What are the most effective metrics for evaluating communication campaign success?

1 Reach and frequency

Reach and frequency are two basic metrics that indicate how many people are exposed to your communication messages and how often. Reach measures the size of your potential or actual audience, while frequency measures the average number of times they see or hear your messages. These metrics are useful for assessing the breadth and intensity of your communication efforts, and for comparing them with your competitors or benchmarks. However, they do not tell you much about the quality or relevance of your messages, or how they affect your audience's perceptions or actions.

2 Awareness and recall

Awareness and recall are two metrics that measure how well your communication messages are remembered and recognized by your audience. Awareness measures the percentage of people who are familiar with your brand, product, issue, or message, while recall measures the percentage of people who can correctly recall or describe your message when prompted. These metrics are useful for evaluating the effectiveness of your communication in creating or increasing awareness and memory of your key messages, and for identifying any gaps or weaknesses in your communication strategy. However, they do not tell you much about how your messages influence your audience's attitudes or behavior.

3 Attitude and preference

Attitude and preference are two metrics that measure how your communication messages affect your audience's opinions and choices. Attitude measures the degree of favorability or unfavorability that your audience has towards your brand, product, issue, or message, while preference measures the degree of likelihood that your audience will choose or recommend your brand, product, issue, or message over others. These metrics are useful for evaluating the effectiveness of your communication in shaping or changing your audience's attitudes and preferences, and for predicting their future behavior. However, they do not tell you much about how your messages translate into actual behavior or outcomes.

4 Behavior and impact

Behavior and impact are two metrics that measure how your communication messages lead to your desired outcomes. Behavior measures the actions or changes that your audience takes or makes as a result of your communication, such as buying, donating, signing up, voting, or adopting a new practice. Impact measures the results or consequences that your communication produces, such as sales, revenue, market share, loyalty, satisfaction, social change, or environmental improvement. These metrics are the ultimate indicators of your communication campaign success, as they show how your communication contributes to your organizational or social goals. However, they are often the most difficult and costly to measure, as they require tracking and attributing your communication effects over time and across multiple factors.

5 How to choose and use metrics

There is no one-size-fits-all metric for evaluating communication campaign success. The best metrics depend on your communication objectives, audience, context, and resources. You should choose metrics that are relevant, reliable, valid, and feasible for your communication situation. You should also use a combination of metrics that cover different aspects and stages of your communication process and impact, and that complement and validate each other. You should also collect and analyze your metrics systematically and regularly, and use them to inform and improve your communication decisions and actions. By doing so, you can ensure that your communication campaign is not only successful, but also strategic and meaningful.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?