For many comms professionals, gaining recognition and influence in the boardroom has been an ongoing struggle. Historically, their work has often been seen as more art than science, lacking the hard, quantifiable metrics that resonate with CEOs and CFOs. While the impact of public relations, branding, and communication efforts is undeniable, it’s the quantification of this impact that has been elusive.
Regardless of being a brand strategist and advertising professional by trade – and certainly not a pure-bred ‘PR’ – I have still always found the oversight of PR as a crucial commercial driver within the media mix as complete madness. Of course, I would advocate for the power of brand building and more recently its effects have been getting far more recognition, but I have also always believed that the power of PR is immense. And in fact, in 2023 I see them both as inextricably linked.
Traditional methods of tracking and reporting within PR have however been limited and therefore hamstrung. Vanity metrics, such as ‘reach’ or at very worst ‘advertising equivalency value (AVE)’ did absolutely nothing to help comms professionals or clients understand the success of earned media, which did the industry a disservice, as too did those who touted those stats as something to behold. But really, even media mentions and website traffic only scratch the surface of what comms professionals aim to achieve.
They need to demonstrate their ability to drive real business outcomes, from meaningfully increasing brand awareness to directly boosting sales. This challenge becomes particularly pronounced in a world where every pound spent on marketing is scrutinized, and marketers are held accountable for tangible results.
BoldLens exists to help define the true narrative. A huge part of what BoldLens is built to do today, at a time when disciplines (and their metrics) have traditionally been siloed and when so much now happens in any given week, is to piece the whole puzzle together, meaning all comms and its effect on the funnel is visible, accountable and understood.
With the ability to track every aspect of communication, from earned and owned media to paid advertising and social engagement, while overlaying and correlating activity with comprehensive KPIs throughout the marketing funnel, BoldLens. paints the full picture, not just one part of it, meaning comms professionals can finally present the data-driven evidence they need to secure their rightful place in the boardroom.
In effect, BoldLens acts as a brand’s single point of truth and business assistant.
Tracking Earned, Owned, Paid, and Social Media in BoldLens
At the top of the funnel, comms professionals can now track the effects of their work through regular consumer awareness and survey results, or ‘pulse checks’ as we call them, providing a clear view of the impact of their efforts on brand recognition and perception.
BoldLens also allows them to monitor organic branded search, traffic, bounce rates and interest across specific product inventory providing insights into how effectively they are driving organic traffic and specific interests.
Moving down the funnel, the platform can track referrer link sales attribution, allowing comms professionals to understand the direct role their content and communication played in driving sales e.g. the publications that actually deliver commercial results. A Travel & Leisure Top 10 might mean bragging rights, but Conde Nast Traveller might mean bookings!
BoldLens unearths and separates the vanity from the value.
Moreover, BoldLens can reveal revenue spikes during campaigns, as well as the effects of PR on long-term brand building, linking the dots between communication efforts and tangible business results.
Add to this the visibility on owned and paid activity through the same period, being able to segment the comms and KPIs by location and sub-brand and tracking everything relative to your specific competitive set – and suddenly your role, work and actions have a significant, commercial part to play.
With BoldLens, comms professionals have access to a wealth of data to support their work. They can correlate specific communication initiatives with revenue growth, ROI, and customer acquisition. This data-driven approach not only proves the worth of their efforts but also provides a roadmap for optimising future communication strategies.
The Future of Media Monitoring and Measurement
The significance of BoldLens cannot be overstated. The future of media monitoring and measurement must integrate the media mix of communication and overlay it with the full funnel of commercial metrics. Anything operating in isolation is void of context, and this has been the problem of our industry for far too long.
By uniting communication data with business metrics, BoldLens eliminates the disconnect between what comms professionals do and what businesses want. It allows them to provide a clear narrative of how their work impacts the bottom line, bringing valuable insights to the boardroom.
The value of comms professionals extends far beyond crafting compelling messages; they are essential in driving brand success and growth. The inclusion of comprehensive data and KPIs across the entire marketing funnel bridges the gap between creativity and business acumen. It ensures that communication efforts are not just appreciated but seen as critical drivers of business success.
In conclusion, BoldLens and similar platforms are changing the game for comms professionals and marketers. The ability to track, measure, and report on communication efforts with a comprehensive set of KPIs throughout the marketing funnel is a game-changer.
But it is not just for reporting. The ability to receive information in real-time and then use it to react creatively means BoldLens sits at the heart of all business strategy.
As the industry shifts towards data-driven decision-making, BoldLens is the tool that empowers comms professionals to showcase the true impact of their work and play a pivotal role in shaping a brand’s success. The future of communication is data-driven, and with BoldLens, the future is already here.
