crafted content with a compelling storyline, unique creative, and amplification by strategically selected thought leaders
Through custom illustrations, industry influencers were transformed into superheroes
Created investor deck, videos, and sales enablement materials.
Positioned brand as one to watch via targeted messaging and distribution.
Challenges to Growing SOV
Key challenges include a lack of:
Time
- Need time to build SOV
- No baseline SOV or market share
- Limited resources to product assets on a timely basis
Tracking and Knowledge
- No tracking method set-up
- No knowledge of how the industry perceives our company
Budget
- No internal team member has the bandwidth to develop content
- Need to hire external resources
- Need a budget to hire external resources
"We see narrative as the 2022 growth accelerator. It's what wins investor pitches, customers, and top talent. No matter the industry, product, customer type, or size, a company's brand is its single most important asset. Activating and growing it is foundational to businesses achieving their key business targets in 2022 and beyond."
Reva Seth
Shift Communications
Without Strong SOV Sales Growth will Falter
The implications of not building strong brand share of voice are numerous
- Sales has a difficult time winning deals because the company brand is not known, or trusted, so prospects buy from competitors.
- Marketing spend for lead gen fails to deliver ROI if the brand is unknown and brand awareness is low.
- Without sales execution, market share increase is impossible.
- Company name takes more time to explain to prospects and cost of sales increases.
- Retention among existing customers falters as better-known competitors with greater SOV are more appealing.
- Market Share can only be "bought" by discounting, heavy promotion, and dropping prices. Margins suffer as well.
"During recessions, B2B marketers tend to cut their long-term brand marketing first to save on costs...while cutting brand marketing may provide short-term financial relief, it will also hurt their Share of Voice and, therefore, their market share…. In the 2008 recession, brands that… increased their spending to raise their SoV achieved particularly impressive gains in both growth and profit."
LinkedIn blog,
November 17, 2022