Is advertising equivalency a communication value?

Many newcomers to public relations do not know how to use the advertising equivalency index very well. The lack of understanding of the specificity of AVE often leads them to think that such a valuation is the same as the value of communication. This couldn’t be further from the truth. 

The Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) shows the value of the same space as that occupied by the publication according to the advertising rate. Thus, it shows the amount of money that would have to be spent to post that particular information in a given source.

HOW TO CALCULATE AVE?

Due to the nature of different types of media, the algorithm for calculating the AVE for the press, radio, television or Internet publications is slightly different but regardless of the type of medium, the purpose of such an activity is always the same.

In our analyzes, we use three types of advertising equivalency depending on the degree of advancement of the research:

• Estimated equivalency – the value representing the cost of placing an advertisement occupying the same space as that of the monitored information in a given medium
• Verified equivalency – the value representing the cost of placing an advertisement in a given medium, taking into account the percentage of the analyzed entity in the monitored information
• Verified equivalency with sentiment – the value representing the cost of placing an advertisement in a given medium which is the resultant of the percentage share of the analyzed entity in the monitored information and the sentiment of the material.

It is important to always remember that the AVE is relative and should not be used in isolation from other analysis results.