Advancing PR Research

The mission of the Institute for Public Relations (IPR) – developing the science beneath the art of public relations™ ‑ remains the guiding principle of the IPR Commission on Public Relations Measurement and Evaluation in turbulent yet exciting times for the field of research.

Public relations and communications research, advertising research, and marketing research face common challenges to deliver business insights in changing marketplaces where our stakeholder audiences, publics, and customers have access to and use new communications tools.

Our goal is to advance best practices and principles in public relations research, advocate for research, and generate new knowledge to support the field. As researchers, we are comfortable with the tried and tested methods of qualitative and quantitative research. We understand focus group dynamics, probability sampling, significance tests, factor analysis, cluster analysis, and multiple regression. We have white papers and case studies. Can we develop reasoned approaches to measurement and evaluation in the exciting world of social media?

So, for 2011, how will we continue our mission (with the caveat that we are having a strategic planning meeting in January to develop these and other themes)?

• Following a successful 2010, the IPR Commission will continue publishing white papers and research. We will be organizing and improving access to our existing papers on IPR’s new website.
• We’re eager to receive your contributions about social media research for our social media hub, www.iprmeasure.org. Please contact me at david.geddes@evolve24.com to contribute.
• I will be writing a regular blog based on conversations with experts in public relations measurement from corporations, non-profits, agencies, and universities. If you are interested in joining in a short conversation, please let me know via email david.geddes@evolve24.com.
• The International Public Relations Research Conference in Miami on March 9-12 and the IPR Summit on Measurement in September will assemble a formidable group of experts for serious discussion and some fun. Join us this year. For more information, see the Events section of the IPR website…
• IPR and the International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC) are co-organizing the 3rd European Summit on Measurement to be held inLisbon in June 2011.
• We will be hosting webinar events in 2011 addressing key issues in our field. These will be especially valuable for those who cannot attend our conferences.
• Our new members – Professor Shannon Bowen of Syracuse University, Jackie Matthews of General Motors, and Ruth Pestana of Hill & Knowlton – bring a wealth of additional experience.
• Through collaboration with other organizations including the PRSA, AMEC andothers, we look to advance the practice of research and measurement in public relations, leveraging the different strengths of each organization in a common cause.

I am honored to chair the IPR Commission on Measurement and Evaluation for 2011. Commission members and past Commission chairs have left me with a rich legacy on which to build.

David Geddes
2011 Chair
IPR Commission on Public Relations Measurement and Evaluation
david.geddes@evolve24.com