As a leading provider of public relations, B2B communication and investor communications services, we are often challenged on the question of value. Clients want to know whether their PR efforts are moving the needle, influencing decision-makers, and supporting commercial outcomes.
The 2025 South African PR Measurement Landscape Report from Ornico highlights an industry that is rapidly maturing. For brands working with a PR agency, or evaluating whether their communication efforts are delivering real value — the findings offer important guidance. The report shows a clear movement away from vanity metrics and towards strategic, insight-driven communication directly aligned with business objectives.
1. AVEs Are Finally Fading Out
One of the clearest shifts in the Ornico report is the continued decline of Advertising Value Equivalents (AVEs). Usage has fallen from 63% in 2022 to just 36% in 2025. This marks a major move away from a metric long criticised for inflating value rather than demonstrating real impact.
At the same time, almost 60% of practitioners now report having strategic access within their organisations. This means PR teams are included earlier in decision-making, enabling communication work to support organisational goals more directly.
The South African PR industry is becoming more accountable, more strategic, and more aligned with international standards.
2. Measurement Is Improving, but Implementation Still Lags
Awareness of the Barcelona Principles 4.0 sits at 64%, yet only two-thirds of those who know them have implemented them.
The gap is largely driven by practical constraints:
- Budget limitations
- Time pressure
- Limited measurement expertise
- Lack of research tools
- Resource shortages within organisations
These barriers make it difficult for internal teams to run mature, consistent measurement programmes.
This is where a PR agency with proper reporting structures becomes valuable. Effective measurement requires:
- Clear objectives
- Defined audiences
- Ongoing tracking
- Outcomes-focused evaluation
Without this, measurement remains a tick-box exercise rather than a driver of insight.
3. AI Has Become a Core Part of PR Practice
The report shows a dramatic acceleration in AI adoption in the PR industry. Only 6% of practitioners say they have nointention of adopting AI (down from 21% in the previous year).
AI is now deeply integrated into day-to-day PR work:
- 80% use AI for idea generation
- 65% for content drafting
- 62% for media research
- Additional use cases include sentiment analysis, audience insights, and even measurement
A striking 92% say AI saves them time. But this introduces a new challenge:
time is still counted as a cost input when calculating PR ROI, yet AI drastically compresses production cycles. Agencies must now balance AI efficiencies with the reality that skilled human oversight remains essential to maintain accuracy, ethics, and nuance.
This shift sets up the next evolution in the industry:
reporting ROI in a hybrid human-AI environment.
4. ROI Reporting Is Catching Up with Global Standards
ROI has become one of the strongest areas of progress in the South African PR sector. The Ornico report records its highest level yet, 64% of practitioners are now reporting on ROI.
Key improvements include:
- A more sophisticated understanding of cost inputs (including employee time, analytics tools, monitoring software)
- A stronger focus on outcomes such as campaign-specific revenue, conversions and stakeholder engagement
- Clearer links between communication outputs and business performance
For brands, this shift matters:
when performance metrics are defined upfront, PR work becomes structured, measurable and far more aligned with commercial results.
5. Persistent Challenges Remain, but They Signal Opportunity
Despite the signs of maturity, familiar challenges shape the landscape:
- Budget constraints
- Resource limitations
- Time pressure
- Difficulty proving value to management
These factors make it harder for internal teams to consistently deliver strategic communication programmes. It also explains why many organisations benefit from external PR support, where measurement tools, reporting frameworks and strategic expertise are already in place.
What This Means for South African Brands
The 2025 Ornico PR Report reinforces that communication in South Africa is shifting from perception to proof.
PR is no longer just about visibility, it is about influence, behavioural outcomes, and contribution to organisational strategy. Successful brands will be those that:
- Measure impact accurately
- Adopt technology effectively
- Prioritise meaningful, insight-driven storytelling
- Work with a PR agency that understands evolving standards
- Align communication with business objectives
Looking for a PR and Communications partner?
If your business is looking to upgrade its PR strategy, strengthen investor messaging, or position executives as credible industry thought leaders, our team is here to help.
Decusatio Investor Communications works with financial services firms, technology companies and professional services businesses across South Africa.
We support clients with:
- press releases and media engagement,
- thought leadership articles,
- impact reporting,
- B2B communications strategies,
- and stakeholder messaging frameworks.
Our Johannesburg-based team is ready to collaborate with you.
For more information or to set up a meeting, please contact us.