When companies need to monitor their own or a competitor's press coverage or need to do subject research for a public relations campaign or a company presentation, a clipping service is used. These companies will read the country's major daily and weekly newspapers, magazines, and trade publications and monitor the wire services, radio, and network and cable television news broadcasts. They will clip all articles or transcribe or tape every broadcast that mentions any subject requested by their client company.
Clips may be received on a daily or weekly basis. Companies may find them useful when they need to know the exact words written or spoken by politicians, executives, or public figures either for background research or for a company briefing, press release, daily news update or public relations campaign.
Most of these clipping services offer a range of services, including day-of-publication delivery, historical research, news clip analysis of public relations performance, advertising analysis of competitors, and foreign press monitoring.