Extending PR Metrics to the Marketing Funnel | Marketing Analytics

January 25, 2013 | by Optify |



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This is a guest blog post by Leah Wyatt. Leah Wyatt works in PR, media, and communications analysis at Waggener Edstrom Worldwide. You can connect with Leah via Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

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As the communications landscape evolves, and disciplines once considered separate entities collide and overlap, tried and true PR metrics aren?t going to cut it anymore: agencies need to be able to translate PR metrics into business and marketing speak in order to tangibly demonstrate the impact of PR to clients. New digital and social marketing strategies are generating metrics that are easy to track, but the data remains disconnected from business goals and performance.
The following provides a framework PR professionals can use to evolve our thinking to address these industry changes and shift our traditional PR metrics to map to the marketing funnel, demonstrating an audience?s movement up the chain from awareness to action.

1. Awareness
The definition of awareness, the first stage in the marketing framework, is pretty obvious: when the target audience realizes the product, issue, or whatever exists. Pretty basic, but also an essential step. So how can we quantify awareness using PR metrics, if awareness is a communications/marketing goal? Some examples of traditional PR metrics that can help show that an audience has awareness of a product or issue:

• # tweets, # retweets ?Shows that tweeter knows about product or issue
• # media placements resulting from PR outreach ?Shows that multiple sources know about product or issue as informed by outreach efforts
• Share of voice ?Shows awareness of product or issue in the general space, compared to other products/issues
• # video views ?Shows awareness of product or issue as conveyed by client created video

2. Knowledge/Understanding
The next stage in the marketing framework entails demonstrated knowledge/understanding. At this stage, the target audience shows that they have moved beyond basic awareness and have internalized some type of concrete information related to the product or issue. The level or degree of knowledge and understanding can vary fairly significantly, but if this is a client business goal, some PR metrics that demonstrate audience understanding could be:

• Message pickup ?Degree of pickup shows depth of understanding
• # original tweets mentioning key product/issue facts ? Shows knowledge, not just awareness, of product/issue

3. Interest/Consideration/Evaluation
This stage in the framework speaks to a customer?s interest in the product or message. The target audience shows here that not only do they understand the product or message, but they also demonstrate that they are considering or evaluating the product or message, aiding their decision to interact, purchase or internalize it. PR metrics that highlight potential customers in this stage are:

• Message pickup ?In addition to showing understanding, the depth of key messages also highlights how much interest the author has and what their evaluation of the product is
• # of positive mentions or overall tone ? This shows the author?s or social media user?s attitude toward the product or message
• # of likes on Facebook posts or favorites on tweets ? This shows an interest in the product or message, as well as a slight affinity for it, but within a smaller capacity than liking or following the brand or product does

4. Intent/Support/Preference/Advocacy
The final stage in the marketing funnel describes the point at which a customer purchases, invests in or promotes a product (or message). Some traditional PR and social metrics that highlight customers at the support/advocacy stage are:

• Call to action ? When a customer makes a recommendation for a product or brand and encourages others to consider or try it, via social media channels
• Liking or following a brand ? Shows a social media user?s preference toward a brand or product
• Positive mention with a link directing readers to a brand?s owned media like blog posts, press releases or press kits ? This directs others to the brand or product?s content which can help to persuade others to consider the brand or product

As communications experts, we need to broaden our measurement efforts by actively thinking about client goals, the metrics we are using to show progress, and how to extend these beyond traditional measures to effectively showcase how PR and communications efforts are helping reach client business goals. What?s a social media ?like? really worth if it isn?t generating new qualified leads?

Source: http://www.optify.net/marketing-analytics/extending-pr-metrics-to-the-marketing-funnel

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