Data visualizations can map out data in ways we might not notice otherwise. For example, the shape of the lifespan of news stories. They can also illustrate correlations we might not have made without seeing them depicted.
“The Lifespan of News Stories,” a mesmerizing and interactive multi-part data visualization illustrates how news enters and exits the public consciousness.
The various modules of the visualization explore news story lifespans from three perspectives:
- geographical (where interest originates and how it spreads)
- time in the spotlight (some stories stay in public view and some fade away)
- by shape (the shapes of graph plots can speak to the nature of the attention a topic gets)
The Information Behind the Visualization
The visualizations reminded me of my days in SEO when I tracked the performance of stories in Google Analytics, and the term “attention economy” also made me think about the data science and methodology of tracking buyer intent signals, content consumption, and active research being conducted on the web.
(You’ll have to head over to the The Lifespan of News Stories website to view their huge, complex, interactive data visualizations.)
Though the following visualization is far less complex, the methodology is similar.
Figure 1: Average Weekly Research Activity by Topic (# of Companies)
This visualization depicts the average weekly research activity by topic and maps it against the number of companies in-market for a purchase. Using site-level cookies and tags, and bidstream metadata, Aberdeen tracks active research. This research is conducted by folks at some stage of a buying journey across hundreds of industries.
The folks behind the Lifespan of News Stories visualization relied on search metrics, unique search terms, the Google Trends API, and geographical context to collect and synthesize their data. Aberdeen’s algorithm that tracks active research similarly uses other contextual pieces of information to make connections. Namely, what is being researched, by individuals at which company location, and when they are doing so.
Aberdeen’s purposes, of course, are to determine which research conducted by in-market companies indicates actual intent to purchase, and the Lifespan of News Stories project sought to determine, or at least illustrate, the lifespan of online news stories.
The nature of news, of course, differs from nature of the content a B2B buyer researches before making a tech purchase — but can understanding the way news content persists or fades in the public memory lend insight into the staying power of B2B content aimed at users in various stages of their buying journeys? Let me know what you think.
Do you know which specific companies are currently in-market to buy your product? Wouldn’t it be easier to sell to them if you already knew who they were, what they thought of you, and what they thought of your competitors? Good news – It is now possible to know this, with up to 91% accuracy. Check out Aberdeen’s comprehensive report Demystifying B2B Purchase Intent Data to learn more.
