According to a study by USC Annenberg, more than half of public relations specialists use media monitoring software and databases on a daily basis.
But with so many available out there, how do you pick which ones to use?
In this article, we’ll be covering the top 15 digital PR tools for:
- Media monitoring
- PR outreach
- Press release distribution
Let’s get straight into it.
Link building cheat sheet
Respona
Respona is an all-in-one email outreach software.
In terms of Digital PR, Respona is great for finding journalists and publications, their contact information, and subsequently reaching out to them with your pitch.
Let’s quickly run through the steps to show how it works.
First, you’ll need to create a campaign. You can start a custom campaign, or choose a pre-made campaign template for your specific purpose.
Currently, in the digital PR section, Respona has four templates:
- Podcast outreach (entire show and specific episode)
- News outreach
- Blogger outreach
Let’s run a news outreach campaign. Its purpose is to find publications or journalists that have recently published an article about your chosen keyword and get in touch with them.
To use the template, simply fill out the required fields:
- Your target keywords (separate searches will be done for each keyword)
- Your brief story
- Location and language
- Optional date range and publication domain filters.
Once everything is filled out, click “Use this template” to access the campaign editor.
Here, your search will already be pre-configured based on your inputs on the previous screen, so you don’t need to do much.
But if you’d like to, you can create additional search queries, and run them at the same time.
Yes, Respona’s search engine can run multiple searches at the same time, and add relevant results directly to your outreach campaign at the same time.
Click “continue” and leverage additional SEO filters to make sure only relevant opportunities are pulled.
By default, Respona uses Moz.
But, if you have an account with Ahrefs or Semrush, you may choose to connect it instead and use their filters.
Once the search is complete, results will be automatically added to your campaign – all you need to do is review them.
The next step is to find contacts.
This is also automated.
Because we chose a news outreach template, the settings are already configured to look for journalists/writers.
Again, all you have to do is click “find contacts”.
Depending on the size of your campaign, the search automation may take from a few minutes to several hours.
After contacts have been found, the next step is to review your email sequence.
If you use a template (like us in this example), the base of your email sequence will be lined up depending on your inputs in the fields at the beginning.
However, we still recommend personalizing your pitches to add that little bit of extra character.
Respona’s email editor has everything you need for this – starting with auto-populating fields and a spam word checker to the option to add an unsubscribe button, and, of course, customizable follow-ups.
The final step before launching the campaign is to personalize the emails for each specific journalist you’re contacting.
Even here, Respona automates the process, to a degree.
It has an AI-powered article summarizer that grabs up to 10 snippets of text from your prospect’s article for you to copy and paste into your email, giving off the impression that you actually read their piece.
When all emails are personalized you can launch the campaign.
However, that’s only half the work.
Now, you need to constantly monitor your inboxes and engage with your journalists.
For this, Respona, has a shared inbox tab from which you can manage every single single sender email of yours, in a single place.
Please visit Respona’s pricing page.
Visme
Visme is an all-in-one visual content creation tool that offers a range of features to support digital PR efforts.
It allows users to easily create engaging visuals such as infographics, presentations, social media graphics, and videos.
One of the key features of Visme is its drag-and-drop interface, which makes it simple to design stunning visuals without any design skills.
This is particularly helpful for digital PR professionals who need to create eye-catching visuals to accompany their press releases or social media campaigns.
Visme also offers a wide range of templates and customizable graphics, allowing users to quickly create professional-looking visuals that align with their brand.
Another advantage of Visme is its data visualization capabilities.
With it, you can easily turn complex data into visually appealing charts, graphs, or infographics, which can be valuable for presenting key information or statistics in a digestible and engaging format.
Pricing: starts at $12.25/month, free trial available.
HARO
HARO, short for Help a Reporter Out, is a platform that connects journalists and bloggers with expert sources for their news stories or articles.
It’s a bridge between media professionals and industry experts, allowing them to collaborate and create valuable content.
The primary feature of HARO is its email-based system.
Journalists can submit queries or requests for sources, specifying the type of expert they are looking for and the topic they are covering.
