How established is data analytics in communications?

Data analytics has not yet established itself in corporate communications: Only 44 percent of companies use data analytics in professional communications, while 46 percent do not. The most frequently cited reason for the slow pace of data analysis is a lack of time: 35 percent of respondents do not know when they should integrate data analysis into their workflows.

The second most aggravating factor is the infrastructure: 30 percent of PR professionals lack the appropriate tools to extract, analyze and evaluate data from the various systems. Almost as often, the inadequate structure of the data is the cause of failure: 28 percent state that there is too little structured data material in the company to set up data analytics professionally.

One in four companies lacks the necessary skills: 26 percent of respondents believe that they do not have enough employees with the appropriate expertise in data analysis. In addition, there is a lack of the right organizational structures and budget: for one in four respondents, unclear processes and responsibilities make it difficult to systematically evaluate data (25 percent), and they are also thwarted because no budget is allocated for data analytics tools (24 percent).

But the will to deal with the technical topic of data analysis is not always there either: For one in five PR professionals, data analytics fails because employees are not willing to acquire new skills in this area (21 percent). In addition, there is a lack of internal networking: 19 percent believe that departmental silos and a lack of internal collaboration prevent access to the necessary data.

However, only very few respondents blame top-down structures for the failure of data analytics: Only 5 percent state that data analytics is imposed "from outside" on the communications department. It is just as rare for data analytics to fail because of reservations or fear, because it is seen as a threat to one's own area of work (5 percent).

Knowledge around Data Analytics are satisfactory

One third of PR professionals rate their own competence in data analytics as sufficient. Only 6 percent give themselves a "very good" rating. Just under one in five respondents rated their own data analytics skills as "good" (19 percent). However, the majority of PR professionals scored insufficient to weak: one in four respondents gave themselves a grade of 3 in data analytics (23 percent), and one in eight gave themselves a grade of 2 (13 percent). In turn, according to their own assessment, 6 percent of communications professionals have no competence at all in this discipline (grade 1).

Most common areas of application for data analytics

The vast majority of communications departments that already use data analytics analyze data in the areas of social media (79 percent), media monitoring (70 percent) and website or blog (68 percent). As many as 44 percent evaluate data to analyze the market and the competition. Just under one in three communications departments uses data analytics to compare current strategies and draw conclusions for future strategic alignment (31 percent). One in four companies uses data analytics to monitor and evaluate its own image and reputation. One in five companies evaluates data for internal communications (21 percent). Crisis communication comes in last place: only 18 percent of the communications professionals surveyed use data for their communications in the event of a crisis.

The results at a glance

1. complicating factors for data analytics in the enterprise:

Missing time 35%

Missing tools 30%

Too little structured data 28%

Lack of competence 26%

Unclear processes and responsibilities 25%

Missing budget 24%

Too many different data sources 21%

Lack of readiness for the subject 21%

Departmental silos prevent data access 19%

Data-To-Value not recognizable 17%

Privacy rules prevent access to data 16%

Data analytics is imposed "from outside" on communications department 5%

Fear/Concern: Data analytics is seen as a danger 5%

2. level of knowledge of data analytics among communication professionals:

Very good (6) 6%

Good (5) 19%

Sufficient (4) 30%

Insufficient (3) 23%

Weak (2) 13%

Poor (1) 5%

3. use of data analytics in communication

Social media 79%

Media monitoring 70%

Website / Blog 68%

Market and Competitive Analysis 44%

Target group / stakeholder analysis 38%

Strategy 31%

Topics / Agenda Setting 31%

Image / Reputation 25%

Internal communication 21%

Crisis Communication 18%

For the current PR Trend Monitor by News Aktuell and Faktenkontor an online survey was conducted in February 2022 among 220 communications professionals from companies, organizations and PR agencies in Germany and Switzerland.