Tying PR Metrics to All of Your Sales Success? Why Your Strategy Needs to Change

Mindy M. Hull
CEO & Founder

Tying PR Metrics to All of Your Sales Success? Why Your Strategy Needs to Change

February 26, 2018

Public Relations is one of those professions everyone has heard of, yet few understand. Most recognize it falls under the umbrella of marketing, but are often hard pressed to explain the nuances between PR and other marketing activities. One of my favorite analogies I heard early in my career likened varying marketing strategies to a circus:

Let’s say the circus is coming to town and you paint a sign saying ‘Circus, Coming to the Fairground This Saturday’, that’s Advertising. If you put the same sign on the back of an elephant and walk it into town, that’s Promotion. If the elephant walks through the mayor’s flowerbed, that’s Publicity. And, if you get the mayor to laugh about it, that’s Public Relations.”

Public Relations impacts perception. The trampled flowers in the scenario above could be perceived in several different ways, good or bad. The goal of a great PR strategy is to position a company and its product or service in a positive light. Using third-party endorsement such as press, analysts and other key influencers (e.g. the mayor in the example above), we help build credibility and positively shape customer opinion.

So, how does this benefit a company’s sales?

Going back to the circus analogy, if the above activities encourage the townspeople to go to the circus, you then have a captive audience to entice with food, encourage to play games, visit booths, and lure into shows. That’s Sales.

Pay close attention however, because here’s the rub: PR can get your audience in the door, but it takes sales to get them to spend their money. Those townspeople need to like what they see once they arrive at the circus, the price needs to be right and the quality needs to meet expectations. Even better, there needs to be no other circuses that offer the same mix of fun anywhere nearby.

Companies sometimes fail to see the nuances between PR and sales when they are eager to move product and increase their bottom line. Even the most successful PR strategy, one that yields top tier media coverage and attention in national, business, tech and key press trades and verticals, one that garners great social media attention and drives traffic spikes in the company’s website and social channels, doesn’t necessarily translate to sales conversions. Why?

Well to use another famous analogy, ‘You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink’.

Some of the most common mistakes we’ve seen over the years working with companies are pricing their product wrong for the target audience, or failing to deliver on the promise of their technology or service. PR is built on the foundational building blocks of trust with your consumer, and sales can derail that if customers feel cheated or let down. Sometimes, it’s even simpler issues like a purchasing portal that is clunky, a product offering not in their native currency or a browser experience that doesn’t translate across mobile channels.

Customers are finicky and you often have only a few moments to capture their attention and convert them into a transaction. Do it right, and you’ll create a loyal relationship for years to come. Do it wrong, and it will take twice the amount of positive PR to lure them back.

Smart companies know PR is a critical tool in their sales arsenal, but recognize it isn’t the only one. The best PR strategists will work with your company to map communications efforts to business goals. They will also give you candid feedback on the smartest way to position your product to exceed customer expectations. Listen to their advice, because they are equally invested in seeing your company succeed.