PR Measurements: Tools For Evaluation

By: Christine (Kaori) Yoh

PR metrics, also known as PR measurements, are measurable indicators that can be used to analyze and understand the results of a PR initiative. Why is this important? Having a grasp of PR metrics is a crucial step in evaluating the outcomes your PR strategy has been able to bring to a brand to share in-house or with a client. This can be especially useful in refining future PR campaigns as one come to terms with the effectiveness of current and past strategies used to boost the reputation and visibility of a brand

Below are a few essential PR metrics one should know about and implement in the evaluation process of their PR campaigns.

Brand mentions

One way to gauge how much you’ve been able to raise brand awareness through PR efforts is by tracking brand mentions. This can be done through press clipping services or media monitoring systems like Mention that help track publications in which your brand has been covered.

However, coverage from one major media outlet may outweigh several small outlets. Therefore, it is important to be able to decipher the effectiveness and impact each coverage has had. Not only do you want to look at the number of brand mentions you’ve achieved, but there are also some other factors to consider:

  • 1) Share of Voice
    • Share of voice is the percentage of content or conversation about your brand compared to your competitors. This can thus be evaluated with tools like Cision. Understanding the share of voice can thus help one analyze whether the brand mentions are enough to help your client stand out in the crowd.
  • 2) Media reach & impressions
    • Not only is it important to track the number of brand mentions, but it is also important to research the number of people who have been able to view the coverage, as seen by media reach, and the number of times your coverage is circulating, as seen by media impressions. This can be evaluated using software like Mediatoolkit.
  • 3) Sentiment Analysis
    • Brand mentions should hopefully be favorable towards the brand you’re conducting your PR efforts for. To see if this has been achieved, sentiment analysis comes in to look at whether the language used to describe the brand has been positive, negative, or neutral. AI tools like Brand24 now offer these insights. The goal is to achieve an increase in positive sentiment as it relates to a better reputation.

Social media engagement

  • With the rise of mobile users, looking at social media engagement within the scope of PR is crucial. Social media engagement covers a wide array of areas but isn’t limited to looking at whether there has been a change in the number of followers but the interactions that are being conducted on various platforms like Instagram, FB, and Twitter. With built-in analytical tools like Facebook Insights, for example, PR professionals can look into whether increased likes, shares/reposts, comments, or even hashtags are being generated. This can result, for instance, from PR efforts to build online influencer partnerships and quality content.

Website traffic

  • For many brands, their websites are the first thing that returning and new visitors come to. Therefore, looking at website traffic is crucial in evaluating PR efforts. For example, did an earned story on your brand lead to increased website traffic? Are these visitors engaging in any sort of action – filling out forms, and purchasing products? Google Analytics is now a popular tool that helps PR professionals not only track what type of visitors are coming to a website but what is leading them there. This is important as it informs PR professionals of the sources they should prioritize, which can, for example, help them determine which media outlets have been most effective to pitch to in increasing an audience base.

As you can see, gaining knowledge about the existence and significance of PR metrics can help you become an expert in the field when evaluating your next campaign. There are an endless amount of online tools within your reach, so getting familiarised with them can be the best next step to becoming a more inquisitive and well-informed professional.

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