Media Valuation: How it works in different media

The release, a partner of public relations professionals, has the potential to impact the visibility of companies. And media valuation, also known as centimeters, is an indicator that seeks to price and verify this reach achieved with the work of public relations.

But the question remains: how does media valuation work in different media? Discover it in the course of our paper.

Read more:
>> Is Media Valuation Still Relevant in the Digital Age?

>> Why do you need to measure the ROI of communication?

The role of media valuation in PR work

Measuring results is a complex task, even more so when you are not sure which metrics to use and what you want to quantify.

And that is where media valuation, also called centimeters, comes in. It is the calculation that compares the spontaneous media achieved by comparison with the price of ads served in these same spaces.

Through this quantitative metric, a company is able to check tangible results generated by the advisory services with the press, which materializes the effectiveness of the actions of public relations professionals. 

For printed content, centimeters and columns are used. In electronic media, seconds or minutes. In digital spaces, pixels converted into centimeters are analyzed. 

To find these values, you need to use the advertising price list of each vehicle and the size of the news item to compare it to the size of an advertisement. In addition, you have to take some factors into consideration. Examples

  • Number of readers
  • Accesses
  • Viewers or users, depending on the media that is being analyzed

To make it clearer how centimeters are used, let’s go to the examples. check:

1. Printed content:

For printed content, such as newspapers and magazines, the number of columns X height is calculated. Here, we will illustrate with the Commercial Table of the RBS Group (Brazil), which shows the value of columns X cm for ads in the newspapers Zero Hora (ZH), Diário Gaúcho, and Pioneiro.

In ZH, the value of cm x column is R$ 328,00 (65 USD in 2021) in ads published on weekdays. Imagine that a brand won three columns with 17.1 cm (size that appears in the table) through a release that it sent to the newspaper, how much would that same company have paid if this was an ad?

Simply multiply the columns by the centimeters and then multiply the result by the value of the ad. Take a look: 

3 columns x 17.4 cm = 51.3 cm

51.3 cm x R$328.00 = R$16,826.4 (3365 USD)

Therefore, the media valuation was R$16,826.4. (3365 USD)

2. Electronic media:

The RBS Group also owns some radio stations, including Gaúcha, Atlântida, 102.3, 92, Farroupilha, and CBN. To exemplify, we will use a radio commercial, lasting 30 seconds, on Gaúcha’s Chamada Geral 2nd Edition program, which costs R$ 661(133 USD) for 45 seconds, in which the price table instructs to multiply the time by 1.5. So, we will have:

1,5 x R$ 661 = R$ 991,50 (198USD)

If the news of a brand is broadcasted in the mentioned program, in a time close to 45 seconds, we can say that the media valuation of this action was R$ 991,50. (198USD)

For television, which also uses the minute like radio, we can use the program Mais Você, with an ad aired only in Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul.

The cost is R$3,440(692 usd) for a 30-second advertisement, and this is the amount needed if, instead of news, the insertion during the program was an advertisement. 

3. Digital spaces:

Speaking of digital spaces, such as a website or blog, still using the Grupo RBS price list as a reference, we chose as an example the Mega banner (with a proportion of 944 x 90 pixels), which costs R$30.00 (6 USD) per thousand impressions (CPM).

herefore, to perform the media valuation calculation, you need to stipulate how many impressions you want and multiply by the value. Let’s say the news item was accessed 100,000 people, then

100,000 x $ 30 ÷ 1,000 = R$ 3,000 (600USD) 

Another calculation that is important to do is to convert pixels into centimeters, which helps to scale the total.

We used an online tool to do this calculation, which showed us that the size of 944 x 90 pixels represents 33.3 cm x 3.17 cm (or 105 cm²). So, a news item that occupied the equivalent of that size, yields an amount close to R$3,000. (600 USD)

New times, new metrics

Media valuation is still used by many public relations professionals because it is a practical way to equate a news item with ads run in print newspapers, magazines, websites, radio, and television.

However, we live in times when social media news monitoring should be part of any company’s metrics.

After all, the use of these media is increasing every day, and you need to define new metrics that are appropriate to these needs.

So, to do this effectively, you can use Match Social, Knewin’s tool that allows you to locate news shared on social media.

It also helps identify public sentiment and comments, building a more complete view of the repercussion of the content on digital channels. 

Thus, through this solution, the professional can demonstrate more qualitative results for the company that really make sense for the communication strategy.

To find more information about communication and marketing strategies and the most adequate monitoring solution for your business, contact Knewin. We can leverage your brand’s results with our solutions.