Share of Voice: What It Means and How to Measure Your Brand's Market Presence

Share of Voice

Share of voice (SOV) is a marketing metric that measures your brand's presence and visibility compared to competitors within your industry or market. It shows what percentage of total conversations, mentions, or advertising spend belongs to your brand.

Types of Share of Voice

Advertising Share of Voice

Definition: Your advertising spend compared to total category advertising spend

Calculation: (Your ad spend ÷ Total category ad spend) × 100

Example: If your brand spends $50,000 on ads and the total industry spends $200,000, your advertising SOV is 25%.

Digital Share of Voice

Definition: Your online presence compared to competitors

Includes:

• Social media mentions
• Website traffic share
• Search engine visibility
• Online review mentions

Traditional Media Share of Voice

Definition: Your presence in traditional media outlets

Includes:

• News mentions
• Magazine coverage
• Radio discussions
• TV appearances

Social Media Share of Voice

Definition: Your brand mentions across social platforms vs competitors

Platforms measured:

• Facebook, Instagram, Twitter
• LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube
• Reddit, forums, blogs

How to Calculate Share of Voice

Basic SOV Formula:

Share of Voice = (Your Brand Mentions ÷ Total Industry Mentions) × 100

Example Calculation:

• Your brand mentions: 500
• Competitor A mentions: 800
• Competitor B mentions: 600
• Competitor C mentions: 600
• Total mentions: 2,500
• Your SOV: (500 ÷ 2,500) × 100 = 20%

Why Share of Voice Matters

Market Position Understanding

Share of voice reveals your true market position beyond sales figures:

• Brand awareness levels
• Customer mindshare
• Competitive positioning
• Growth opportunities

Predictive Value

Research shows strong correlation between SOV and market share:

• Higher SOV often leads to increased market share
• SOV changes can predict future sales trends
• Sustained SOV growth builds brand equity

Marketing Strategy Insights

SOV data helps optimize marketing efforts:

• Identify underperforming channels
• Allocate budget more effectively
• Track campaign impact
• Benchmark against competitors

Share of Voice vs Market Share

The SOV-Market Share Dynamic:

• SOV > Market Share: Growth opportunity, invest in marketing
• SOV = Market Share: Stable position, maintain current strategy
• SOV < Market Share: Risk of decline, increase marketing efforts

Tools for Measuring Share of Voice

Social Media Monitoring Tools:

• Brandwatch: Advanced social listening
• Hootsuite Insights: Multi-platform tracking
• Mention: Real-time brand monitoring
• Sprout Social: Social media analytics

SEO and Digital Tools:

• SEMrush: Search visibility tracking
• Ahrefs: Organic search share
• SimilarWeb: Website traffic comparison
• Google Trends: Search interest over time

Traditional Media Tools:

• Critical Mention: TV/radio monitoring
• TVEyes: Broadcast media tracking
• Meltwater: News and media monitoring

Improving Your Share of Voice

Content Strategy Optimization

Increase content volume and quality:

• Post consistently across all platforms
• Create shareable, engaging content
• Use trending topics and hashtags
• Develop thought leadership pieces

Paid Media Investment

Strategic advertising spend:

• Increase budget in high-performing channels
• Target competitor audiences
• Use retargeting campaigns
• Invest in influencer partnerships

PR and Outreach

Build earned media presence:

• Develop relationships with journalists
• Create newsworthy announcements
• Participate in industry events
• Guest post on relevant publications

Community Engagement

Foster organic conversations:

• Respond to all mentions quickly
• Engage with industry discussions
• Build partnerships with other brands
• Create user-generated content campaigns

Industry Benchmarks by Sector

Technology

• Leading brands: 15-25% SOV
• Emerging brands: 5-10% SOV
• Startup threshold: 2-5% SOV

Retail/E-commerce

• Major retailers: 20-35% SOV
• Niche brands: 8-15% SOV
• Local businesses: 3-8% SOV

B2B Services

• Industry leaders: 12-20% SOV
• Specialists: 6-12% SOV
• New entrants: 2-6% SOV

Common Share of Voice Mistakes

Measuring Wrong Competitors

Problem: Including irrelevant brands skews results Solution: Focus on direct competitors in your exact category

Ignoring Sentiment

Problem: Counting negative mentions as positive SOV Solution: Weight mentions by sentiment (positive vs negative)

Short-Term Focus

Problem: Making decisions based on weekly fluctuations Solution: Track trends over 3-6 month periods

Platform Tunnel Vision

Problem: Only measuring one channel (e.g., just Twitter) Solution: Include all relevant platforms for complete picture

Advanced Share of Voice Analysis

Weighted Share of Voice

Account for mention quality and reach:

• Influencer mentions: 3x weight
• Media outlets: 2x weight
• Regular users: 1x weight

Qualified Share of Voice

Filter for relevant conversations:

• Remove bot/spam accounts
• Focus on target demographic
• Include only relevant topics
• Weight by follower count

Share of Voice by Topic

Break down SOV by conversation themes:

• Product features
• Customer service
• Pricing discussions
• Brand values

Reporting Share of Voice

Monthly SOV Dashboard Elements:

• Overall SOV percentage
• SOV by platform/channel
• Trend analysis (vs previous periods)
• Competitor comparison
• Top mentions and conversations

Key Metrics to Track:

• Total mention volume
• SOV percentage change
• Sentiment breakdown
• Reach and impressions
• Engagement rates

Using SOV for Strategic Decisions

Budget Allocation

• Increase spend where SOV is growing
• Invest in channels with low competition
• Reduce spend where SOV is declining

Competitive Response

• Monitor competitor SOV spikes
• Analyze their successful campaigns
• Adapt winning strategies to your brand

Growth Planning

• Set SOV targets aligned with business goals
• Plan campaigns to achieve SOV milestones
• Use SOV trends to predict revenue impact

Related Terms

• Brand Monitoring - Track brand mentions across platforms
• Engagement Rate - Measure audience interaction levels
• Social Media Analytics - Analyze social performance data
• Competitive Analysis - Study competitor strategies
• Brand Awareness - Build market recognition