How to really measure your PR results?

I was looking at a site for a company that was interested in hiring some PR help lately. Based on an initial conversation, they seemed to take a great deal of pride in what they had done up until that point and were seeking someone to come in, take up the baton and carry forward. I had to be a bit of a spoil sport when it came time to ask questions and ask them why they were so proud of what they had already done. I was not trying to lessen their accomplishments, rather I wanted to understand why they believed their PR program was in excellent form.

I told them in my opinion they had an impressive amount of coverage. I saw a number of very well known publications, including some very solid business coverage. What I did not see however was publications which may be read by individuals who are interested in purchasing their services. In other words I saw the very evil shadow of trophy hunting and nothing that would help the brand to grow and excel.

Let me give you an example. Say your company invents a robot that can fit into your garage and diagnose problems with your car in layman's terms and even perform minor repairs like oil changes. Now this is cool stuff and of course you may wish to get it covered by Time and the Wall Street Journal and your local big business publication. But I would argue that Car and Driver and maybe even Simple Life may be more appropriate as this is where people would go to make buying decisions regarding these products.

The issue boils down to the fact that one hit in a solid industry publication is one that will go to deliver your message to your customer base. They are not always glamorous, but they are highly influential among the consumers of your product. A hit in a big business publication like The Wall Street Journal may feel good and may give the impression of success, but it will prove to be an empty victory.

Remember that people do not turn to mainstream media for information on specific industries. They usually go to specialized media outlets, web sites and so on. The best way to measure the success of your PR efforts is by monitoring how much of an increase you see in a tangible factor such as web site hits, contacts or leads. Of course, you need to factor in the role of the other elements within the marketing mix such as direct mail,advertising and the web in your calculations.

The strongest advice I can offer to any organization who wishes to measure your PR results is determine what you hope to accomplish from public relations and then base all measurements against that. Avoid the pitfall of thinking that a big name will result in a flood of new business and realize that, ultimately, the goal of your PR efforts is to work with the marketing team to drive sales and create revenue!