Brandwatch

A Brighton-founded consumer intelligence and social media company whose software helps brands understand what people say online.

About Brandwatch

Brandwatch makes software that listens to the public conversation online. Brands use it to see what people are saying about them, their products and their market, across social media, news, blogs and reviews. Its tools also help teams plan, publish and measure social media posts and work with influencers. Its products include Consumer Research, Vizia, Reviews and a range of social media management tools.

The company grew out of a web engineering firm that Giles Palmer set up in 1999. It launched under the Brandwatch name in 2007 to focus on social media monitoring. The pages we read did not quote a mission statement from the company, so we cannot give one. Over the years it has grown by joining with other companies in the field, including PeerIndex (2014), BuzzSumo (2017), Crimson Hexagon (2018), Qriously (2019) and Falcon.io, which merged with it in May 2022. Many of the social media tools were previously sold under the Falcon.io name.

Brandwatch is headquartered in Brighton, England. A reference page lists 17 offices worldwide, with sites including Brighton, London, New York, Copenhagen, Berlin, Sofia, Paris, Singapore and Sydney. It reports more than 7,500 clients on subscription. ACQUIRED: by Cision in 2021, but it is still described as operating under the Brandwatch name with Cision as its parent. The headcount is listed at 501 to 1,000 for 2024.

Because the pages we read are about the company's history and products, they do not describe its culture or values. Brighton has a well-known digital and creative scene, and Brandwatch has long been one of its larger technology employers, so it is worth reading staff reviews and the company's own careers site for a picture of daily life. The reference page says the business now has between 501 and 1,000 employees, so it is a mid-sized employer with several teams under one roof.

The roles in a company like this include software engineers, data scientists, product managers, designers, customer success and sales staff, and research analysts who turn online data into insight for clients. If you are interested in data, language, social media or marketing, Brandwatch is a good example of where those interests become jobs. Its social media management line-up includes Publish, Advertise, Measure, Benchmark, Influence, Engage, Audience and Listen.

What they do

• {'desc': 'Research tools that analyse online conversation.', 'title': 'Consumer Intelligence'}
• {'desc': 'Plan, publish, measure and engage on social platforms.', 'title': 'Social media management'}
• {'desc': 'Find and understand the people who shape opinion.', 'title': 'Influencer and audience tools'}

Key facts

• Founded as Brandwatch in 2007; company roots in 1999
• Founder: Giles Palmer
• Headquartered in Brighton, England; offices include London
• Over 7,500 clients (reference page)
• ACQUIRED: by Cision (2021), still operates as Brandwatch

Website: www.brandwatch.com