The effectiveness of a PR strategy can be hard to track. This is because there is no specific metric that can be used to measure their success. PR efforts are not cheap but done right they can increase your brand awareness and increase sales. You’ll want to make sure that you’re receiving an ROI, and there are a few methods to use to measure the success of your PR strategy throughout the year.
1. Increased Brand Awareness
The most common sign of a successful PR strategy is that more people know your brand name. A strong PR strategy can help your business cast a wider audience net and help increase your brand’s recognition and visibility. Publications with a large audience will bring awareness to their readers. Bringing awareness to your target audience demographic is especially important and industry publications are equally as crucial to reaching target clients.
2. Positive Media Coverage
Another sign of a successful PR strategy is that your brand is receiving more positive media coverage in the press. When your brand is portrayed positively in the media, that can help boost both your brand’s reputation and credibility. Furthermore, when your brand is portrayed positively in the media it will make other media members interested in your company as a reliable source that can speak to relevant industry trends.
3. Increased Website Traffic
Another sign of a successful PR strategy is increased traffic to your company’s website. When your brand is featured in the media this can lead to more people becoming interested and clicking on your website to learn more about your brand. This is especially true if the media outlet is catered to your key audience demographic. A good PR strategy also consists of targeting media outlets that will reach your potential audience.
4. Increased Social Media Engagement
A successful PR strategy can also increase your social media engagement. When your business is active on social media, it can lead to more likes, comments, and shares which can bolster your brand’s recognition and visibility. Likewise, when your brand secures coverage in the media, you’ll want to mention and tag them so traffic from their site is directed to your social channels. Tagging and mentioning your partners and clients is also a good way to drive traffic to your social media sites.
5. Increased Sales
A successful PR strategy can also lead to increased sales. When your business gets covered a lot in the media, it can lead to more people becoming aware of your brand and products, which results in more sales. You won’t see this happen overnight but with a good PR strategy, you will see an uptick in sales over time. Use your brand’s product roadmap to guide your PR campaigns and make the media aware when a newsworthy product update is happening. Your sales, marketing, and PR goals should all be aligned to help maximize your business’s growth and potential.
Although, a good PR strategy is hard to measure there are a few key signs that you’re doing something right. Make sure to track your positive media coverage, website traffic, social media engagement, and sales to see if your PR strategy is a winner.
