When it comes to measuring public relations and, these days, social media, the question of “ROI” almost always comes up.
Which is why even for someone like me, who is well-acquainted, at least virtually, with Olivier Blanchard‘s propensity to call a spade a spade, and explain – often at considerable length (Olivier, I like your posts!) – why it’s not, for example, a trowel, last week’s #measurePR chat was fabulous.
After all, how many chat guests will tell you that they’re not just bringing unicorns to the chat, but participating while in the saddle?
Image: Howard Stanbury via Flickr, Creative Commons
Old Spice Guy, anyone?
Olivier also proved to be an expert on the various colors that unicorns come in (I’d like mine in silver, please). So if you have an order to place…
Heh!
Seriously, it was a great chat. Some key points:
1. Olivier on the definition of ROI:
(each of these was a tweet from Olivier)
The definition of ROI? Okay. First, ROI is a financial metric. That’s the first thing we need to remember.
ROI is also an equation. The value of the investment must be the same as the value of the gain/return…
… which means that if the investment is calculated in $$$, the gain/return must also be calculated in $$$.
What you can’t have is an investment measured in $$$ and a gain/return measured in impressions, for example.
2. If you’re being asked to measure ROI, make sure you get the data you need from your client (or organization).
This is very important, as Olivier pointed out. And again, remember that “ROI” is a specific financial formula, i.e. (gain from investment – cost of investment) ÷ cost of investment.
So determining exact ROI can be a slippery slope. Especially if you’re just getting started it is far smarter, and often more effective, to measure the outcomes that you are trying to achieve (and again, these communication outcomes should tie back to business outcomes).
For a really detailed overview, read Don Bartholomew’s excellent post, don’t let the tool tail wag the measurement dog.
How I break it down when I do my presentations/workshops on measurement is this:
When you embark on outreach, you’re trying to achieve… something.
That “something” is way more than simply “impressions” or “buzz.” You’re trying to raise awareness and/or engagement to a particular end, be it sign-ups for a form, contest entries, donations (whether cash or in-kind), and so on.
(You might find my recent presentation on measurement at PRSA’s 2010 International Conference useful.)
All of these are going to be unique to your organization and/or campaign, so there really is no one-size-fits-all.
Focus on the outcomes you’re trying to achieve, rather than a muggy version of what ROI is (unless you have the ROI metrics down pat), and that is a much better way to start.
As Olivier said:
@thebrandbuilder: When a client asks a PR pro to show them ROI, the best thing to do is to ask the client what they want to see.
3. Measurable objectives need to include both a time frame as well as a quantifiable change.
@thebrandbuilder: Targets look like “13% increase in positive mentions YoY (year over year)” or by the end of the quarter, for example
And make sure you start off with a baseline, i.e. you have something that you’re comparing your progress (or lack, thereof) to.
@thebrandbuilder: I saw someone mention creating a baseline. That’s excellent. It helps define realistic targets. It’s very important.
(This was @jenzings, by the way).
I call out these three points because they are, by far, the most common questions I get when I speak on measurement (as I will be doing in a couple of days at IABC’s Research & Measurement Conference).
The chat had several other great contributors and is chockfull of nuggets, so you are welcome to download the transcript of #measurePR with Olivier Blanchard at your leisure.
I know you’re just waiting to read it!
Coming up…
I hope you’ll join us next week, when Seth Duncan of Beyond Analytics will be joining us to discuss the pros and cons of automated tools for measurement and evaluation. Seth is an uber-smart guy, and I’m looking forward to what he has to say.
Even better, the chat will be coming to you from London, U.K., which is where I’ll be, and Seth will be… well, I don’t know exactly where he’ll be, but I think it’s safe to say we’re taking #measurePR global.
See you there? Do RSVP for #measurePR with Seth Duncan, and spread the word. The more the merrier!
![[EVENT]: PR Hacks for Small Biz (online)](https://shonaliburke.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/FB-Ad-1200x800-01-01-01-Copy-500x383.jpeg)
Hi Shonali I must add my 2 cents worth. First off I must disagree with “1. Olivier on the definition of ROI:” as ROI (Return on investment) can and is usually applied to the financial arena of business, which is ok and or “right”, but, ROI is not necessarily just the financial gain or loss. It’s the return on your investment and your investment can be time and energy, thoughts, emotions etc that one invests in when running a business, successfully I might add, so the measurable term is not just in dollars although most likely the end result transpires into dollars, but also a confidence even if it’s not a dollar or two .. hope this makes sense.
Steven, you’re always welcome to add your $0.02 and I’m glad you did.
I don’t disagree with you that there are many different types of things one can invest in a business, but the fact is that if communication professionals start talking about “ROI” to management, they are expected to then translate their measurement into financial terms.
This is where things can get hairy, which is why focusing on impact is a more practical, not to mention often “cleaner” way to go. That impact doesn’t always have to be financial, which is where setting smart, measurable objectives right in the beginning comes in; but at least we are quantifying what we are trying to achieve, and then defining our success or failure by those objectives.
Yep point taken Shonali. See exactly what you’re saying. Thanks for listening to two cents worth.
Great statement Shonali under the second point: “Focus on the outcomes you’re trying to achieve, rather than a muggy version of what ROI is.” I’m not entirely sure what you mean by muggy, I’ll admit, since around here it means really hot and humid, but I’m betting your definition is not anything comfortable either. :) I do love the point you make though. We need to have a clear understanding ”” in advance ”” of what we’ll be looking for and what will determine success or failure of the PR effort. That helps avoid the awful feeling of the team presenting great news to a management team that sees it as bad news or no news at all.
LOL! So… even though I’m pretty sure you know what I mean, what I mean is, instead of making up definitions of ROI (“return on ignorance,” etc.), we should be focusing on practical outcomes for our clients and/or organizations – what is the impact we are making (or trying to make) through our programs. That is so much more useful, and shows how we’re actually making a difference.
Thanks so much for stopping by, Lorne!
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Olivier Blanchard, Shonali Burke. Shonali Burke said: Recap of last week's #measurepr with @thebrandbuilder: Measuring Public Relations: ROI and Unicorns http://t.co/EnwIhH5 #pr #socialmedia […]
Thanks for sharing this summary, Shonali! I couldn’t participate last week but caught snippets of the chat throughout the afternoon. ROI is always a challenge for PR, so it’s helpful that folks like you and Oliver are helping lay it out and reinforce it so it’s not like an elephant (or pink unicorn) in the room.
My pleasure, Krista. I know it must seem sometimes as if we go on and on about something that’s really basic, but with all the misinformation and conjecture out there, it feels like we need to. So thank you for putting up with that. :)