Ruder Finn Launches BEACON Analytics Tool: Integrating Real-Time Social Listening with Real-World Data

NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Ruder Finn launched BEACON, an enhanced analytics suite that is able to pull in data from multiple sources in real time. By analyzing social listening streams on top of In Real Life (IRL) data, from geo-location and sales data to calendar events and weather patterns, Beacon can separate signal from chatter and provide deeper insights into real world consumer behavior. For example, retail foot traffic and e-commerce data can be analyzed against social impressions to discover correlations with social ad buy or communication campaigns. Weather patterns and geo-targeting can be used to predict and influence behaviors and purchase decisions. B2B purchase patterns can be mapped against community and influencer activity to better understand influence and decision chains. And aberrations from historical patterns can signal (and hopefully avert) future impending crises. Any offline time-stamped data can be ingested and analyzed.

"As communications becomes an intricately more complex industry, influenced by multiple channels, content streams and sources, we need to have tools and resources that allow us to monitor, analyze and cut through the 'noise', "says Kathy Bloomgarden, CEO of Ruder Finn. "Ruder Finn is not only focused on building talent in the data and analytics space, but is sharpening our own technology to give our clients exclusive access to information that will help them make better business decisions."

BEACON delivers actionable insights that allow brands to outperform their peers across a multitude of KPIs, from predictive insight to engagement to conversion. The suite integrates four core tools:

• Real-Time Intelligent Listening: BEACON imports real-time data from multiple sources using proprietary connector software, allowing data to be aggregated and analyzes across channels, industries and geographies.
• Micro-Influencer Mapping: BEACON contains a social media influencer algorithm, to quickly identify individuals and gauge and understand the impact of those who engage with brands and shape conversations.
• Real-World Data Augmentation: The true power of BEACON is its ability to build augmentations (or layers of data) on top of existing data, so that deep, customized analyses can be conducted.
• Social Visualization: BEACON's Social Visualization dashboard collects a large amount of performance data, then presents them in easy-to-understand insight charts (supplemented by recommendations from Ruder Finn's social media experts)

"In a world dominated by social media as a communication and sharing platform, brands often manage multiple social media properties, each with unique audiences that crossover at different times," says David Ko, Asia head of RFI Studios. "What separates BEACON from other analytics tools is its ability to be easily customized for any given scenario, whereas most other analytics tools are one-size-fits-all."

BEACON has been in beta for six months and already serves several multinational brands in the Pharmaceutical, Transportation, and Beauty & Skincare industries.

"BEACON goes a step beyond traditional social listening and analytics tools, helping us better separate the signal from the noise so we can help clients analyze and understand the real impact of a brands' actions on consumer, financial and social behavior," says Michael Schubert, Chief Innovation Officer at Ruder Finn. "On the flip side, BEACON will give our clients a better predictive read on where and when social chatter will rise to social action, helping them better understand and align to social conscience. Today's announcement is just the beginning and we look forward to continuing to reveal BEACON's roadmap over time."

Contact:
Sarah Coles
Director, Marketing and Communications
212.593.6393
[email protected]

SOURCE Ruder Finn