The key principles of measuring PR

Following the AMEC European summit for measurement, 7 key principles have now been devised for measuring PR. Woohoo! AVE (Advertising Value Equivalent) is out, social media is in and goal setting is identified as fundamental to a PR campaign. A look at the seven PR principles show that, in my opinion, PR is going to have to start working a lot harder, both offline and online. Business goals and metrics feature throughout the seven principles and I think it marks an exciting time for measurement of PR. While some of the principles might not seem all that groundbreaking on their own, the charter as a whole is an important piece of work.

Now I don’t have a traditional PR background so I’m not going to profess to know the ins and outs of reporting on PR. For the purposes of this post I will focus mainly on the inclusion of social media, but I know from my peers that many in the PR industry will be breathing a sigh of relief that  AVE is on its way out. Indeed, 92% of the 200 attendees at the summit were in agreement with this principle. Thank goodness, because many were trying to force this already shaky metric on social media and it fits even less here (if at all) than it does in traditional PR.  So how do these new principles apply to social media?

Social media can and should be measured

The inclusion of social media in the principles is exciting and shows that it must work just as hard, if not harder than traditional media to show it’s worth. Each of the points elaborated on in this principle, are like separate principles in themselves! Mentioned in the specific social media section are : goals, quantity vs quality, web analytics, technology, communities not coverage and the importance of experimenting. There is a lot contained within this 5-worded principle that is perhaps a little too deceptive. Each of the points elaborated on brings up a whole series of arguments in itself.

The difficulty comes in the fact that social media is its own entity and too complex in its own right to be included as one in a string of principles. It is not a principle, or a way of approaching measurement. It is subject to its own principles of measurement. Now I’m not demanding that PR and social media be kept entirely separate, there are glaring crossovers and many similarities in terms of the approach, not least evidenced by its inclusion in the charter. It is encouraging that social media is mentioned and elaborated on in a global effort like this and it marks exciting times. I like to think that this will be the springboard to social media getting its own set of principles, if that could ever be possible. The only danger would be in trying to make all of these PR principles apply to social media, when we are still trying to figure that beast out.

The charter as a whole is fascinating. The obvious question would be that if is AVE is out, what’s going to take it’s place? The answer isn’t going to come easily. There is no magic formula set out in these principles that you must look for ‘metric x’. No, it is instead a whole interpretation of the PR industry, from goal setting, through to execution, terminology, targets and the consideration of your audience, your stakeholders.

The Power of One

What should be noted is the terminology used to describe the people you’re trying to reach through your PR activity. They are no longer to be considered as ‘target audiences’, but as stakeholders. A result of the change from thinking as organisations as the ones with the power, to the recognition that this has shifted to the individual. While many of the other principles may have seemed obvious and standard practice, this particular line of thought is interesting. It is also clearly supportive of the proposal to scrap AVE. While this measures media cost, thinking about the people you’re reaching as stakeholders, as individuals who then go on to influence others is a much more valuable way to approach PR both offline and online. This line of thinking is certainly familiar to those of us who practice social media, where every activity is executed with the aim of reaching out to individuals in a way that resonates with them and possibly leads through to a desired action. I think it’s incredibly exciting that this is laid out so clearly in this charter and the importance of this shouldn’t be underestimated. It marks a move away from the mass media ‘powers that be’ and I like to think that social media is the major factor at play here.

So what does this charter mean for social media overall? It clearly shows it’s increasingly on the agenda, now firmly in place in an important and groundbreaking global initiative by the PR industry. These principles set out are not easy to achieve, compared to the faily simple measurement of AVE. If it’s done right though, it’ll show the true benefits of a campaign in real-world terms and reflect the changing industry away from the traditional media models. And social media is right up there with it!