How do I use social media in advertising value equivalency?

Advertising value equivalency (AVE) is a way in which public relations and communications agencies measure the impact of media coverage. Typically, AVEs are calculated from a range of metrics such as comparing the equivalent cost of coverage in a publication based on paid advertisements. While the definition of what constitutes AVE, as well as its usefulness as an indicator of performance, are continually being debated, the essential idea is an effort to put a value on media coverage.

Today, the influence of social media is a major factor in reaching target audiences. However, social platforms are not configured in the same way as traditional media outlets in terms of editorial placement – it’s hard to pinpoint what constitutes ‘page one’ on a platform such as Facebook.

Luckily, social platforms incorporate their own extensive range of metrics, making it relatively easy to benchmark reach and other content performance data points. Social data tools such as NewsWhip Analytics and NewsWhip Spike can be used by PR and Communications professionals to help illustrate the impact and value of social media mentions and placements in a number of ways.

NewsWhip Spike also offers users a metric which shows which social media posts and items of content have ‘overperformed’ in terms of engagement, relative to the average engagement from a particular social page. A post which has ten times the average engagement for a post on a page can therefore be highlighted to illustrate its impact. Such metrics go some way towards providing direction in terms of the impact of coverage on social media.

Visit the Newswhip Research Center: It’s the central intelligence hub of NewsWhip where we regularly publish reports around changes to the social platforms and event specific insights (Black Friday, Christmas, Super Bowl, World Cup, Brexit, Presidential Elections and much more). This multidisciplinary team is comprised of Content Strategists, Editors, Data Scientists, Research Associates and outside partners, including leaders in academia. The center focuses on demystifying the spread of news and information and provides insightful interpretation of the vast social data that surrounds us.