PR has shifted from a primary source of customer acquisition to a crucial mid-funnel tool for building credibility. Its main value is providing social proof that validates a brand for consumers and supports other channels like paid media and affiliate marketing.

To prove marketing's value beyond clicks, use brand lift surveys (A/B testing ads) to measure awareness shifts. For sales impact, use causal impact modeling to compare forecasted sales (based on historical data) with actual sales during a campaign, isolating the campaign's "bump."

PR professionals often feel their ROI measurement is weaker than other marketing channels. However, many business expenses (like boardroom TVs) face no ROI scrutiny. A well-measured PR campaign that tracks digital impact can demonstrate value more effectively than an average advertising campaign, challenging this internal bias.

In today's fragmented media, a single press feature no longer guarantees sales. Brands must treat PR clips as assets to be amplified through paid digital advertising to ensure they reach a wider, asynchronous audience and drive conversions.

To justify brand advertising beyond awareness metrics, SAS partnered with LinkedIn. They used a clean room to connect ad exposure directly to won revenue. This data demonstrated that customers exposed to the brand campaign were five times more likely to convert, providing hard ROI data for a traditionally soft metric.

The PR industry mistakenly focuses on measuring outputs like media placements, reach, and impressions. True value lies in measuring outcomes: changes in audience awareness, attitude, and behavior. This requires shifting focus from media activity to market impact.

Consumers attribute their awareness to campaigns long after they've ended, for instance, mentioning billboards months after they came down. This demonstrates the lasting psychological impact and brand equity built by mass media, proving its value extends beyond immediate, easily trackable conversions.

To convince a skeptical C-suite of brand marketing's value, Turo de-risked its investment by testing a campaign in one city. They used a data science "counterfactual" model to project results without the campaign, proving a clear, measurable lift before scaling nationally.

Instead of vague sales correlations, GM marketing's success is tied to two specific outcomes: being in a car buyer's initial consideration set and winning the subsequent shopping journey. This provides clear, measurable goals and removes ambiguity about marketing's contribution to the business.