Are PR Agencies Playing Judge and Jury? The Risk Your Brand Can’t Afford"

    Are PR Agencies Playing Judge and Jury? The Risk Your Brand Can’t Afford"

By: Philip Odiakose

 

Public relations is an essential element of corporate strategy, enabling organizations to build and maintain a positive image, communicate effectively with stakeholders, and navigate crises.  PR agencies play a critical role in helping brands amplify their stories and enhance public perception. However, an increasingly concerning trend is the practice of PR agencies evaluating their own work. While on the surface this may appear convenient and cost-effective for clients, it is a practice fraught with potential bias and subjectivity, ultimately undermining the integrity of performance evaluation.

The core function of any PR effort is to establish credibility and trust with audiences, stakeholders, and the public. These agencies are well-equipped to handle strategic communications and media relations, but when it comes to assessing their own performance, objectivity becomes a major concern. Agencies are naturally inclined to showcase their successes and minimize their shortcomings. This conflict of interest can result in overly optimistic reports that may not accurately reflect the true impact of a PR campaign, leading to misguided decisions by clients.

One of the fundamental principles of PR measurement, as emphasized by the International Association for the Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC), is the need for transparency and independence. For any organization to fully understand the effectiveness of its media outreach, third-party evaluation is essential. This is particularly true in industries where reputation management is critical to long-term success. When PR agencies judge their own work, it is difficult to escape the influence of self-preservation, and reports may end up highlighting metrics that paint a favorable picture while neglecting areas where improvement is needed.

The Importance of Objective PR Measurement

To ensure a fair and accurate evaluation of PR performance, brands must engage independent PR measurement agencies. These firms bring an external, unbiased perspective, using data-driven methodologies to assess media coverage, sentiment, and performance. Independent firms have no stake in the outcome of the campaigns they evaluate, allowing them to provide clients with an honest, unfiltered analysis. This objectivity is key to identifying blind spots and improving future strategies.

Moreover, objective PR measurement helps brands make better-informed decisions about where to allocate resources. By relying on impartial data, companies can adjust their messaging, target the right audiences, and invest in campaigns that truly resonate with stakeholders. This ensures that PR strategies are rooted in reality rather than wishful thinking.

Case Study: A Leading Nigerian Commercial Bank

A prime example of the risks associated with PR agencies evaluating their own work can be found in the case of a leading commercial bank in Nigeria. The bank, one of the top financial institutions in the country, had been working with a reputable PR agency to manage its media relations and corporate communications. The agency was responsible for promoting the bank’s image, particularly during a period of expansion and the launch of several new digital banking services.

After several months of media outreach and PR campaigns, the agency delivered its performance report to the bank’s senior management. According to the report, the bank had achieved extensive media coverage in major publications, with overwhelmingly positive sentiment from the public. The agency cited the number of press mentions, the reach of articles, and the favorable tone of coverage as evidence of the campaign’s success. However, the bank’s executives began to notice a disconnect between the glowing report and the actual feedback they were receiving from customers and stakeholders on the ground.

Feeling that the report might not provide the full picture, the bank decided to engage an independent PR measurement consultancy to conduct a thorough audit of its media performance. The results were eye-opening. While the agency had indeed secured media coverage, the independent analysis revealed that a significant portion of the coverage was neutral or lacked engagement from the bank’s target audience. Furthermore, the sentiment analysis showed that, contrary to the agency’s report, there had been a notable increase in negative feedback on online media platforms regarding the bank’s customer service and digital banking experience.

The independent consultancy’s report provided a more nuanced understanding of the bank’s media presence, highlighting areas where the messaging had failed to connect with key stakeholders. This prompted the bank to reassess its PR strategy, leading to targeted improvements in communication with customers and a more focused approach to media outreach. Had the bank solely relied on the agency’s self-evaluation, it may have continued with a misguided perception of its public image.

Why Independence Matters

This case underscores the importance of objective, third-party evaluation in PR. By relying on independent PR measurement firms, organizations can access an impartial assessment that is grounded in data and free from the bias that naturally arises when agencies judge their own work. Independence in PR measurement ensures that both successes and shortcomings are identified, allowing brands to improve continuously.

In contrast, when PR agencies are tasked with evaluating their own campaigns, they may be tempted to overstate the impact of their efforts or focus on vanity metrics that look impressive but provide little value in terms of actionable insights. Metrics such as the number of media mentions or the reach of articles can be misleading if not contextualized with deeper analysis of audience engagement, sentiment, and the alignment of coverage with the brand’s objectives.

Moving Towards Transparent PR Measurement

For brands looking to establish long-term credibility and trust with their audiences, independent PR measurement is not just a best practice—it is a necessity. The complexities of modern media landscapes demand sophisticated services and methodologies to accurately assess the effectiveness of PR campaigns. Independent consultancies are better positioned to provide this level of analysis, as they are not influenced by the need to justify their work to clients.

Conclusion

In an industry where reputation is everything, it is vital for PR agencies and their clients to embrace objectivity and transparency in performance evaluation. While PR agencies excel at crafting narratives and engaging with the media, their role should not extend to measuring the success of their own work. Doing so invites bias and can lead to flawed assessments that undermine the effectiveness of future campaigns.

For brands seeking to maximize the impact of their PR efforts, the solution is clear: engage independent PR measurement firms. These firms provide the objective, data-driven insights that are necessary for understanding media performance and making informed decisions about future strategies. By prioritizing independent evaluation, organizations can ensure that their PR campaigns are not only successful in the short term but also aligned with long-term goals for growth and reputation management. 

 

Philip Odiakose is a leader and advocate of Media Monitoring, PR measurement and evaluation in Nigeria. He is also the Chief Media Analyst at P+ Measurement Services, a member of AMEC, NIPR and AMCRON