This is very interesting - and mirrors what has happened in marketing and advertising.
http://amecorg.com/2012/06/barcelona-declaration-of-measurement-principles/
The challenge is how to bring the power of online metrics and indicators to public sector communication. While businesses are increasingly shifting to search-based advertising, and away from broadcast advertising, it is not so clear how this can work for the public sector. What does Search-based communication evaluation look like?
I think it would be a good essay to pick apart one of the topics in the Barcelona Declaration..
e.g. What are the outcomes that you might want to measure, and how can new digital methods and sources support this.
All the issues in Principle 6 are interesting as an essay topic. I jotted down some example questions next to each topic.
Principle 6: Social Media Can and Should Be Measured
- Social media measurement is a discipline, not a tool; but there is no “single metric”: "How is SMM a discipline?"
- Organizations need clearly defined goals and outcomes for social media "How can SM goals and outcome be set in public service?"
- Media content analysis should be supplemented by web and search analytics, sales and CRM data, survey data and other methods - "What sort of non-social media data is available as sources for PR analysis?"
- Evaluating quality and quantity is critical, just as it is with conventional media. "What does quality of coverage mean in social media"?
- Measurement must focus on “conversation” and “communities” not just “coverage”. "How can particular communities be identified in measurement of online activity?"
- Understanding reach and influence is important, but existing sources are not accessible, transparent or consistent enough to be reliable; experimentation and testing are key to success "Outline an experimental process to improving the quality of social media based indicators?"