How Valuable is PR Work?

A question that often arises in the context of PR reporting. Clients and supervisors frequently want to know the exact benefits of the PR budget and how much value has been generated. It is crucial to assess the value of PR comprehensively and individually.

So, answering the question about the value of PR is not straightforward. Nonetheless, we took on the challenge, surveyed over 220 PR managers, and spoke with eight renowned industry experts! We gathered many exciting insights, which we would like to share with you. Here’s a summary of some of the key findings:

The Current State of PR Reporting

The three main channels (online, print, and social media) are still primarily analyzed using quantitative KPIs. This means that the evaluation of PR success relies mainly on metrics like circulation numbers, website visits, or followers. Communicators focus heavily on reach: the more, the better.

However, these numbers should be treated with caution. They do not represent the actual reach of a mention and serve only as a guideline. They also do not reflect whether the reached audience matches the target group or if the core messages were conveyed as intended.

The results of these analyses are often compiled into extensive reports through time-consuming manual work using PowerPoint, Excel, etc. On average, PR managers spend four hours on a single report, excluding the time needed for gathering mentions and evaluating KPIs.

Currently, the alternative seems to be skipping the report altogether. As a result, 60% of the surveyed companies do not receive any performance reports on their PR activities. Moreover, between 13% and 20% of PR professionals do not analyze KPIs for the three major channels (print 13%, social media 15%, online 20%). They evaluate performance based on gut feeling or experience, making data-driven optimization impossible in the era of digitalization and big data.

How Valuable are Print Clippings?

Our tool, aclipp, offers users a print database with over 25,000 print titles from the entire DACH region. We analyzed these data with various questions in mind to evaluate the print landscape from a monetary perspective. We discovered interesting insights, such as which print titles are the most expensive or have the highest circulation. We also looked at the average TKPs by category.

I have summarized some of the evaluations for you here. More details and insights from the study can be found in the whitepaper.Also, you can read here whether Tommy Dobs believes that online clippings are more valuable than print.

The Future of PR Reporting

Which KPIs will be relevant for PR analysis in the future? How should you position yourself to remain competitive? What measures can be taken to digitize PR reporting? We answer all these questions together with Prof. Ana Adi, Raphael Rahn, and Angela Pengel Böhm in the market study.

Here are a few insights:

• Qualitative KPIs are becoming increasingly important. In the future, PR cannot be evaluated solely by numbers but must be measured and optimized individually to stay competitive.
• The future of PR measurement and evaluation does not lie in more data or tools for aggregation, but in better-equipped communicators who understand and apply research and analysis properly. This includes understanding datasets, samples, data collection, biases, ethical implications, and limitations.
• B2B and B2C communication are increasingly merging, journalists are losing their gatekeeper role, and influencers are increasingly found on social media channels.

All these and many more answers, details, and insights can be found in our nearly 60-page whitepaper. It is a must-read! Enjoy reading!

Sarah Amler

Digital Process & Marketing Manager

Sarah was responsible for performance marketing, social media activities and digital onboarding in our software at aclipp.