4 measurement mistakes to fix now

Over half of communicators say measurement is the leading PR skill gap, according to a PR Academy trends survey. That’s the bad news.

The good news is you can close the gap by avoiding these common measurement miscues:

1. Measuring outputs, not impact. “The biggest measurement mistake PR pros make is focusing on what’s easy to track,” says Julie O’Neil, director of the graduate program of strategic communication at Texas Christian University.

These typically include such metrics as the number of stories published, impressions, “likes” on social media, impressions and click-throughs.

“Those are nice to know,” she says, “but more meaningful is focusing on how communication activity changes or impacts stakeholder understanding, attitudes, opinions or behaviors.”

For example, a communicator might show her board that she secured a 10 percent increase in the quantity of media coverage over two months.