As you plan for 2025, consider if it is time to rethink the 'PR value' metric

PR value is an age old method to measure the monetary value of media coverage secured through PR or pitched efforts. This value is tied to the ‘advertising equivalent’ value of securing a similar piece of media coverage through paid advertisement. However with the immense fragmentation of media, today there are different versions of PR value with organisations using a different calculation methods.

While the term is well embedded in the world of communications, according to PR professionals MARKETING-INTERACTIVE spoke to, such as Abraham Christopher, head of PR and social media at Mutant Communications, any communications professional above the age of 30 will "probably shudder" when they hear the words 'PR value'. That's largely because PR value can be considered an old-school way of doing things. 

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"The archaic version is a dollar measurement of a piece of coverage based on the article's advertising value equivalent (AVE) and then multiplied by a magic number three (that no one really knows the origin of)," explained Christopher.

"This measurement led to ridiculous KPIs, such as achieving PR values in the millions of dollars from just sending out one press release. Today, PR value is measured in many different ways, but its essence remains the same: a quantifiable measure of the impact a piece, or collection, of coverage for a brand," he added.

This can include a combination of factors, such as message penetration, sentiment, use of quotes and insertion of links. A dollar value equivalent, however, is not quite possible, especially with media’s transition to digital platforms and moving from news and articles to content.

"How would one even measure the AVE of a TikTok, or daresay, a podcast?" Christopher said. 

Pamela Tor Das, vice president, Singapore and emerging markets at TEAM LEWIS added to his point by saying:

The thinking was that people consume media for content and not ads, thus stories and articles are of higher value.

Saying that, clients are still very much demanding that PR value be calculated.  

"We would like to think that the days of measuring PR value through advertising value equivalency (AVE), which tries to put a dollar figure on earned media, is outdated. But the truth is there are still a lot of stakeholders who look for this particular number," said Patricia Malay, general manager at Bud Communications. 

"It's good though that many more want to look at a mix of metrics—media reach, sentiment, engagement, and how PR ties back to key business objectives such as awareness, reputation, and even sales," she added. 

With the mixed bag of reactions PR value tends to generate, MARKETING-INTERACTIVE sat down with some industry professionals to find out more about the advantages, disadvantages and relevancy of the metric in this day and age. 

Patricia Malay, general manager, Bud Communications

Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

Yes, PR value is absolutely still relevant, but the way we calculate it must evolve. The days of relying solely on AVE are and should be behind us, and we need to embrace a more holistic view of PR’s impact.

In today’s digital age, PR value is not just about media placements; it’s about the quality of the coverage, the engagement it drives, and how it ties back to overall business objectives. With advanced tools for data analysis, sentiment tracking, and measuring audience engagement, PR value can be more accurately captured. By aligning PR efforts with business outcomes, such as brand reputation, customer acquisition, or even talent attraction, the value becomes clear, relevant, and measurable.

So, while the methodology for calculating PR value continues to shift, its relevance remains in helping brands maintain a competitive edge.

Andrew Nicholls, managing director, CARMA

Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

There is no credible academic, or communications measurement professional anywhere in the world that supports the use of PR value.

Help is on hand. AMEC, the global association for measurement and evaluation of communications has published amongst other resources, 22 reasons why AVE’s (a variation on the same idea) are invalid. They also offer a lot of courses and supporting materials on how to conduct best practice measurement and evaluation.

Ashvin Anamalai, chief executive officer, DNA Creative Communications

Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

I'd say it's more important than ever. With so much information available, it's harder than ever for businesses to stand out.

Beyond simply quantifying PR efforts, effective measurement provides a strategic compass that guides businesses towards informed decision-making, enhanced accountability, and improved performance.

PR value measurement is an imperative for organisations seeking to thrive in today's data-driven landscape.

Abraham Christopher, head of PR and social media at Mutant Communications

Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

Measurement is still relevant, as long as it measures against the objectives, we have set out to achieve. This means the way we measure PR value has to evolve. At Mutant, we created a new form of measurement, which almost all of our clients, including government agencies, have used and trusted. We call this the Scoring Matrix.

To put it simply (and without giving too much away), we align with clients on all the components we need measured - sentiment, messaging, tiering and type of publication, use of visuals, inclusion of links, reference to spokesperson, brand mention, etc - and then create a bespoke scoring matrix, where every single piece of content we land, no matter the platform, can be measured against these and is given a score.

This allows us to aggregate scores, by campaign, geography or duration, and also allows for us to benchmark against the control, to see if we are performing well or under. This method of calculation better informs us and our clients of the impact of our PR efforts - and whether our tactics or strategies need to be altered.

So, if you are still measuring PR value by multiplying AVE by three, please, for the love of all that is good in this world, stop - and think about how you could do this better.

Jose Raymond, managing director, SW Strategies

Is PR value Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

PR value still has a place in today’s digital world, but more and more, the need for a deeper level of analysis is needed to understand the health of a brand.

There are a multitude of metrics which are at the disposal of public relations and communications practitioners, apart from PR value.

For our clients in public affairs and government relations, the needs are very different and just having PR value may not mean anything apart from a set of numbers which has a dollar sign attached to it.

Instead of PR value, or Media Ad Value (MAV), clients also opt for social listening analysis, sentiment analysis and calculations on engagement rates.

There is more to growing a brand than the amount of PR value it receives.

At times, even though a story is published and there is a PR value attached to it, it may not be reflecting negative sentiment analysis which may be found online as a result of the announcement.

PR value still has a place in today’s digital world, but more and more, the need for a deeper level of analysis is needed to understand the health of a brand.

Pamela Tor Das, vice president, Singapore and Emerging Markets, TEAM LEWIS

Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

As an agency we’ve moved away from using PR value as a key measure of success or impact. However there are clients who still request for it. Why? It’s an easy way for them to justify to internal stakeholders how much is spent to deliver the “PR scope” or “media relations scope”. PR is much more than just media relations, and takes on a wide range of communication tactics to connect with audiences and stakeholders.

Limiting the evaluation of success to PR value, takes on a very narrow view of the impact public relations can create. What is more helpful is to look at impact scores in a holistic view along with all other communications put out by the brand.

Are we delivering an improvement on sentiment, awareness, have we motivated a behaviour? And if indeed we need to narrow down to only media relations work, then other measurements such as Share of Voice, Sentiment Scores, and relevancy of media titles would be more helpful.

Charu Srivastava, co-founder, TriOn & Co. 

Is PR value Is PR value still relevant or worth calculating in today's world? Why or why not?

It is definitely not worth calculating PR Value or AVE. It is arbitrary and incomplete in accessing the true value of pitched coverage.

The value of pitched coverage transcends a money figure randomly assigned to it. The true value and impact of such coverage is a combination of factors. These include the tone of the coverage, the reach of the media (readership, listenership, viewership etc), the relevance the audience of the media and medium etc.

So, a one number that is randomly calculated certainly does not fully represent the ‘value’ of pitched coverage.

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