Google Alerts is a free tool that sends notifications whenever new content related to your chosen keywords appears online. It scans news sites, blogs, and the web for mentions of these keywords and delivers them to your email inbox. It’s like having your digital assistant that keeps you updated about what’s happening in your niche, what your competitors are doing, or what people say about your brand.
Why Create Google Alerts
Google Alerts can be a powerful tool for membership organisations to stay informed, engage members, and drive their strategic objectives. Here are several ways membership organisations can leverage Google Alerts effectively:
1. Stay Informed on Industry Trends and News
- Why: Keeping up-to-date with the latest trends, developments, and news in your industry is crucial for staying relevant and providing valuable content to your members.
- How: Set up Google Alerts for key industry terms, topics, and news. For example, if your organisation is focused on healthcare, you might set up alerts for terms like “healthcare innovation”, “NHS policy updates”, or “telemedicine trends”.
2. Monitor Mentions of Your Organisation
- Why: It’s important to know when your organisation is mentioned online, whether in the news, blogs, or social media. This helps you manage your reputation, respond to public feedback, and identify potential PR opportunities.
- How: Set alerts for your organisation’s name, any abbreviations, and key staff members. This way, you’ll be notified when someone mentions your organisation or key individuals.
3. Keep an Eye on Competitors
- Why: Understanding what your competitors are doing can help you identify gaps in your offerings, learn from their successes and failures, and adjust your strategy accordingly.
- How: Create alerts for the names of competing organisations, their leaders, and any specific campaigns or initiatives they may be running.
4. Identify Collaboration and Partnership Opportunities
- Why: Membership organisations often benefit from partnerships that can offer additional value to members, such as joint events, co-branded content, or advocacy campaigns.
- How: Set up alerts for potential partners in related fields or industries. For example, a membership organisation for small businesses might set alerts for chambers of commerce, trade shows, or influential thought leaders.
5. Track Keywords Related to Member Interests
- Why: Understanding what topics are trending among your members can help you tailor your content and services to their needs and interests.
- How: Use alerts to monitor topics that align with your members’ professional interests. This could include new technologies, regulatory changes, or emerging best practices in your field.
6. Content Creation and Curation
- Why: Providing valuable, relevant content is key to member engagement and retention.
- How: Use Google Alerts to source content for newsletters, blogs, or social media. Alerts on specific industry keywords can help you find the latest articles, reports, and studies that would interest your members.
7. Crisis Management
- Why: Being aware of potential crises or negative mentions can help you address issues before they escalate.
- How: Set up alerts for keywords that might indicate a brewing crisis, such as “[Organisation Name] scandal”, “[Industry] controversy”, or “[Competitor Name] legal issue”.
8. Track Advocacy and Policy Changes
- Why: If your organisation is involved in advocacy, staying informed about policy changes, legislative updates, or public opinion shifts is essential.
- How: Create alerts for relevant legislation, government announcements, and public figures who influence your industry.
9. Engage Members Directly
- Why: Engaging with members on a personal level can increase loyalty and satisfaction.
- How: Set up alerts for mentions of your members’ names, companies, or achievements in public forums, news, or blogs. You can then reach out to congratulate them or share their success stories in your communications.
10. Promote Events and Campaigns
- Why: Monitoring media coverage of your events can provide insights into reach and impact.
- How: Set alerts for event names, hashtags, or specific campaign keywords. This will help you track media mentions and engage with attendees or media outlets sharing content about your event.
Need more reasons? Try this: Maximising Google Alerts: 21 Ways to Enhance Your Social Listening Strategy
How to Set Up Google Alerts (Step-by-step)
Setting up Google Alerts is quick and straightforward. Follow these simple steps:
1. Sign in to Google Alerts
- Visit Google Alerts.
- Log in with your Google account if you’re not already signed in.
2. Choose Your Keywords
Think about the keywords that are most relevant to your brand, products, industry, and competitors; this could include:
- Your brand name (including any common misspellings)
- Competitor names
- Industry terms or phrases
- Essential products or service names
- Specific topics or hashtags relevant to your niche
3. Set Up Alerts
- Enter the keywords you want to monitor in the search bar.
- Google Alerts will show a preview of the type of results you can expect.
- Fine-tune your alert by clicking on “Show options” to adjust settings like:
- Frequency: Choose how often you want to receive alerts (as it happens, once a day or once a week).
- Sources: Specify where you want the information to come from (news, blogs, web, etc.).
- Language: Select the language of the content you wish to monitor.
- Region: Focus on a specific geographical area if needed.
- How Many: Decide if you want to see only the best results or everything.
- Deliver to: Choose which email address will receive the alerts or set up an RSS feed.
4. Create the Alert
Once you’ve set your preferences, click the “Create Alert” button. You can set up multiple alerts for different keywords or phrases.
5. Manage Your Alerts
To edit, pause, or delete any of your alerts, go back to the Google Alerts homepage, where you’ll see a list of all your active alerts. You can tweak the settings anytime to refine the information you receive better.
Tips for Setting Up Effective Google Alerts
- Use Quotation Marks for Exact Phrases: If you want to track an exact phrase (like your organisation’s name), use quotation marks around it.
- Use Boolean Operators: To narrow down your search, use terms like AND, OR, and NOT. For example, “healthcare innovation” AND “UK” will only show results related to both terms.
- Set Alert Frequency: Choose how often you want to receive alerts – as-it-happens, once a day, or once a week – based on the urgency of the information.
- Monitor Alert Performance: Regularly review the alerts you’ve set up to ensure they’re still relevant and adjust keywords as necessary.