Measurementand evaluation of interventions by public relations agencies in Kenya:a case study of Gina din corporate communications

Abstract

Public Relations (PR) practitioners the world over have with time acknowledged that measuring and evaluating the effectiveness and impact of PR work is an important part of PR practice. This notwithstanding, the PR industry by its own admission has been slow to adopt neither formal nor standardized measurement techniques. As such, measured accountability for value of PR interventions remains one of the leading industry challenges with minimal, if any, well defined measurement and evaluation methods, approaches and standards by practitioners, majority of who still refer to this practice in vague and sketchy terms. This study sought to establish the perceptions and extent of the practice of measurement and evaluation of interventions undertaken by PR Agency practitioners in Kenya. It examines the nature and approaches used by the Agencies to measure, evaluate and put value on PR work using the case study of Gina Din Corporate Communications (GDCC), a leading PR Agency in Kenya. The main contribution of this research to debates on measurement and evaluation of PR interventions lies in the exposure of the approaches and methods used by PR agencies in Kenya, the perceptions and weight attached to the subject of study by staff and the institution. On the whole, it was evident that agencies are conscious about the importance and the need to measure and evaluate PR activities. However, lack of formal guidelines, standards, expertise and clear understanding of the role and value of PR by the various corporate clients emerged strongly as some of the factors that pose a challenge and lead to failure or weak undertakings of measurement and evaluation of PR interventions in Kenya. Media monitoring appeared to be the main approach employed by agencies to measurement and evaluation PR work by agencies