Stories by Graeme Harris

Too many PR pros look askance at measurement. That’s not the issue with measurement advocate Graeme Harris, but he wants to know the most cost-effective way of measuring. Is it preferable to have your in-house staff do the collection and analysis, or contract with an outside firm to handle things? Harris does the math on both options.

AI is getting much better at measuring media, yet many PR firms continue to deploy humans to compile and analyze reports. It’s not a ploy to charge more. Measuring earned and social media entails more than merely evaluating mentions and a human touch remains essential, argues former UBS Canada communications head Graeme Harris.

It was a logical assumption. With AI capabilities growing exponentially, PR practitioners expected media measurement software to work without human intervention, and reduce costs. It’s not been quite as smooth, argues Graeme Harris, former head of corporate communications at UBS, Canada, argues.

While most C-suite executives are still working to grasp the full value of earned media, they are getting savvy about data mining and analytics. The smart ones will begin asking pointed questions about PR measurement. And they will question reports relying on ad tech-based attribution that artificially inflates PR results. Beware.

Advertisers are fed up with inconsistent reporting and lack of insights into the value of ad spending. This consistent complaint about ads extends to media coverage and social media. Most measurement firms fail to disclose how they arrive at the effectiveness of their metrics. A former communications head at UBS Canada Graeme Harris argues industry needs to devise a meaningful measurement standard.