By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Players in the Nigerian insurance sector have thrown their full weight behind the measurement and evaluation of public relations and other related communications campaigns.
Before now, there had not been much on the measurement and evaluation of communications campaigns in Nigeria.
But a young firm, P+ Measurement Services run by PR expert, Mr Philip Odiakose, took it upon itself to begin this in the country and the company has been recording huge successes since its inception.
At a recent round table interactive session by members of the Corporate Communications and Branding Managers of Insurance Companies under the auspices of Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) popularly known as CAMCONIA, the insurers said they would now embrace the measurement and evaluation of their various campaigns.
At the interactive session led by a paper presentation by Mr Odiakose ‘Measurement and Evaluation of Communications Campaign,’ the PR expert addressed issues such as why the Advertising Value Equivalent (AVEs) was denounced as flawed being a tool of measurement.
He also talked on the Seven (7) Barcelona Principles being a guideline that directs and not necessarily a tool of communications measurement, the crises of selective media monitoring.
The discussion generally centred around five identifiable valid metrics to measurement which are brand awareness, brand preference, brand reputation, customer metrics and competition metrics.
In the words of Chairman of CAMCONIA, Dr Tunde Odeyemi, it is high time the insurance industry began to make concerted efforts at investing in strategic mass communications campaigns to further enhance the image of the industry.
He said to achieve this, there is need to have an effective and efficient means of evaluating and measuring the impact of such campaigns.
Mr Odeyemi noted that there was still a lot to achieve in strengthening insurance penetration and patronage in Nigeria and that the perception of insurance was a critical factor and to accomplish this, the right perception can be achieved by excellent and measurable mass communications initiatives.
Recall that CAMCONIA recently concluded a retreat held in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State on the theme achieving positive corporate identity and superior brand management in a turbulent economy in which topics such as harnessing marketing communications strategies for positive corporate image, crisis communication, evaluation, strategies and effective positioning, contemporary techniques for managing media relations and negative press were discussed.
Additional topics discussed among others were strategies for growing brand equity in a turbulent economy – the Nigerian experience and building virile corporate reputation: issues, challenges and strategies.
