Share of Voice
A metric measuring a brand's media presence relative to competitors, indicating market position in the media landscape.
Definition
Share of Voice (SOV) quantifies how much media presence a brand commands compared to competitors within a specific category, topic, or industry. It's typically calculated by dividing a brand's media mentions by total category mentions over a given period.
SOV analysis can examine overall volume, sentiment distribution, message penetration, and channel mix to provide a comprehensive competitive media positioning assessment.
Why It Matters
SOV correlates with market share—brands that dominate media conversations typically outperform in business metrics. It's also a leading indicator, showing trajectory before sales data reflects changes.
Understanding SOV helps allocate PR resources strategically, focusing efforts where competitive gaps exist rather than spreading efforts thin across areas already dominated.
Examples in Practice
A challenger brand discovers they have 8% SOV against competitors averaging 25%. They develop a focused thought leadership program targeting underserved topics, growing SOV to 22% within a year.
An established brand's SOV analysis reveals declining presence in emerging category conversations—prompting strategic pivot to recapture narrative leadership before market position erodes.