How to boost PR measurement through benchmarking

When measuring your public relations, do you compare yourself to past performance alone?

Or are you digging deeper into metrics that can provide actionable intelligence to shape future campaigns?

A new, free download, “PR Measurement: 8 Benchmarking Benefits Crucial to Success,” offers tips for deepening the power of your PR tracking. The tip sheet is from Ragan Communications and Meltwater.

“That which is measured gets improved,” says Frank Strong, founder and president of Sword and the Script, citing an oft-repeated quote in the industry. “So naturally, if you want to get more coverage, you should be in tune with what is or isn’t working for you or your competitors.”

A program that gathers intelligence about your organization, competitors, audience, influencers and leaders is key to PR success today.

For example, says Shonali Burke of Shonali Burke Consulting, if one of your goals is leadership within your industry, you won’t know whether you’ve increased share of voice in targeted news and social media unless you can compare the data at the beginning of your campaign against where you end up.

“It helps to set the foundation for your entire measurement program,” Burke says.

The guide offers wisdom from experts at Sword and the Script Media, Shonali Burke Consulting, Shift Communications and Paine Publishing, helping you create your own road map to understanding what’s working and what isn’t.

It explores eight benefits of benchmarking. Among them:

• Benchmarking helps make metrics meaningful. Find out what yardsticks you should use for tracking your PR, including volume of mentions and market research.
• Benchmarking in real time provides actionable intel. Find out how benchmarking a campaign to raise online awareness about refugees allowed for real-time fine-tuning.
• Determining quality of voice improves coverage. While determining quality of voice can be subjective, the benefits can be objectively tracked. Learn how Katie Paine, owner of Paine Publishing, tracked mentions of a TV network against a quality index to guide which reporters to pitch to.
• Benchmarking sparks business conversations. Does a story include a desirable image or quote? Does it reach the right audience? Intel on these subjects can guide internal evaluation of strategic coverage.
• Benchmarking answers the question, “Am I killing it, or getting killed?” It’s commonplace to measure the bread and butter of performance, says Dan Brennan, vice president of Shift Communications. What gives you an extra edge is tracking how you stack up against competitors.
• Benchmarking shows executives why they should do interviews. Do you have trouble getting your CEO and other top leaders to speak to the press? Media intelligence gives your PR department the data to say, “You have to talk to these guys.”

The guide reveals these and other benefits of benchmarking. “These days, if you’re not taking into account the social amplification after the fact, you’re missing the mark,” Shift Communications’ Brennan says.

Find out more. Download your free guide now.

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