I think one way to cement your value as a communications professional is to back up your work with data that is tied to results and presented in a language everyone (especially senior leaders) understands.
I have never professed to be a data expert, but I know just enough to be dangerous. 🙂 I’ve always followed and admired people like Katie Paine who have encouraged PR pros for decades to measure and evaluate the work most directly tied to the bottom line. I stay connected to them so I can incorporate the learning into the work I do for my corporate and nonprofit clients.
The “holy grail” for me is capturing the qualitative insights that can tell us whether behaviors and opinions have changed or whether knowledge has increased. Even when I have clients hesitant to invest in research, I find a way to base my recommendations, ideas, and solutions on more than guesses or “we think.” This typically means interviewing key internal and external stakeholders and gathering secondary research to inform my thinking.
At the beginning of the year, I hosted a weekly series called StratChat and had the pleasure of interviewing Surale Phillips and Mary Elizabeth Germaine. They shared simple, but effective ways PR pros can both gather insights and have important conversations with clients about the strategic importance of research. Check it out.
I believe the more you can measure the success of your efforts and evaluate the impact of your work, the more you will be embraced as the trusted advisor every organization needs.
It’s your job to use data and measured results to show the value of communications to the entire organization.
Are you measuring results and evaluating the effectiveness of your work? I hope you’re nodding “yes”!
Simple, manageable research is one of the core components of my 5-week program, Corporate Messaging for Communicators. In addition to mentoring and training you on my signature framework, I also show you how to dig into the information you need to effectively engage staff in a cross-departmental workshop that gets everyone aligned around the organization’s most important stories.
I’m starting a new cohort on January 17 with a small group of five communications pros. Click here to chat about whether it’s right for you. If so, I’ll get you added to the list!