Measuring PR success, KPIs, and analysis methods Which key figures are important!
Marketing
Posted 06 Sep 2024
Public relations (PR) are an essential part of any effective corporate strategy. But how can the success of PR measures be measured? The right choice of key performance indicators (KPIs) and analysis methods is crucial to assessing the value and effectiveness of a PR effort. This blog post explains which KPIs are significant and which methods should be used to accurately measure PR success.
An effective PR strategy can improve a company’s image, increase customer trust, and ultimately boost business success. However, without the optimal measurement methods, the actual benefits often remain unclear. Measuring PR success makes it possible to determine the return on investment (ROI) of your own PR activities, identify weaknesses, and continuously optimize strategies.
Reach refers to the number of people your PR messages could potentially reach. This can be measured through media coverage, social media posts, and other channels. Impressions, on the other hand, count how typically the message is displayed, regardless of whether it was seen or not.
The Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) assesses the monetary value of the media coverage received by calculating the cost of an equivalent advertisement in the same media.
These KPIs measure the mood and tone of media coverage. Positive, neutral, and negative mentions are analyzed to get a comprehensive picture of public perception.
The share of voice indicates the proportion of total media coverage in the respective sector that is attributable to the brand or company. A high SOV shows that PR efforts are more dominant than those of competitors.
This includes all likes, comments, shares, and retweets on social media platforms. High engagement rates show that the messages resonate with the target group. It is advisable to be present on LinkedIn in particular, but also on platforms that mainly appeal to the younger target group, such as Instagram or X.
PR measures should increase traffic to the website. In addition, high-quality backlinks are an indicator that your content is considered valuable and relevant.
By analyzing media reports, the reach, tone, and frequency of mentions of your own company can be recorded. Various tools enable comprehensive media analysis functions and often provide efficient support.
Other tools help track social media activities and measure engagement metrics. This is particularly relevant for targeting future improvements and finding solutions to problems.
Google Analytics and similar tools provide valuable insights into web traffic and visitor behavior on your website. This allows the effects of PR measures on website traffic to be analyzed directly and conclusions to be drawn.
Direct surveys and feedback from customers and stakeholders provide qualitative data that regularly gives deeper insights into the perception of the brand. This collects internal and personal data, as the opinion of existing customers can have an impact on the opinion of potential customers.
Comparing PR key figures with industry standards or direct competitors helps to evaluate and better assess your own performance in context.
Measuring PR success is not a one-off process but an ongoing task. Choosing the right KPIs and analysis methods is crucial to recognizing the true value of your PR efforts and adjusting your strategy accordingly. By monitoring reach, media value, tone and sentiment, share of voice, engagement, and web traffic, a comprehensive picture of PR success can be built. Proven analysis tools and methods should therefore be used to optimize PR strategies based on data and achieve long-term success.
Junior Communication Consultant at HBI Communication Helga Bailey GmbH
Annika Müller has been supporting HBI in the areas of PR and marketing since 2022. As a Junior Communication Consultant, her responsibilities include the creation of professional articles & the conceptualization of social media postings.
Furthermore, Annika is involved in directly assisting our client work.
