Public Relations (PR) is essential to a company's marketing strategy, and its effects can be felt over time. Even if you sense that your PR efforts are making a difference, putting a specific number on your Return on Investment (ROI) can be challenging. When marketers try to figure out ROI, they often scratch their heads because PR results are inherently subjective. 63% of the people who filled out Cision's 2021 Global State of the Media Report said that press releases and news announcements are the most helpful content from PR pros. These results highlight how important it is to understand and measure PR's ROI.
Measuring ROI
In the past, PR ROI was gauged using Advertising Value Equivalents (AVEs), which is a metric that measures how much it would cost to buy the space that a PR piece takes up if it were an ad. Still, this method must be changed to fit how PR is done today. The Institute for Public Relations says that about 18% of PR professionals still use AVEs even though industry guidelines advise against them. The main problem with AVEs is that they must consider PR's value beyond advertising.
Modern ROI Metrics: The Barcelona Principles
Given the inadequacy of AVEs, a more comprehensive set of metrics called the Barcelona Principles has been created to measure PR effectiveness. These concepts explain metrics such as impressions, engagement, sentiment analysis, and communication outcomes. Each of these has its characteristics.
Impressions: A Glean.info study found that in 2020, the average PR story generated 11 times as many impressions as paid ads. Impressions show how visible PR content is by showing how far it can reach.
Engagement: According to the Content Marketing Institute, brands with the highest levels of engagement noted a 78% increase in conversion rates compared to those with low engagement levels. Use engagement indicators such as the number of likes, shares, comments, and time spent on content. These are easy-to-track metrics. But what about intangible benefits such as brand recognition or reputation? Is there a real value to PR beyond the direct money it brings in?
Sentiment Analysis: Pew Research Center found that 85% of the companies surveyed think sentiment analysis is critical for knowing how people feel about their brand. Sentiment analysis uses AI technology to detect emotions behind words, providing a nuanced perspective on audience attitudes.
Communication Outcomes: The Global Communications Report (GCR) predicted that by 2023, communication outcomes will be the most critical metric for PR pros to measure. This includes increased brand recognition, audience growth, and responses/actions taken due to a PR campaign.
Calculating ROI with Modern Metrics
New measures can be added to the familiar ROI formula: (Gain from Investment - Cost of Investment) = Cost of Investment. But how do you quantify intangible benefits like brand recognition and reputation?
The "Opportunity Cost" method determines how much it would cost the company to achieve the same marketing results differently. For example, if a PR campaign resulted in a front-page news article, the price of a front-page advertisement can provide a base monetary value. A full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal will run you nearly a quarter million dollars. Pay Newswire about $2,000 to upload a single page Press Release and see which media outlets or journalists pick it up. Don't" wait for the reporters to call you. Visit helpareporter.com, also known as HARO, to search a database of journalists looking for stories like yours. They might be freelancers or in-house reporters looking for business news and breaking trends. Take Bob King, an attorney in a small firm whose business exploded after being quoted in the Wall Street Journal. HARO monthly subscriptions range from Free to $149.The more you pay, the broader your access gets. And for the record, the attorney mentioned above used the free version. So, what was his ROI? A quote used by a respected journalist in one of the most closely followed news outlets could easily match the value of a paid full-page ad.
What about The Intangible ROI?
Even though the above methods help measure ROI, it's important to remember that PR's ROI isn't just about direct monetary gains. According to the 2020 PR Week Census, 69% of PR professionals believe PR's value lies in enhanced reputation, improved brand recognition, and better stakeholder relationships.
PR is often a long-term investment, with returns trickling in over extended periods. PR differs from direct marketing, which tries to get people to buy immediately. Instead, PR is about nurturing a positive brand image and reputation, which leads to long-term success. It's a marathon, not a 50-yard dash, after all.
Putting it all Together
Monitor and track media coverage to assess the quantity and quality of press mentions. Measure the number of articles, mentions in influential publications, sentiment analysis, and how far the coverage reached. This gives you insight into the visibility and perception of your brand in the media. Monitor online sentiment, good and bad reviews, and online reputation scores. You can identify public perception or reputation changes by tracking sentiment over time. Use negative feedback to improve a process or fix a glitch.
Review your website analytics to measure any changes in user behavior. Has your latest PR initiative driven more web traffic or increased the number of unique visitors? Did the average viewer stay longer on the site? Have you seen a spike in conversion rates? Use tools like Google Analytics provides to track changes in website metrics. A sudden surge of new leads is probably a direct result of a specific campaign or recent media coverage.
Measure engagement metrics on each social media platform, including likes, comments, shares, and reach. Assess the growth of your social media following and track the effectiveness of PR campaigns using the platform's analytics tools and insights. If you want to know what viewers think, ask them. Conduct simple surveys or ask your target audience for feedback to gauge brand awareness, perception, and sentiment. Get email addresses, and you have the keys to the castle! Using information you've gathered already, create highly personalized email nurture campaigns that use poll answers to address specific issues.
Compare your brand'syou've visibility and media coverage to your competitors within the industry. Measure the share of voice by calculating the percentage of media coverage and mentions your brand receives compared to competitors. This provides insights into your brand's prominence and competitive position. Don't worry; there's an app for that too.
Data-Driven PR Expands Your Reach
PR is data-driven more than ever, and technology is making it easier to collect, organize, and gather insights that can make it easier to find and connect with your audience. Create innovative content based on your knowledge of the subject matter and emerging trends that writers and editors looking for their next big story will like.
Develop your communications and campaigns based on a heavy dose of collected data, with a side of intuition that comes from experience. Include data from reputable sources to boost the credibility of your brand with media outlets and readers. Easy access to verifiable statistics makes your pitch even more appealing to journalists who work with tight deadlines.
Every journalist, influencer, and media outlet that picks up your content amplifies your story by thousands or even millions of additional impressions. Free editorial space can catapult your branded content over a competitor's paid ad space.
Measuring PR's ROI might be challenging due to its inherently intangible nature, but it isn't impossible. Businesses can quantify their PR ROI by utilizing comprehensive metrics like impressions, engagement, sentiment analysis, and communication outcomes and adopting the Opportunity Cost method.
But the value of PR goes beyond mere numbers. Its ability to forge long-lasting relationships and foster a robust brand reputation is invaluable to any organization's success. Putting money into PR is investing in the future of your brand, which is likely to pay off in terms of credibility, visibility, and public trust.
Getting Started
Expand your reach, drive engagement, and build credibility. YTC connects your brand to media outlets and journalists already interacting with your target audience. We're here to help with content development too! Click here to get started.
Commentaires