Is there a way to automatically monitor internet for a name, a phrase, a price, etc?

[Frederick Skelly]

Hi guys,
I know many of you are IT heavies, so I thought I'd ask.

Every time I see LV's Rob Lee or PWW's Megan Fitzpatrick weigh in on a thread, I think to myself "there's just no way these busy folks can monitor every woodworking site to see if their businesses are mentioned." I'm guessing someone sells a tool or a service that does this. Anyone know?

I envision this as an electronic "clipping service", like celebs used to hire to watch the newspapers for their names. For me? Maybe I'd set it to monitor for reviews on a particular new tool. Maybe I'd monitor for when a sale hits on a particular tool, electronic gadget, etc. Maybe I'd just set it to watch for my own name to monitor that. Or whatever.

Yes, I know I can google any of this myself once a day, but sometimes I don't get around to it. But more than anything, I'm just plain curious and I have a hunch there'd be a million cool uses for this if it's affordable.

Thanks for your help!
Fred

[Matt Day]

You can pretty easily setup a google Alert to search a specific website for a certain phrase.

[Roger Feeley]

there are internet monitoring services out there. Corporations use them to watch for lots of things. They watch for mentions of the company or products so they can fight back if necessary. They watch for competing products so they can check for patent violations. They look for mis-informed or planted reviews so they can respond. some watch for sincere negative review so they can address the problem with the customer.

Celebrities use monitoring services to look for mentions in both social media and traditional media.

[Frederick Skelly]

Thanks guys!

[Ian Moone]

Plus one for Google Alerts!.

I have it set up with the name of a long term Missing Girl (16 years) who's case I have worked on for some 6 years now - because as things progress with her case various media publish articles - lately about extraditing a convicted rapist murderer to stand trial for her murder.

However as good as that has proven to be, it's not 100% infallible.

I quit getting news papers a few years back - just look at the website online and read the same stories for free - or so I thought & rely on the Google alerts.

Well today we had to drive over to Sis In laws house to feed their dogs - the family's away for the weekend holidaying - they asked us to pick up their Sunday Times news paper so it looks like someones home.

Wife is reading this paper (which I had already look at last night online).

Knowing my interest in this case, she asked me if I had read about the prisoner facing a magistrates court this coming week ready to be extradited straight after. Its been 6 months wait for him to be extradited - with no news.

I hadn't read the article - so read it in the news paper. Only a couple paragraphs...

Went BACK to that news papers online version - & no mention of this story!

So I did a online search (Google) & I searched the papers online version, again - no mention of the article sitting in the newspaper print edition sitting on the table behind me!.

So media are selective about what they upload to their web pages and what gets into the actual print version and not everything makes it to the internet!

Just pointing out that the monitoring "Google Alerts" can ONLY alert to whats online and if the reporter / paper publisher doesn't up load it - you may miss it is all.

Up to now its been pretty good but today's experience is making me now wonder what else I may have missed?.

For what little it may be worth to you.