What Are Brand Mentions and How to Track & Analyze Them

Your brand doesn't exist in a vacuum. Every media mention of your brand online, known as a 'brand mention,' plays a crucial role in shaping your reputation and visibility.

By understanding and tracking brand mentions and PR results, you can clearly see the difference between a thriving brand and one that’s struggling to capture attention.

TL;DR

Brand mentions are any instances where your company is referenced online—often without a backlink. They're key indicators of brand visibility, PR effectiveness, and share of voice. This guide breaks down what brand mentions are, why they matter, and how to track and leverage them to strengthen your PR strategy.

What are brand mentions? (definition & examples)

Brand mentions are cases when a specific brand is mentioned online, discussed, or referred to on any digital platform in various forms of communication. This could be on blogs, social media posts, news articles, or forums, just to name a few.

There are two types of mentions:

• Linked mentions, which include a hyperlink to your website
• Unlinked mentions, which reference your name without a link

Both are valuable for PR and reputation management. Even without links, mentions show that your brand is part of public conversations.

Examples of brand mentions:

• A news article covering your latest product launch
• A podcast host discussing your brand as a category example
• A Reddit post asking for opinions on your company
• A LinkedIn comment where someone tags your brand during an industry debate

Mentions can occur in three different types of sentiments: positive, neutral or negative. They are a key indicator of your brand's presence and reputation in the public sphere.

Why tracking brand mentions matters (for PR strategy & ROI)

For businesses across industries, brand mentions are a thermometer for the health of their brand. Through onlinementions, businesses can monitor their online reputation, their customers' opinions of them, and the effectiveness of their PR strategies.

Tracking brand mentions is the practice of setting up a filter and getting notifications every time someone uses your brand name or designated keywords. It sounds simple, but it's a tool that can super power your PR.

Here’s why tracking mentions matters:

• Understand brand visibility
  See how often your brand is discussed, where it's showing up, who’s talking about it, and how.
• Measure campaign impact
  Mentions help you gauge whether your press releases, announcements, or events are getting attention.
• Monitor reputation and sentiment
  Track the tone of mentions to identify positive buzz—or spot potential PR crises before they snowball.
• Improve media outreach
  Discover which outlets and journalists already cover your brand or topic area.
• Prove PR ROI to stakeholders
  Use mention volume, reach, and Share of Voice (SOV) data to show your team’s value.

Effectively monitoring and responding to brand mentions can enhance your brand image, boost customer engagement, and provide valuable insights into the public perception of your brand.

The different types of brand mentions

There are several different types of brand mentions, depending on the source the mention comes from:

A good brand mentions tool captures all of these mentions and groups them according to source and sentiment.

1. News mentions (earned media)
Articles in online media, industry publications, or local news outlets referencing your brand in coverage.

Example: A product launch mentioned in TechCrunch or a quote from your CEO in a trend piece.

2. Social Media Mentions (shared media)
Comments, posts, or tags on platforms like Twitter/X, LinkedIn, Instagram, or TikTok.

Example: A journalist tweeting a link to your press release or an influencer tagging your product in a post.

3. Blog and forum mentions
Mentions in niche blogs, customer review sites, or forums like Reddit or Quora.

Example: A blogger reviewing your product or users discussing your company in a Reddit thread.

4. Podcast and video mentions
Spoken mentions in audio or video content that reference your brand or product.

Example: A podcast host citing your brand as a case study or a YouTube creator discussing your campaign.

5. Unlinked mentions
Your brand is mentioned without a hyperlink. These are common—and valuable—even without direct SEO benefits.

Example: A journalist references your brand by name but doesn’t link to your site.

6. Reviews and testimonials (customer-driven mentions)

User-generated content on review platforms like Amazon, TripAdvisor, Yelp, G2, Capterra, or TrustRadius. These mentions can reflect satisfaction, dissatisfaction, or comparison with competitors—and they influence buying decisions and brand perception.

Example: A 5-star review on G2 praising your media monitoring features, or a Capterra comment noting ease of use compared to a competitor.

7. Broadcast Mentions (TV, radio, podcasts)

Mentions of your brand in traditional or digital audio/visual media. This includes TV news segments, radio interviews, and podcast discussions. These often require specialized media monitoring tools to detect but can significantly boost brand credibility.

Example: A PR segment on a morning news show featuring your CEO, or a podcast host referencing your brand during an industry conversation.

Pro tip: With Prowly, you can monitor all of these mentions in one place and get real-time alerts whenever and wherever your brand is talked about.

