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Whether you’re new to Meltwater or just creeping into Unified Dashboards for the first time, building a Benchmark Report doesn’t have to be scary. In this spooky season, we’ll show you how to conjure up a candy brand showdown using our Benchmark dashboard template

Let’s say you’re tracking some of the biggest names in the candy aisle like Hershey’s vs. Skittles vs. Haribo — and you want to compare them side by side to see who’s getting the most buzz.

Let’s unwrap it step-by-step:

Step 1: Start with Saved Searches

Before you can benchmark anything, you need to be tracking each candy brand.

Head to Explore from the left-hand navigation menu and create a Saved Search for each brand:

  • Hershey’s
  • Skittles
  • Haribo
  • (or your own mix of favorites!)

 

Need help building brand searches? Check out our Brand Monitoring Toolkit

 

🍬 Step 2: Create Your Benchmark Dashboard

  1. Go to Analyze from the left-hand navigation menu
  2. Click Create Unified Dashboard

 

  1. Select the Benchmark template and hit Next
  2. Select the Saved Searches (or Tags) you just made and click Next
  3. Name it something like “Candy Brand Comparison” and hit Create

     

 

Step 3: Watch the Treats Compete

Instantly see who’s winning the Halloween spotlight:

  • Mentions Over Time and Share of Voice 🗣️

  • Brand Visibility across editorial and social 📣

  • Sentiment Overview (Sweet or sour?) 🍬😱

  • Most Engaging Photos & Videos

 

 

No tricks — just a treat-filled overview of how each candy brand is performing. Check our full widgets Catalog here.

 

Step 4: Customize Your View

Click Edit to tailor your dashboard. Add or remove widgets, rearrange sections, or adjust filters (like date, region, or media type).

 

💡 Pro Tip: Any filters or changes you make in Edit mode stay saved — so your view stays perfectly spooky each time you open it.

 

🧙‍♀️ Step 5: Share the Magic

Click View to exit Edit mode, then hit Share to send a live link, or export your candy comp as a PDF or slide deck.

Now you’ve got a snack-sized report your exec team or stakeholders will eat right up.

 

Bonus: What You Can Do Next

This setup works beyond candy brands — try it for:

  • Campaign benchmarking (pre/post launch)

  • Competitor share-of-voice over Q4

  • Product sentiment across markets

 

Want more hands-on help?

Thanks for this tip

So helpful!

And now I have Skittles cravings. 😄

Love this example, ​@Cris Rice! Curious to hear from others... if you ran this benchmark for your own brand or clients, which category would you track next (beyond candy)? 👀  bonus points if it’s seasonal or fun! 👻

thanks for this Cris! what are we benchmarking next??

This is great!!

Thank you Cris!! 

Really great insight here - thanks Cris!

Love thiss!! Happy halloween🎃

love candy and love this!

Such a fun search! Thanks for sharing!

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