Full Social Media Measurement Framework - User Guide - AMEC | International Association for the Measurement and Evaluation of Communication

AMEC Social Media Measurement Framework - User Guide

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Barcelona Principles

The AMEC Social Media Measurement Framework User Guide has been developed to address a common issue that troubles many communications practitioners – how do I set meaningful objectives and then measure the effectiveness of my digital and social media communications campaigns?

Barcelona PrinciplesEver since the Barcelona Principles declared that communicators should focus on measuring outcomes as much as outputs and that Advertising Value Equivalents (AVE) are not the value of public relations, communicators have been looking for a revised set of appropriate metrics to demonstrate the value of their work.

The Appropriate Route

A common question has been whether there is a single number or score that can be developed to do this job. The answer of course is no. The reason for this is that all communications campaigns have different goals, objectives and seek to create different outcomes. A single metric can never hope to be meaningful in so many different situations for so many different organisations.

The appropriate routeThe appropriate route to measuring communications success depends in every case on what it is that you are trying to achieve. Understand your organisational goals, map your communications objectives against them, then ask yourself what success looks like in each case. Work across each stage of the funnel – as you plan, think about the inputs that you will undertake, the outputs that result from your efforts, and then importantly the outtakes and outcomes that the organisation desires. This will identify the appropriate suite of metrics that will matter for you.

Using the AMEC Social Media Measurement Frameworks will guide you through this important process and ensure that your measurement is both meaningful and credible, whatever your objectives.

Richard Bagnall,

CEO of PRIME Research UK and Chair of the AMEC Social Media Committee.

CHAPTER 2

Why

Why you should use the Frameworks The Frameworks will make it easier for communication professionals to plan, monitor and measure results against their individual, tailored objectives. The Frameworks will help you think about all stages of communications measurement and how they relate to each other. Used correctly, the Frameworks will help you to plan your campaign, set achievable targets, choose appropriate SMART metrics and tell the whole story of the value that your work has created for your organisation.

CHAPTER 3

Choosing and Using

Running along the top of each Framework are headed columns that reflect the stages of the marketing funnel. The marketing funnel is an established model which details the theoretical customer journey from first contact with your brand/organisation through to the ultimate outcome that is desired. The columns reflect the stages as your audience moves from first awareness of your work through to interest, preference, action and advocacy.

EXPOSURE	ENGAGEMENT	PREFERENCE	IMPACT	ADVOCACY
Potential audience exposure to content and messages.	Interactions that occur in response to content on an owned channel, i.e. how the audience is engaging with you and also earned social conversations, i.e. talking about you.	Ability to cause or contribute to a change in opinion or behaviour.	Effect on the target audience. Can include but not limited to any financial impact.	Are others making the case for you about something? Includes positive sentiment such as a recommendation, a call to action / call to purchase, suggested usage or change of opinion.

The Paid, Owned and Earned Framework

Download the Paid, Owned and Earned Framework:
PowerPoint | PDF

Definitions

PAID:	Channels you pay to leverage – paid search, display ads, sponsored tweets, etc.
OWNED:	Channels you own and control – your website, blog, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube etc.
EARNED:	Customers and/or stakeholders become the channel with their content – blogs, tweets, YouTube, word of mouth, viral, proactive influencer outreach, etc.

As the media continues to evolve, established marketing silos are being broken down and the distinction between many disciplines is becoming blurred. Instead of just working on ‘earned’ media opportunities, many PRs are now also involved with ‘paid’ media (sponsored tweets, native advertising, etc.,) and managing ‘owned’ media (Facebook pages, company blogs, etc.,) too. To take account of this new reality, the Paid, Owned and Earned Framework allows holistic measurement across each.

Better understand each role Using this Framework helps you to better understand the role each channel plays in achieving your desired campaign objective (i.e. awareness, engagement, attitude and behaviour). Each audience responds differently, but you will find some respond better to paid activity, and others to owned or earned.

The relationships between these channels are not always obvious. It enables you to see where channels have performed well or not so that you can make an informed decision on where to focus your efforts, e.g. if paid channels are less successful, you may reduce investment for this campaign, equally if owned channels are achieving better results you may increase resource in channel management.

If the work that you do covers Paid, Owned and Earned media, then this is the Framework for you to use.

The Programme, Business and Channel Metrics Framework

Download the Programme, Business and Channel Metrics Framework:
PowerPoint | PDF

Definitions

PROGRAMME METRICS	Metrics directly tied to your programme or campaign objectives.
BUSINESS METRICS	Metrics designed to measure the impact to the business / organisation of the campaign or initiative.
CHANNEL METRICS	Metrics that are unique to specific social media channels – Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo, LinkedIn, etc.,

This Framework is likely to work best for you if you are running a social media campaign that integrates closely with more traditional PR or offline marketing campaigns, as metrics for those other elements can be included in the programme and channel metrics lines. This Framework helps show how these various components affect one another. It can show an overarching cause-and-effect relationship running throughout – from left to right but also from top to bottom. The important thing is that the Framework helps guide your understanding of how these various components affect one another.

Note: Channel metrics should always support the business and/or programme metrics and never be included just because they are there. If you can’t explain why they matter, then don’t include them.

CHAPTER 4

How?

1. PLAN WITH SMART OBJECTIVES:
Just like with a PR programme, social media measurement should start with agreement on measurable objectives that are aligned with desired business outcomes. Be sure that your objectives are SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound. Ask yourself what success would look like in each case.