These queries are then sent to a vast network of potential sources, who receive daily email updates with relevant requests.
For digital PR professionals, HARO is a valuable PR tool for gaining media exposure and building relationships with journalists.
By responding to relevant queries, you can position yourself or your client as an industry expert, gaining valuable media coverage and backlinks to your website.
Pricing: free.
Semrush
Semrush is a comprehensive SEO and digital marketing tool.
It is a go-to solution for professionals looking to analyze their online visibility, conduct competitor research, and optimize their digital strategies.
But how does it pertain to digital PR?
Well, firstly, it’s its powerful keyword research tool that you can leverage this feature to identify relevant keywords and trending topics in their industry.
Next, Semrush has a great backlink analysis tool.
You can use this tool to identify high-quality backlink opportunities, monitor your backlink profile, and analyze the backlink profiles of their competitors.
Last but not least, Semrush also provides a content analysis tool that helps you fine-tune your content and digital PR strategy.
Gain insights into what works well in your industry and how to differentiate yourself, and create compelling and engaging PR content that resonates with your target audience.
Pricing: starts at $129.95.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a powerful web analytics tool that provides valuable insights into audience behavior, website performance, and digital PR campaign effectiveness.
By implementing a tracking code on your website, you can gather data on the number of visitors, their demographics, the pages they visit, and how long they stay on your site.
This information helps you understand the effectiveness of your online PR campaigns in driving traffic and engaging your target audience.
Another valuable feature of Google Analytics is its goal-tracking functionality.
You can set specific goals, such as newsletter sign-ups or whitepaper downloads, and track the conversion rates.
Pricing: Free.
Cision
Cision is a comprehensive PR and media software platform that provides a range of features specifically designed to support digital PR professionals.
It is a valuable resource for managing media relationships, monitoring media coverage brand awareness, and measuring the impact of PR campaigns.
Cision’s flagship feature is its media database, which offers an extensive list of journalists, bloggers, and influencers across various industries.
This allows you to identify and connect with relevant media contacts, streamlining the process of building media relationships and securing media coverage.
Cision also provides media monitoring capabilities, letting you track and analyze your media coverage in real-time.
With access to alerts and customizable dashboards, you can stay updated on mentions of their brand or clients in news articles, social media, and other online platforms.
Cision also comes with robust reporting and analytics tools, allowing you to track key metrics such as media impressions, website traffic generated from media mentions, and conversions.
Pricing: get in touch with Cision for a quote.
SparkToro
At the core of SparkToro is its audience intelligence tool. It allows you to gain valuable insights about your target audience by analyzing their online behavior, interests, and preferences.
SparkToro also offers a comprehensive media monitoring feature, enabling users to track mentions and discussions related to their brand or industry across the web.
Pricing: Starts at $38/month, free trial available.
Hootsuite
Hootsuite is a centralized platform for managing and scheduling social media content, monitoring conversations, and measuring the impact of PR campaigns.
Its most prominent features include:
- Content scheduling and publishing across multiple social media platforms
- Social media monitoring and real-time engagement
- Comprehensive social media analytics and reporting
- Team collaboration and approval workflows
- Social media content curation and RSS feed integration
- Social media listening and sentiment analysis
- Ad campaign management and tracking
- Integration with other content marketing tools and platforms
- Mobile app for on-the-go management
- Advanced analytics and insights for social media performance optimization
Pricing: starts at $99/month, free trial available.
Prowly
Prowly is an all-in-one solution for managing media relationships, creating engaging content, and measuring the impact of PR efforts.
It allows you to create and manage your own branded newsroom, where you can publish and showcase your press releases, articles, and multimedia content.
In addition, Prowly provides access to an extensive database of journalists, influencers, and media outlets, as well as extensive media monitoring capabilities, allowing you to track and analyze media coverage in real-time.
Pricing: Starts at $339/month, free trial available.
Muck Rack
Muck Rack is a comprehensive PR and media software platform that offers a range of features to support digital PR professionals in their media relations efforts.
It serves as a valuable resource for finding journalists, monitoring media coverage, and managing media relationships.
