Take steps to minimize measurement costs

Communication measurement is still a hot topic; however, it continues to be saddled with the nagging issue of cost

Budgets for corporate communications are notoriously tight, but try getting funds for measurement. Whether you want to conduct a full communication audit to gauge the current situation and make informed decisions about where to focus your efforts, or you simply want to assess the impact of what you do, measurement is a tough sell.

Don’t abandon hope yet. You can take steps to minimize the cost of measurement and you can even do some communication measurement on your own. It all comes down to being a savvy consumer of measurement services.

To start, it pays to learn as much as you can about communication measurement. In recent years, more resources on the topic have become available, from manuals and articles to webinars and conference sessions. (See the sidebar for a sampling of measurement resources.)

The more knowledgeable you are about what you want to measure and how, the better choices you can make about whether to conduct your own communication measurement or enlist outside help.

Identify the purpose of measurement