Why brand mentions matter

If you're wondering whether it’s worth the time and budget to monitor brand mentions, the answer is simple: it’s essential for protecting your brand image, building trust, and proving PR value. Here’s how tracking brand mentions across digital and traditional media channels benefits your PR strategy

1️⃣ Reputation management

Brand mentions can be both positive and negative. While many boost your brand reputation, others can damage it—especially if left unaddressed.

Using brand monitoring tools like Prowly, you can track online conversations, including social media posts and reviews, in real time. This helps you manage negative mentions and reinforce positive ones, creating a healthier brand image and public perception.

💡 Tip: If you want to make your PR strategy truly robust, read these articles to learn how to manage and protect your brand reputation.

2️⃣ Customer perception and trust

Brand mentions provide valuable insights into how customers perceive your business—without needing extensive research. By tracking mentions across social media platforms, blogs and review sites, you can better understand trust levels and customer sentiment. 

3️⃣ Social proof

Track mentions that showcase testimonials, quotes, videos, or articles about your brand—this is social proof in action. These organic endorsements shape public trust and influence purchase decisions.

By using brand mention tools, you can automatically dig up this proof and attach it to PR reports with metrics like reach, sentiment, and engagement.

4️⃣ Crisis management

Wondering how to spot a brewing crisis? Set up alerts to monitor brand mentions across the web. A spike in negative mentions or sudden surge in volume on specific social media accounts can signal reputational risks early on.

This allows you to take control of the narrative before the story spirals, protecting your brand reputation.

5️⃣ Competitor analysis

Brand monitoring isn’t just about you. Track how people talk about your competitors—what gets praised, what triggers backlash, and how audiences respond.

Using tools like Prowly, you can follow competitor social media channels, websites, and review platforms to identify patterns and gaps in their PR strategy.

P.S. For those searching for the best tools available for competitor analysis, check out this article.

6️⃣ Monitoring digital & traditional media mentions in one place

Collecting clippings manually is a daunting task, especially since most print media comes out with new issues every single day. That's when a media monitoring solution can take all the work off your hands.

With print monitoring you can:

• Instantly access global and local newspapers, magazines, and journals.
• Track brand mentions, competitors, and industry trends across all outlets.
• Analyze insights using a user-friendly dashboard.
• Ensure comprehensive coverage from diverse sources.
• Evaluate print media investments and campaign ROI with advanced filters.

💡 Want to make the most of your print coverage? Discover how to turn print media monitoring into a powerful part of your PR strategy.

Broadcast monitoring lets you better understand the media landscape by analyzing your media presence across TV, over the Radio, and in podcasts on both local and global scales.

Monitoring broadcasts allows you to:

• Gain comprehensive coverage data
• Track all mentions across the US, Canada, and the UK
• Capture relevant broadcast content for your market
• Get detailed insights on your media presence
• Obtain metrics like estimated reach, publicity value, and sentiment analysis
• Analyze all media sources from a single, unified tool

7️⃣ Industry trends

Brand names are not the only thing you can track with brand mentions software. You can also type in industry categories, product names, new technologies and anything else that comes to mind.

For example, if you want to keep up with the latest news about ChatGPT, you can just track the term and get notified when news and other mentions roll in.

You can also learn all about using social monitoring for PR from The Complete Social Media Listening Guide for Public Relations.

How to find and track brand mentions (free & pro tools)

Before investing in a dedicated platform, there are manual and free ways to begin brand monitoring. These options can help you start finding brand mentions and understand your brand’s online presence—though they’re limited in scale and insight.

Free & manual methods to find brand mentions

1. Manual search

Start with a basic Google search using your brand name, product names, or spokespersons. Try it in incognito mode and use tools like the Google’s “News” tab to focus on news sites only. You can also use filters to view recent results or limit them by region.

🔻 Limitation: You’ll miss mentions on social media platforms, forums, or in spoken formats like podcasts.

2. Google Alerts

Set up keyword-based alerts to monitor brand mentions from websites and indexed media. You’ll get email updates when those keywords appear.

🔻 Limitation: Doesn’t include social media channels, podcasts, or sentiment indicators.

→ Read more about Google Alerts alternatives in our article "The Best Google Alerts Alternatives for PR Pros."

3. Social media search

Use the built-in search features of social media platforms like Twitter/X, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram to manually check for mentions, hashtags, and tags.

🔻 Limitation: No unified view across channels. You’ll miss context, trends, and brand sentiment behind the mentions.

4. Review sites

Check platforms like G2, Capterra, TrustRadius, or TripAdvisor to monitor what customers are saying about your brand. These reviews can reveal both praise and negative mentions, shaping your brand reputation and trust.

🔻 Limitation: No automated alerting or way to track trends over time.

5. Forums & online communities

Search Reddit, Quora, or niche industry forums using Google with the site:operator (e.g., site:reddit.com “your brand”). These online conversations can uncover hidden insights about your audience and competitors.

