PR Measurement: 10 things you need to know about Share of Discussion

published 2005

PR practitioners are constantly told that they need to demonstrate how their efforts affect the organisation’s bottom line in order to compete with other departments for a slice of the budget and a seat in the board room. However this industry mantra has proven much easier said than done.

We take a look at one technique that offers promise for demonstrating the link between media coverage outputs and hard business outcomes: Share of Discussion. Find out what it is, how it works, and how to measure it.

1. What is Share of Discussion? 
   Share of Discussion is a media coverage metric that measures the quantity and quality of an organisation’s unpaid media coverage, in comparison to that of its competitors.
   
2. Why is it important?
   The Share of Discussion metric has attracted a lot of interest and attention due to its ability to link PR results more closely and definitively with hard business outcomes like sales and customer preference. A US organisation has produced several case studies that directly and scientifically provide a link between peak periods of discussion - and competitor domination of these - to increased sales.
   
3. What are the benefits of Share of Discussion compared to other measurement techniques?
   Where other media coverage measures can show the output (in terms of coverage) that result from an organisation’s media relations efforts, the benefit of Share of Discussion is its ability to close the loop between outputs and outcomes by linking share of discussion in the media to sales. This provides a very useful tool for PR practitioners to use to demonstrate that gaining exposure in the media adds value to the bottom line and is an investment in positive outcomes rather than simply a cost.
   
   Another advantage of Share of Discussion is the resulting single metric figure that can be provided to management, tracked over time, easily understood, and meaningful (without the need to read the media coverage report in full).
   
4. Why is it important to measure competitor coverage?
   Measuring the amount of coverage relative to competitors rather than just the absolute amount of coverage, enables the metric to take into account the changing industry and media environment. If you receive significantly more or less coverage than your competitors it creates a competitive difference that impacts business outcomes.
   
   By using Share of Discussion techniques you can track how the organisation is performing in the context of the broader market - which makes it more relevant to management decision makers (outside of PR and marketing). For example, analysis of media coverage may show that despite the fact that you generated twice as many articles this year as compared to last year, your competitors generated four times more. Or it may show that although overall discussion about your industry has greatly reduced, when it is discussed, your company is referenced twice as often as any other.
   
5. How is the quantity of coverage measured?
   The quantity of media coverage is measured by:
   
   • The total value of Advertising Value Equivalent figures or;
   • The total value of circulation and audience figures
     
6. How is the quality of coverage measured?
   The quality of media coverage can be measured in a variety of ways depending on the organisation’s objectives:
   • Tone - was it positive, negative or neutral?
   • Prominence - of organisation in article, of article in publication
   • Type of publication - was it in The Australian or the Liverpool Champion?
   • Branding - visible in headline or graphics?
   • Spokespeople quoted
     
7. What data do you need to calculate Share of Discussion?
   To measure the media coverage of your organisation and its main competitors you can use either Advertising Value Equivalent figures or weighted circulation/audience figures. Despite the fact that Advertising Value Equivalents have a bad name as they have long been criticised as an inaccurate and invalid measure of media coverage. In this situation AVEs are not being used to generate a subjective PR dollar value that can be (inflated and then) compared to advertising. As part of the Share of Discussion metric AVEs are used as a method of weighting the media coverage to take into account story length, position and the reputation of the media outlet.
   
   Another way of providing a coverage measure that accounts for these coverage differentials is by weighting the circulation/audience figures by multiplying them by weighted values that represent story length, position and the reputation of the media outlet.
   
   Advertising Value Equivalent figures (AVEs) are available from media monitoring companies such as Media Monitors or Rehame, or can be roughly calculated as follows:
   • Print: Column centimetres x ad rates
   • Broadcast: Minutes/seconds x ad rates
   • Internet: rate of one banner ad per 50 words
     
     Media Monitors and Rehame can also provide figures on the circulation/audience of each piece of media coverage as well as more detailed and customised media analysis that incorporates the tonality and prominence of the coverage and the reputation of the media outlet. Another organisation that offers tailored media analysis services is Cubit
     
8. How do you calculate the effect of Share of Discussion percentage?
   • Analyse the tone of each article
   • Minus the AVE or weighted circulation/audience value of any negative coverage from the total combined positive and neutral AVE or weighted circulation/audience figures to get net favourable AVE or weighted circulation/audience figures
   • Divide your organisation’s net favourable amount by the total to obtain share of discussion for the period
     
9. How can you measure the effect of Share of Discussion on sales?
   • Calculation Share of Discussion over 2 years in weekly, monthly or quarterly periods
   • Obtain business outcome data e.g. sales data for the same periods
   • Graph them both and see if there is a correlation
     N.B. In some industries there will be a time lag between movements in Share of Discussion and correlating fluctuations in sales.
     
10. Are there any limitations to using Share of Discussion?
    It is important to remember that Share of Discussion is a measure of media coverage, and as such, provides no measure of PR efforts that are directed at channels other than media so the results of non-media focused activity will need to be reported on using other measurements. However, media coverage is a good reflection of public opinion and Share of Discussion provides a good measure of media relations and a good indicator of corporate reputation and brand awareness.

Note: The author of this article is a senior Sydney-based independent corporate PR consultant who works with Australian PR Managers to help themevaulate and measure the effectiveness of PR programs. He also undertakes PR audits of PR Department structures and programs. In addition he provides specialist corporate  PR and communications advice. He blogs regularly on PR and communications topics similar to those in this article.

See comments on the implications for Australian PR Directors and Managers of a 2010 US survey of PR professionals on measurement.