Corporate communicators know it is important to tie PR results to business goals, but lack the confidence to do so, according to a recent study. The study, which took the pulse of 97 communications executives, further reveals irritation with PR’s limited influence on corporate strategy; the lack of PR knowledge within the C-suite; budget deficiencies; and the perception of PR departments as “order takers.”
Against this backdrop, effective PR measurement can often be an elusive goal. The dual truths—that PR should contribute measurably to the business and yet lacks the confidence and often the resources to measure its effectiveness—make clarity of the PR function an elusive goal for many organizations.
PR’S INFLUENCE
On the upside, the survey showed that half of corporate communicators feel they have a high degree of influence on strategy. Yet one in five confess to having little or virtually no influence.
One explanation is that most corporate PR people operate in relative isolation outside of their interactions with marketing and advertising.
For example, while 34 percent of respondents work closely with their marketing counterparts, only 17 percent communicate regularly with sales and human resources. Fewer than 15 percent report regular communications with either advertising, customer service or investor relations.
For the head of corporate communications of a large multi-national consumer goods manufacturer, the strategy for integrated communications starts in the C-suite
“It’s not difficult for us to tie communications to corporate objectives. We have both a receptive audience and the data,” the executive said “We create communications plans to help the company meet these priorities. Everything ladders back up to our corporate strategy.”
10 QUESTIONS
Before they can prove ROI, communications professionals need to answer these questions, which are based on aligning PR with the brand.
• What are the organization’s objectives?
• Who are your internal clients/audiences (and what are their objectives)?
• What are your PR objectives (and how do they align with the company and your superiors)?
• How will PR success be measured (and are these measurements ‘reasonable and meaningful)?
• What other departments will be affected?
• What are your key messages?
• Who is (are) your target audience(s)?
• Who or what influences that audience?
• What other programs are underway?
• What is the time frame under which you’re operating?
PRACTICAL OUTCOMES
Dr. David Geddes, CEO of Geddes Analytics, who conducted the study noted above, said the combination of PR’s influence-deficiency and its inability to align performance with business priorities is no coincidence.
“Many in public relations speak a language and measure in terms that do not integrate well,” he said. “Data is the currency of business, and until PR adapts its measures to the enterprise, frustration among practitioners will continue.”
Reconciling dualities in public relations is challenging, even for the most seasoned CCOs. But if you don’t have the resources to quantify PR’s impact on sales, perhaps you can assuage the situation by determining what practical outcome you want, and then adopting a defensible point of view to suit that end.
PR pros need to develop strategies and tactics that support the business and evaluate the results within the context of the business’s objectives. Here’s another set of questions to ask to improve the measurement process.
• Did we deliver key messages supporting the company’s goals?
• What percentage of our coverage included positive references to those messages?
• Did we raise awareness and change attitudes about the company’s connection with these positive reputation-shaping messages?
As professionals, we must commit to elevate our practice to meet the organization’s needs. To do so, with or without resources, we must commit to measuring PR.
CONTACT:
Mark Weiner is CEO of PRIME Research. He can be reached at [email protected]. David Geddes can be reached at [email protected]
This article originally appeared in the April 20, 2015 issue of PR News. Read more subscriber-only content by becoming a PR News subscriber today.