{"id":697,"date":"2022-03-12T12:28:40","date_gmt":"2022-03-12T12:28:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/releasd.com\/blog\/?p=697"},"modified":"2025-10-29T09:51:46","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T09:51:46","slug":"what-is-ave-in-pr-advertising-value-equivalency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/releasd.com\/blog\/what-is-ave-in-pr-advertising-value-equivalency\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is AVE In PR? (Advertising Value Equivalency)"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

On the face of it, AVE seems to offer a simple means of providing a monetary value for media coverage. However, as we\u2019ll see, quantifying PR value with AVE is highly problematic and can be detrimental to the industry as a whole. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This guide will explore the use of Advertising Value Equivalency and consider whether this metric is still helpful in 2023.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

What Does AVE Mean In PR?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

AVE Meaning<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

AVE (Advertising Value Equivalency) attempts to measure the value of earned media coverage by assessing how much it would cost to buy ad placements of a similar size. As editorial pieces often draw more attention and engender more trust than purchased placements, the baseline advertising cost is then often given a multiplier.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

How To Calculate AVE<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Advertising Value Equivalency Calculator<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The Advertising Value Equivalency formula can be broken down as follows:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

AVE = Cost to buy an ad x editorial multiplier<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

For instance, if earned media is two pages long, and the rate for one page is \u00a3100, the cost to buy an ad equals \u00a3200. To emphasise the value of earned media compared to advertising placements, PRs will give this basic cost a multiple. In this case, they could multiply the cost (of \u00a3200) by three, giving an AVE of \u00a3600.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

While the impartiality of editorial coverage inherently makes it more valuable than advertising placements, the PR industry has never settled on a standard multiplier. Some professionals do not use a multiplier to calculate ‘PR value’, while others use multipliers anywhere between two and ten.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Adding an arbitrary multiple in the Advertising Value Equivalency equation is just one major factor that undermines the metric as a whole. It\u2019s just one of the reasons that so many PRs argue that AVE doesn\u2019t offer any real insights into campaigns.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Is AVE An Accurate Metric?<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

No, AVE is not an accurate metric! <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This isn\u2019t the answer that many clients or executives like to hear. After all, the Advertising Value Equivalency offers convenience. It is understandable that PRs are keen to generate monetary figures to plug into coverage reports for example. In reality, PR value calculation is far more nuanced than AVE. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

It\u2019s easy to pick the metric apart. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Let\u2019s take coverage on BBC News as an example. As it isn\u2019t possible to advertise on the BBC, how can PRs measure earned coverage on BBC News in terms of AVE? They could compare the cost of advertising placements on other news networks, but this would throw more variables into the equation, such as viewership and demographics.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The International Association for the Measurement and Evaluation of Communication (AMEC) has pushed a global initiative to eradicate the use of AVE in the PR industry. Their \u201cSay No to AVEs\u201d campaign makes a clear case<\/a> against the use of this vanity metric. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

To summarise, here are the key reasons why PRs should say \u201cno\u201d to AVE as a PR value metric:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n