In fact, there isn’t much Muck Rack can’t do, which is evident when you take a look at its features:
- Media Database
- Media Monitoring
- Media Pitching and Outreach
- Social Media Management
- Analytics and Reporting
- Collaboration and Relationship Management
- Media Lists and Relationship Tracking
Pricing: get in touch with Muck Rack for a quote.
Prezly
Prezly is a user-friendly PR software platform that enables digital PR professionals to manage their media relationships, create engaging multimedia press releases, and measure the impact of their PR campaigns.
With Prezly, you can create visually appealing press releases that include multimedia elements such as images, videos, and social media links, making your content more engaging and shareable.
It also gives you your own branded newsroom, where you can publish and showcase your press releases, blog posts, and other PR content.
Pricing: starts at 40€/month.
BuzzSumo
Buzzsumo is an advanced content research and social media analytics tools.
With it, you can search for popular and trending content related to specific topics or keywords, monitor mentions of your brand or key topics across social media platforms and find influential people in your industry.
Overall, Buzzsumo is a powerful tool that provides deep insights into content trends, influencer identification, and brand monitoring on social media.
Pricing: Starts at $199/month, free trial available.
MailChimp
Mailchimp is a popular email marketing platform that offers a range of features to support digital PR professionals in managing their email campaigns and engaging with their audience effectively.
It allows you to create and send professional-looking newsletters and email campaigns, segment your email list based on demographics, interests, or previous engagement, and, of course, monitor open rates, click-through rates, and other key metrics.
Pricing: Starts at $6.50/month, free version available.
SocialPilot
With SocialPilot, you can schedule and publish your social media posts in advance across multiple platforms. Its user-friendly interface and bulk scheduling feature save precious time, ensuring consistent and timely communication with your audience.
It provides detailed analytics and offers collaboration features that enable you to work seamlessly with your team members or clients.
You can assign roles, review and approve content, and maintain an organized content calendar, facilitating efficient teamwork and streamlining your PR workflow.
Pricing: Starts at $25.50/month, free trial available.
BrandWatch
Brandwatch is a leading social media monitoring and analytics tool that helps businesses understand and make data-driven decisions based on online conversations and consumer feedback.
It collects and analyzes vast amounts of data from various social media platforms, news sites, blogs, forums, and review websites to provide businesses with valuable insights into their brand reputation, market trends, customer sentiment, and competitor analysis.
Additionally, Brandwatch offers powerful analytics tools to help businesses extract meaningful insights from the collected data. It provides visualizations, charts, and customizable dashboards that allow users to analyze data based on various dimensions such as location, demographics, sentiment, and engagement metrics.
Pricing: get in touch with BrandWatch for a quote.
Link building cheat sheet
Now Over to You
So, these were our top 15 picks for digital PR tools in 2024.
If you need help finding and reaching out to journalists, don’t hesitate to start your 14-day free trial with Respona to see how we can help first-hand.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What are digital PR tools?
Digital PR tools are software or platforms that help businesses manage and improve their online presence. They aid in reputation management, link building, content distribution, social media tracking, and search engine optimization (SEO).
Why are digital PR tools essential in 2024?
Digital PR tools are a key component in 2024 due to the ever-increasing digital landscapes. They help businesses stay competitive, reach out to broader audiences, build strong online reputations, and maximize their visibility online.
How can digital PR tools enhance my SEO efforts?
Digital PR tools can significantly enhance your SEO efforts by helping you identify the best keywords, create and distribute high-quality content, monitor your website’s performance, build high-quality links, and track your rankings in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
Which digital PR tools are best for small businesses?
Tools like SEMrush, HubSpot, and Hootsuite are great for small businesses. They’re user-friendly, comprehensive, and cost-effective, allowing small businesses to manage all their digital PR efforts from one dashboard.
Can digital PR tools help improve my brand’s online reputation?
Absolutely!
Digital PR tools can help protect and improve your brand’s online reputation by monitoring and tracking all mentions of your brand online. They can help you engage directly with customers and potential customers, respond to criticisms and complaints promptly and professionally, and constantly update your content to stay relevant and authoritative.
