Goodbye AVEs
3rd Sep 2010
"We were very interested to note that the international body for measuring communications has pledged to find an alternative to advertising value equivalent (AVE) for measuring success (PR Week, 20th August). AVE is the calculation of the amount of editorial coverage you would have received if it were advertising space.
The shortcomings of using AVE are all too clear. Many PR practitioners believe that AVE is a measurement of value, when in fact it is a measurement of cost and thus not an effective way to evaluate public relations or public affairs programmes. The figure may be easy for a CEO to understand but it normally bears no real relation to the PR campaign.
Alternatives being discussed include econometric evaluation and market-mix modelling, which compares results across direct marketing, advertising PR and others. The International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communications has six months to come up with a replacement; in the meantime we think the 7 Barcelona Declarations of Research Principles get as close to an evaluation guide as has been achieved so far:
- 1. Goal setting and measurement are fundamental aspects of any PR programme
- 2. Measuring the effect on outcomes is preferred to measuring outputs
- 3. The effect on business results can and should be measured where possible
- 4. Media measurement requires quality and quantity
- 5. AVEs are not the value of PR
- 6. Social media can and should be measured
- 7. Transparency and reliability are paramount to sound measurement
In the end, what matters is that we are able to deliver a transparent programme that has clarity and is results driven."