The Thoughtful Thud Revisited

Barcelona Principles - an important start but see it as work in progress

The final version of the Barcelona Measurement Principles voted on by 200 delegates at the 2^nd European Summit on Measurement will be published tomorrow.

Final?  Actually no! What the Barcelona Principles represents is a first step by the PR and the media intelligence industry in developing standards and professionalizing how we approach the measurement of public relations.

Can we do more? Can – and will – has to be the answer.

Specifically, we need to go further in adding greater clarity around the elimination of AVEs and how to specifically measure the validated metrics in their place. We need a stronger measurement view for social media too.

What the Barcelona Summit did was put programme research and measurement firmly on the agenda. It got PR professionals talking. For example in the UK, it has already stimulated the two leading PR professional bodies of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations and the Public Relations Consultants Association to begin work with AMEC on new measurement initiatives.

And that is what it is about. Wherever you work, the Barcelona Principles gives you and your professional organisation the framework to go forward.

AMEC with the help of the IPR, PRSA, the Global Alliance and ICCO has started the debate. The question now is: what are you going to do about it?

The final Barcelona Principles deck will be available via the AMEC website from 1500 hours Thursday 22^nd July. http://www.amecorg.com/amec/index.asp

Spirit of Barcelona will prevail

This week sees the deadline (July 15) for feedback from delegates to the 2^nd European Summit. It’s been encouraging to see the positive way PR and media intelligence professionals around the world have responded to the Barcelona Principles.

We won’t be deflected. The industry is moving forward, using the spirit of Barcelona to engage in conversations and practical initiatives. It makes it all the more a pity that a US blogger – while we are still in our consultation period – has called for a boycott of named companies who offer some form of Advertising Value Equivalent (AVE) measurement in their product offer.  AMEC feels this is a member discourtesy to name companies in this way.

We move on, refusing to be deflected from the consensus we reached with delegates from 33 countries. See Download AVE company boycott not the way.FINAL. 12.07.10

Research and evaluation specialist will be key player

A thoughtful view from one of the UK's leading public sector communications professionals as the fallout from Government spending cuts hovers over public sector workers.

The prediction of Alex Aiken, director of communications at Westminster City Council, London, is that PR will take a greater hit than the 25 per cent average for public sector budgets. What this means is radical new thinking. 

In this week of the Final of the World Cup, he uses a soccer phrase to declare that the first person who should be on the PR Team sheet is the research or evaluation officer.

he argues: “We can always get good media or campaigns people, but the person who will really count in the future in the person in your team or council who provides the evaluation that demonstrates that communication counts.”

He believes the challenge to public sector teams is “the biggest reputational challenge of the decade”.