Minimum 7 points to evaluate before you hire a PR Measurement service

3 out of every 5 corporates are now depending on a third-party PR measurement service provider. The archaic trend of number crunching done by the inhouse corporate communication team or those provided by the communications firm is slowly receding.

For Corporate Communication functions, having a third party, scientific, futuristic and holistic PR Measurement partner is a must. Justifiably so, because top management is increasingly realizing the importance of Brand Reputation and its correlation with what corporate communications function brings on the table.

Below are some handy yardsticks corporates should bear in mind while selecting a PR Measurement:

1. Why do I need a Measurement service: First & foremost, the client should be very clear for what purpose they need the service. Is it to better my media relations alone or are there bigger objectives like understanding competition thought process, showcasing our efforts to top management, build and protect brand reputation, etc. Each layer adds a new dimension and purpose to measurement service deliveries and the role it will play.
2. Are they a Measurement or PR Monitoring service: Many confuse monitoring with measurement. The former is about what is happening, while the latter deals with how the quantity and quality of the brand’s content helped the organization’s brand and balance sheet. Measurement is a different ball game. Today, there are services who are keenly trying to become a ONE STOP for all client requirements.
3. How many elements of INPUT-OUTPUT-OUTCOME do they cover: For many, measurement starts and ends with an end of the month report card carrying analysis on share of voice, sentiment, geographic spread, publication and journalist details, etc.  That is certainly not measurement. The service should not only be a reflection of the entire communication cycle – INPUT – OUTPUT & OUTCOME – but also allow data sets to manage the nuances of each block and sub blocks.
4. Is their kitchen clean & healthy: How is the backend infrastructure of the service provider? How do they source news, or the mediums and markets they cover? How do they analyse each news clip – just based on headline, the first paragraph alone or is it paragraph by paragraph from start to end? Do they monitor every edition of each publication or extrapolate? What kind of data fields do they extract and maintain from each news clip? What unit of measurement and scores do they use? What kind of quality check processes and error margin levels do they follow? Are their processes & raw material their own, indigenously generated internally or are they outsourced?
5. Do they provide cross media outputs:Focusing on individual media wise (Print, TV, Digital, social media) reports is fine. However, the real action points and the big picture observations will come when you look at the cross-media analytics.
6. How good is the talent quality: What is the quality of talent within the backend and frontend teams? What is their knowledge level about domains like journalism, individual industry sectors, PR Industry, use of excel, word or PowerPoint, language interpretations, report writing skills, data management, etc. Will the frontend team be able to handhold my team towards insights & action points? Can they offer customizable data solutions? Are they easily accessible?
7. Are they neutral: Often ignored or given a casual approach, the concept of a neutral service provider is very important. Measurement service providers which have no direct or indirect association with communication firms will always lend an added touch of credibility, holistic knowledge and dedicated investment in the quality of technology, talent, systems and processes.

Being sure of the exact reason why a corporate communications team needs a PR Measurement service and evaluate the service provider on various parameters will ensure that the measurement service provider does not end up becoming a liability but a long-term strategic growth partner.

The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.

Siddhartha Mukherjee

Siddhartha is the founder of Brand Balance that helps the C-suite & CCO collective optimize its Brand Reputation Management ERPs (efforts, resources & processes) across stakeholders. His professional mission is to establish the Corporate Communications function as the only engine towards brand reputation and valuation success.

Before setting up Brand Balance, a neutral organization, his past 23 years of holistic learning curve includes leadership roles across all the three sides of the industry – corporate communications, communications firms and as a business head of a brand data analytics, audit, research & measurement global behemoth. During spare time, he bikes across the Indian highways, writes articles, consults students & professionals and teaches at media and business schools.