2. SELECT A FRAMEWORK:
Take a look at both Frameworks and choose the one that is most appropriate to your campaign or organisation.

3. POPULATE:
Using the starter metrics menu, populate the Framework with the metrics that matter in each of the columns. Try to get a balance of metrics across the Framework, representing a broad sweep across outputs to desired outcomes. Bear in mind that not all metrics will be appropriate, and some that are appropriate might not be included in the starter metrics menu – this is not a definitive list.

4. DATA:
Data Identify the data that you will need to collate. Some of the data may be available in-house, some from free/low cost tools and others from specialist providers, partners and stakeholders. Be clear on how you will collect it and where it will come from.

5. MEASURE:
Measure Source the data and measure it in an appropriate time-frame. Depending on the situation, this may be in real time, daily, weekly, monthly or just at the end of the campaign. You choose the appropriate time-frame for your situation bearing in mind that you are likely not to just want to measure but also to glean insights to course-correct.

6. REPORT:
Report Tailor the style of your reports to the audience for which they are intended. Don’t feel that you have to report in the Framework documents themselves – use written reports, online dashboards, infographics, charts, video, narration, etc., as appropriate.

Challenge:
Plot your current metrics in one of the Frameworks. Where do they cluster? Typically people find the bulk of current metrics are to the left – focussed on outputs. Try to balance this out by including metrics from all areas of the Framework.

CHAPTER 5

Top Tips

In advance of your campaign, for each step of the Framework, ask yourself what success would look like.
Then agree your social media objectives and KPIs with your team – and your bosses.
Make sure that your objectives are SMART – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound.
For each target and metric that you identify, ask yourself why it matters and what it proves at least three times. Is it really a metric of value for your work? What does it show?
Choose your appropriate measurement periods – how frequently do you need to report?
Gather the right data throughout the process.
Don’t just use the data for measurement. What insights and opportunities does it reveal too?
Identify where you are doing well. What’s working and what isn’t? Can you realign resource to improve your outcomes?
Embrace measurement, don’t fear it. Think of it as a strategic tool to improve your work and not just measurement of past performance.
Review, adjust, improve.

CHAPTER 6

Partners

Alex Aiken Cabinet Office Alex Aiken, Executive Director for UK Government Communications:
“Evaluating communications is an investment in the reputations of organisations. Across UK Government communications, I have rolled out an initiative using the principles of these AMEC Frameworks because they help us to measure the value we add in a credible way. Social Media if used well, is a cost-effective, transparent and immediate. The insight it provides is incredible. Social media measurement matters more now than ever before and I recommend practitioners use these Frameworks to improve the way we think about driving outcomes and behaviour change so that we make communication visibly effective.”

Dan Tyte and Gemma Griffiths, co-chairs of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations Social Media Panel:
“One of the beauties of social media for PRs who had long struggled to prove the impact of their work was its inherent measurability. But with so many different tools all professing to measure something or other and with very few linking to real campaign and business objectives, it’s easy to see how confusion has reigned for clients, the C-suite and communicators themselves. What the AMEC Social Media Measurement Frameworks do is give a uniformity of approach while allowing flexibility in application. PRs can and should use them at the outset of conversations and campaigns to ensure evaluation is built in before a button is pushed. That’s how PRs can make certain our work on social media has both the influence and impact we know it deserves.”

Danny Whatmough - PRCA Danny Whatmough, Chair of the Public Relations Consultants Association Digital Group:
“If there is one thing the entire PR industry seems to agree on, it is that measurement is important. However, getting consensus on what constitutes measurement best practice and putting it into action is a much harder nut to crack. That’s why I think the AMEC Framework and guidelines are so important for our industry. They provide an approach to social media measurement that is comprehensive but realistic, giving agencies and in-house professionals alike the opportunity to ensure that measurement standards are met and that best practice is followed.”

CHAPTER 7

Like to Know More?

Start by downloading the Frameworks

Download the Paid, Owned and Earned Framework:
PowerPoint | PDF

Download the Programme, Business and Channel Metrics Framework:
PowerPoint | PDF

Download the Social media measurement frameworks menu of potential metrics

Please Note: The Social media measurement frameworks menu of potential metrics are designed to help get you on your way but in no way are they prescriptive.

AMEC’s glossary of terms used in social media measurement:
https://amecorg.com/glossary/

Latest information from AMEC on social media measurement:
https://amecorg.com/social-media-measurement/

AMEC Standard Sources and Methodology Transparency Table
Download Transparency Table: Editable PDF | PowerPoint

AMEC’s short course in social media measurement:
https://amecorg.com/amec-college/new-short-course-in-social-media/

Keep up with the conversations about social media measurement on Twitter using #SMMStandards

Contacts

Johna Burke,
Global Managing Director
The International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC)
[email protected]
+44 1268 412414

Richard Bagnall,
Chairman of AMEC Social Media Measurement Committee
CEO of PRIME Research UK
@richardbagnall

Video

AMEC can help you!

AMEC has prepared a video tutorial to help PR professionals demystify and put a proper value on social media measurement. The video uses step-by-step instructions through a case history example to show how the new AMEC Social Media Measurement Frameworks in action.

Press play to see the video which includes testimonials from the CIPR, PRCA and from Alex Aiken, Executive Director, Government Communications, HM Government UK.

Download PDF Version