'Column Inches' Argument Gives Weight to Another Dilemma: the True Role of PR
This blog post is not meant to be derogatory to Sarah's article. Hers is a good piece and well worth reading. Please do so :)
No, my post rant has its origins in the fact Sarah felt the need to write such a post.
Surely - now we are coming up to a decade on from the turn of the century - the whole notion of measuring editorial exposure by comparing it to equivalent advertising spend (aka AVE) is more than a little outdated? (Again Sarah, this is not having a shot at you).
I'm not going to pad this post with niceties about how significantly the PR industry has changed, or the (obvious) reasons why editorial simply cannot be compared to paid-for advertising. Life's too short. If you don't understand this by now, with all the information available at your fingertips, then perhaps you shouldn't be in marketing?
Two Different Camps
The bigger picture is less about AVEs per se and more to do with the fact the business world is spilling in to two different camps when it comes to PR - those marketers / CEOs / brand professionals who intuitively understand the true value public relations can bring to their organisation (and, accordingly, are willing to employ a range of PR techniques), and those with a blinkered 'column inches' mentality.
In my experience - and through talking to others in the industry - the people (clients) who obsess with equating advertising to editorial in almost all cases tend to also be those who think PR is all about media publicity and nothing more.
On the other hand, those companies and brands that take the time to better understand what strategic public relations is all about and how it can help drive the reputation of an organisation, these are the ones who worry less about AVEs and more about coming up with new ways to increase the intensity of brand connection with the people who matter most to their business.
DISCLOSURE: Like most PR consultants, I've been guilty in the past of compiling AVE stats at the behest of clients. With hand on heart, I pledge I will do everything in my power to never have to do it ever again! Interestingly, when doing such comparisons, we've never been able to put a price on online coverage, this is despite a large proportion of exposure these days being internet based. The mockery of AVEs continues!
Here is what the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA) has to say on the matter.
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Posted 1 Nov 2009
Last edited 1 Nov 2009
Latest revision: 2
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1. At 2 Nov 2009 09:32, Maurizio Fantato wrote:
There is a real dicotomy between the ideal goals of marketing and PR and what CEOs (or worse, Financial Directors) expect, a situation which your article clearly reflects.
It all depends on industry sectors also. Some are more obsessed with comparative figures. Qualitative statements, like reputation, can of course be backed up by proper analysis, the trouble is that quite often these studies are costly and budgets have been tailored simply to provide output, but not the necessary follow up data gathering evidence.
In my experience of around 30 years I have found very few organisations willing to belong to the first camp of equating PR with reputation enhancement, with the rest more concerned on AVE and column inches (or cm). You are right in alleging that this is the ‘lazy’ approach, but it’s sadly the more popular one, at least in my own experience as I said. However, a savvy MarCom professional can achieve both, that is, provide sufficient evidence to satisfy accountants, while obtaining the ultimate goals of enhancing a company’s reputation. It is a difficult juggling act of course, but life is difficult these days and many of our goals are sadly very short term.
Short termism is the curse of our age sadly and it's what drives these less than satisfactory approaches. Reputation in particular suffers from a short term approach. We all know that creating brand awareness and a company’s good standing is more like tending a delicate Japanese garden than building a sand castle, but try telling this to your average Financial Director…
2. At 9 Jul 2010 21:12, www.philipsheldrake.com linked here:
...‘Column Inches’ Argument Gives Weight to Another Dilemma: the True Role of PR...