Global Measurement Standard Declared
Category: Blog - July 08, 2010
A global summit of PR professionals convened in Barcelona for the second European Summit on Measurement in late June. The result of this meeting was significant. The first global standards for measurement were established, otherwise known as the Barcelona Declaration of Research Principles.
The principles include the end of Advertising Value Equivalents (AVEs) and a strong emphasis on measuring business outcomes versus media results.
But it’s not the principles themselves that make this noteworthy. In fact, I’d argue they’re the principles many of us have been following for quite some time and amount to good business common sense. But as measurement guru (and summit attendee) Katie Delahaye Paine points out: “These principles are not a call to arms, and will hardly start a revolution, but they do create a benchmark. They tell the world that if you are a PR professional trying to measure results, this is where you have to start.”
What I value most is the establishment of a clear benchmark for not only PR folks, but for the clients we serve. They provide important guidance and understanding for what can, and should, be expected when it comes to measuring your PR investment against the business goals.
Clearly, this is only a first step for an industry that has lagged behind in significant measurement for far too long. And while the principles themselves may not seem earth-shattering (especially to those of us already following them), its development is critically important to the PR industry as a whole because it promotes further understanding of the strategic business role we play.
Group Director
Javascript is required to add comments.