Among several good sessions at PRSA’s International Conference this year was this conversation between John Elsasser of PRSA and Mark Weiner of Public Relay about PR Measurement. The main message was that measuring the media needs to be measuring the media that matters most to your organization/brand.
That matches my practical experience.
In a past job, we were all about the volume. More items, more impressions, more likes. Quite rightly though, we got the question, “what’s that matter?” Once we focused in on a few media outlets (and social accounts) we discovered that accuracy and audience were far more important to that particular brand. Seems obvious, no? But the continued believe that more is better gets in the way. This is one reason ad value is such a dubious metric!
What are the most important measures?
Weiner said, and I paraphrase: It’s a subjective question, but OUTCOMES – did we sell product, raise money, staff the company… The other metrics are less impactful, but can contribute to outcomes. That too is aligned with my research and experience. When we use the output, outtake, outcome, business impact continuum, we can identify specific levers to pull that will lead to impact.
I cannot do justice to the entire interview, but encourage you to read Mark’s book, PR Data, Technology and Insights. I assign it in classes and it’s hugely helpful.
Another important session featured Dr. Katerina Tsetsura, Univ. of Oklahoma, and Dr. Dean Krueckeberg, UNC-Charlotte and their analysis of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s speeches at the outset of the Russian attack on that country.
Katerina and Dean assigned a typology to the content of these speeches, showing how appeals to the head and the heart galvanized both domestic and international opinion. I’ll be excited to read their journal article!
Next installment? FullIntel’s Angela Dwyer (who recently joined the IPRRC board) and her presentation on predictive artificial intelligence!
