Florida International University
Challenge
Making the Theoretical Practical
Today's universities can be serious places, with students often keeping one eye on their future employment prospects. When one of Elizabeth Marsh's graduate students in Global Strategic Communications expressed great interest in media monitoring services and dropped the name Meltwater, Marsh decided to do some research. She wanted her classroom to be interactive and practical. She realized her students needed to be exposed to the media tools they'd soon be using. Few of them had any hands-on experience with media monitoring and analysis or knew how to identify key influencers across different channels. "I learned this is something my students really wanted," Assistant Professor Marsh says.
"Being able to say, Yes, I know how to use the platform is of immense value to our students," said Professor Marsh.
"I appreciate the ability to go back and check the mentions of brands and relevant news topics. This is something you can find only in Meltwater."
Elizabeth Marsh, Asst. Professor, Advertising and PR, FIU
Solution
Real-World Media Monitoring and Intelligence
Today FIU students use Meltwater to acquire a real-world understanding of marketing concepts previously experienced only in books. Instructors and students together choose several known brands to monitor throughout the course of each semester. Meltwater dashboards and reporting reveal the multiple impacts a crisis can have on a company and the various ways this is reflected in the coverage on both traditional and social media. FIU's Marsh says, "Any moments of media crisis are great examples and quickly become material I use for classes."
Meltwater tools also allow the class to evaluate and benchmark campaigns based on volume of coverage, sentiment, reach, spikes, and more. Students learn how to discover and distinguish between key influencers for each brand and how to reach out with personalized pitches.
Summary
Meltwater Helps FIU
Introduce real-world tools into the classroom
"Students really want to know about the tools they'll be using when they begin working professionally. They wanted to know how technology can help them be successful in their future professional projects."
Impart skills and instill confidence in their students
"By using Meltwater, the students can understand and apply firsthand the concepts they're being taught in the classroom. They directly see how what happens on social media affects the coverage on the traditional media outlets, for example. They leave the class feeling better prepared and more satisfied."
Build lessons around select case studies
"Meltwater allows us to look at select brands or events and monitor them for a whole semester. I build lessons and test strategies that students will likely encounter in the real world. I have even created scenarios in Meltwater showing how to remedy a crisis communication situation."
— Elizabeth Marsh, Asst. Professor, Advertising and PR, FIU
