AMEC Virtual Summit session presented by Richard Bagnall, Chairman, AMEC & CEO, Europe and the Americas, CARMA

This year’s annual AMEC Member Survey was conducted at the height of the coronavirus pandemic. Additional questions gauged its impact on the communications industry, and responses revealed contrasting effects across member categories.

Most impacted by the pandemic were PR agency members, where 75% reported a significant reduction in activity. In comparison, in house activity increased as companies sought to communicate with customers, suppliers, teams and stakeholders during a time of crisis. The impact also affected different operational areas, with delays on cash flow reported, but also positive opportunities for new business and growth.

Looking back over the last 12 months, 70% reported industry growth, particularly across Latin America and Asia Pacific. However, confidence has been curtailed in 2020 and there are expectations of industry contraction in the year ahead.

Interestingly, the agency group of respondents showed most confidence of a bounce back, predicting an industry ‘squeeze’ with greater competition for new business and pressure on prices and costs, but no challenges that can’t be endured.

Despite – or maybe because of – coronavirus, consultative and professional services are still expected to drive growth, as is an integrated service offering. There are opportunities seen in selling more to existing clients (organic growth), and demand for more sophisticated measurement is forecast to continue increasing steadily, continuing the trend over the last four years.

Demand for insight shows the most growth this year, with increasingly sophisticated measurement and evaluation of reputation, key messages, audience insights and demographics calling for the sector to ensure it has the right upskilled staff to address these issues with confidence.

Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) measures continue to fall in popularity, which is testimony to the industry’s drive to banish ‘vanity metrics’. This and others such as impressions and values are increasingly recognised for not being useful or meaningful measurement of results.

AMEC is reassured to note that its members continue to strongly support its value in championing and supporting best practice measurement and evaluation in communications. Its two key initiatives – the Integrated Evaluation Framework and the Measurement Maturity Mapper – are both free tools that help agencies and in house professionals to change the conversations around communications in the boardroom.

In this age of accountability, the need for a commitment to best practice measurement and evaluation to prove value and impact has never been greater.