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The Evolution of Evaluation

What Gets Measured is What Counts

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Chris FosterVice President Strategy & Organization Booz I Allen I Hamilton

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• The C-suite executives expect metrics and prefers those of outcome-oriented persuasion

• Although PR practitioners note that engagement is a best practice, most still rely on impressions as evidence of impact

• Measures must move beyond mere impressions (outputs) to understanding comprehension of message (outtakes), and ultimately, to understanding how the message impacted the target audience’s attitudes and emotions (outcomes).

Communications Measurement is Seen as an Add-On

“You have to move beyond the obvious metrics such as media impressions, Facebook "likes" and Twitter followers. Those can provide a clue to your reach. If you really want to show your effectiveness, you need to decide what needle you want to move—sales, fundraising activity or advocacy reach, for example—and then measure your media activity against that.”

- Laura Howe, VP, public relations at the American Red Cross

Communicating with the C-suite

• We need metrics that support business decisions

• Web metrics such as sentiments and perceptions are most effective measures of digital media impact

• Economy has had a negative effect on communications and measurement budgets

• We need much deeper understanding of communications measurement best practices

• Greatest need is for a common ROI definition

• We need standard metrics for ROI and communications effectiveness

• We need metrics that support business decisions

• Web metrics such as sentiments and perceptions are most effective measures of digital media impact

• Economy has had a negative effect on communications and measurement budgets

• We need much deeper understanding of communications measurement best practices

• Greatest need is for a common ROI definition

• We need standard metrics for ROI and communications effectiveness

Similarities Across Markets (Global Survey Results)

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October 2012 Research Results

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What are the biggest challenges to measuring the value of public relations?

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What do you believe are the greatest barriers to the adoption of standardized research techniques for the measurement of public relations?

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On a scale of 0 to 10, where “0” is unimportant and “10” is important, how important is it the

following are well understood across the public relations profession in the next five years?

Incidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” RatingIncidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” Rating

Base: All respondentsn=57

Base: All respondentsn=57

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Importance of PR MeasuresImportance of PR Measures

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On a scale of 0 to 10, where “0” is unimportant and “10” is important, how important is it the

following are well understood across the public relations profession in the next five years?

Incidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” RatingIncidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” Rating

Base: All respondentsn=57

Base: All respondentsn=57

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Importance of PR MeasuresImportance of PR Measures

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How much do you agree or disagree with the following statements, where “5” is “strongly agree”

and “1” is “strongly disagree”?

Incidence of “Strongly” and “Somewhat Agree” RatingIncidence of “Strongly” and “Somewhat Agree” Rating

Base: All respondentsn=57

Base: All respondentsn=57

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Attribute AssessmentAttribute Assessment

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What are the challenges/barriers to measurement that you encounter? Below are statements about

barriers to measuring communications that you may or may not agree with or hear most commonly

from clients. Using the scale where “0” means you completely disagree with that statement and a

“10” means you completely agree with that statement, please rate each of the following.

Incidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Agree” RatingIncidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Agree” Rating

Base: All respondentsn=57

Base: All respondentsn=57

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Challenges / Barriers to MeasurementChallenges / Barriers to Measurement

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Below is a list of metrics that may be used to measure the impact of digital media. Based on your

experience or by what you read and hear, which one do you consider most effective?

Base: All respondentsn=57

Base: All respondentsn=57

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Digital Media Impact MetricsDigital Media Impact Metrics

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On a scale of 0 to 10, where “0” is unimportant and “10” is important, how important are each of the

following competencies for a public relations professional?

Incidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” RatingIncidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” Rating

Base: Public Relations Professionalsn=47

Base: Public Relations Professionalsn=47

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Importance of CompetenciesImportance of Competencies Public Relations Professionals

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On a scale of 0 to 10, where “0” is unimportant and “10” is important, how important are each of the

following competencies for a public relations professional?

Incidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” RatingIncidence of “Very” and “Somewhat Important” Rating

Base: Public Relations Professionalsn=47

Base: Public Relations Professionalsn=47

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Importance of CompetenciesImportance of Competencies Public Relations Professionals

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During the past three years, what impact, if any, has the economy had on your organization’s

overall communications budget?

Base: All respondentsn=57

Base: All respondentsn=57

Net:Positive effect 7%Negative effect 60%

Net:Positive effect 7%Negative effect 60%

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Effect of Economy on Communications BudgetEffect of Economy on Communications Budget

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Key Findings

• Practitioners see many challenges to measuring the value of PR and implementing measurement into standard practice. Limitations on staff, time, budgets and a general lack of understanding of measurement principles contribute to this challenge.

• In the past three years, the economy has had a negative effect on communications and measurement budgets, limiting resources while simultaneously increasing the importance to show the value in our work for clients.

• Within five years, over 90% of surveyed public relations professionals indicated a need for the development of communication measurement standards and practices.

• A desire for more effective measurement creates a need for measuring ROI and capturing true business impact.

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Solution

As an industry, we need to:

•Change the way we communicate and present our value

•Incorporate measurement in our missions and objectives

•Use research-driven data to demonstrate the value that

strategic communications delivers in a way that can be

universally understood and embraced by budgets across the

globe

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As an industry, we have a shared responsibility to:

•Reframe how we talk about measurement and communications and the value of communications and PR•Seize opportunities to gain more understanding in measurement and identify how to implement into practice•Utilize communication as a tool in problem solving•Meet the demand for data-driven campaigns

Call to Action