🔻 Limitation: No sentiment analysis, limited visibility into volume and engagement levels.

Media monitoring tools (with Prowly walkthrough)

As your media presence grows, free methods become unsustainable. Media monitoring tools offer comprehensive, real-time coverage—and Prowly is built to meet your needs end-to-end.

What to look for in Brand Monitoring Tools

Effective brand monitoring tools should help you:

• Monitor brand mentions across all channels: news sites, blogs, podcasts, social media platforms, review sites, and broadcast media
• Detect brand sentiment and flag negative mentions using sentiment analysis
• Set up customized keyword alerts for your brand, competitors, or campaigns
• Consolidate mentions into a unified dashboard for analysis and reporting
• Track trends over time and measure your Share of Voice vs. competitors

Pros: fast, accurate, covers all types of sources: digital media (including social media) and traditional media (print & broadcast), lets you add mentions to PR reports with just a few clicks

Cons: free for seven days only

Tip: Read this full guide on brand monitoring software to choose the right one.

How to track mentions with Prowly

1. Set up your brand monitoring dashboard

Start by heading to your mention tracking dashboard. Enter the brand terms, campaign hashtags, or spokesperson names you want to monitor.

Customize your monitoring by:

• Language and region (e.g., only Japanese-language results)
• Type of media channel (e.g., social media, blogs, TV, forums)
• Choose specific journalists or authors

2. Create smart alerts that fit your workflow

Once your terms are set, configure email notifications to fit your team’s rhythm, like:

• Immediate alerts for spikes or negative sentiment
• Daily or weekly roundups for ongoing coverage and positive mentions
• Scheduled digests (daily, weekly, or custom intervals)

This way, your team never misses a beat—but also doesn’t get flooded.

3. Monitor sentiment & impact across all channels

Get a real-time view of:

• Audience sentiment and tone (positive, neutral, or negative)
• The volume and source of each mention
• What’s trending in customer feedback and user mentions

Use these insights to adjust your marketing strategy, manage your online reputation, and strengthen customer satisfaction.

4. Add print & broadcast mentions to your PR reports

Need to track mentions beyond digital? Prowly also helps you:

• Monitor print coverage from global and regional outlets
• Track broadcast media, including TV, radio, and podcasts
• Easily insert traditional media mentions into PR dashboards

These features are ideal for reporting on high-visibility campaigns or executive interviews.

Here are some examples of how traditional media mentions appear in your PR reports:

5. Generate custom PR reports in minutes

At the end of your reporting cycle, generate stunning, data-rich PR reports with just a few clicks. Customize layout, highlight key wins, and present clear insights your manager or clients will love.

🎯 No more screenshots or spreadsheets—just clean, credible data backed by real results.

Tips for tracking brand mentions

If you're new to tracking brand mentions, we have a few handy tips to help you get started.

📌 It's not just the brand name

Brand mention tools let you track literally any term you can think of. This means you can choose a wide variety of terms alongisde your brand name. For example:

• spokesperson names
• online authors
• authors you want to track online
• product names (e.g. "CRM software")
• category terms (e.g. "healthcare communications")

And all of this for yourself and for your competitors.

While your brand term should be the first thing to start with, don't limit yourself. Every brand mentions tracking tool comes with a number of keywords you can track by a specific plan, so make good use of those keywords.

📌 Analyze your sentiment on the fly

Great monitoring software like Prowly does more than just collect brand mentions. As each mention comes in, Prowly analyzes the context around it and sorts the mentions according to sentiment, organizing them into three groups:

• positive
• neutral
• negative

This lets you sort all of your brand mentions automatically using language learning algorithms. For example, if you see a large number of negative mentions coming in over a short period of time, this means that a crisis is looming and you need to look into it.

📌 Track variations of your brand name

If you assume that your (potential) customers know how to spell your brand name perfectly, you're wrong. Depending on what the brand name is, there could be many alternatives that people use. For example, you could search for "Mailchimp" or "mail chimp" with equal success. If you set up just one of these as a term to track, you could miss out on valuable mentions.

📌 Don’t underestimate print, TV or radio mentions

Although most of our information comes from online sources, print, TV, and radio remain crucial media types. They are often seen as more "prestigious" since earning mentions in these outlets is generally more challenging.

Conclusion

Tracking brand mentions is not an afterthought, it's a vital part of a great PR strategy. No matter what industry you're in, tracking brand mentions allow you to stay on top of reputation management, avert crises, and keep an eye on your competition.

And it doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg to get started, either. With Prowly, you can start monitoring the web for your branded (and other) terms today completely free for 7 days.