Yahoo Answers recently asked people if they believed in Bigfoot. Bigfoot’s a hairy hulk that, legend says, wanders across mountains in the U.S. and Canada.
Most said Bigfoot exists.
This wasn’t a statistically significant survey. Only 19 people responded, and some answers were clearly put-ons. (One person “believes” because the Easter Bunny told her so.) But, it shows that while no one’s proved that Bigfoot is real, lots of people believe it.
So why is it so hard to believe that we can measure communication? We’ve got a lot more proof than a few grainy pictures and a patch of fur.
A couple years ago I surveyed communicators about measurement. Barely half said they did any measurement. Only 3 in 10 tried to link communication to business results.
Some might say we don’t measure because we focus on great tactics, not great results. I don’t buy that. I think we just need to figure how to measure. We don’t produce widgets. We manage stakeholder relationships. How do you measure something intangible?
It’s not impossible. Companies have measured intangibles for ages. Marketing departments measure brand value, sales departments measure customer loyalty and HR departments measure employee loyalty. A strong brand translates into more sales, bigger market share, and the ability to charge more than the competition. Loyal customers are repeat buyers, so companies spend less time and money for each sale. Loyal employees stay put, which means lower recruiting and training costs.
We need to think about how communication adds value. For starters, it raises awareness, and influence attitudes and behaviors. These are all things we can measure. We can also measure how communication-driven behavior changes affect bottom-line indicators like productivity, employee retention, quality and safety.
Here’s some fuel to get you thinking.
- In 1986, David Pincus found that an employee’s job satisfaction was directly related to how the employee felt about supervisor communication and the company’s communication climate.
- The 2005/2006 Watson Wyatt Communication ROI Study found that effective communication is a leading indicator of an organization’s financial performance. Companies with effective communication have higher shareholder returns, lower turnover rates and higher levels of employee engagement.
- Angela Jeffrey at VMS found that a company’s “share of discussion” is directly related to business success. The more good things that people say about your company in the media, compared to your competitors, the more your sales will increase.
Let’s get this discussion going. Are communication metrics as elusive as Bigfoot? What are your thoughts, experiences, hopes or fears? Do you have any advice or best practices to share? I look forward to hearing from you soon.
