The Biggest Trends in Public Relations We’ve Seen This Year
Tags: Public Relations, Founder, Entrepreneurship, Pr, Entrepreneur

PRontheGO: The Biggest Trends in Public Relations We’ve Seen This Year

We asked PR and growth experts: What are The Biggest Trends in Public Relations We’ve Seen In 2020? How will it affect communication in the future? Which trends should founders implement into their PR strategy? Here are the insights of our experts:

Publicists sharing their PR skills with entrepreneurs.

“One of the biggest trends in 2020 have been that publicists are coming out from behind the scenes and branding themselves. For example — more publicists are sharing their skills and knowledge with entrepreneurs who want to handle their Public Relations themselves. This can be a blessing and a curse. There has also been the additional trend of how press conferences and media alerts have been sent with the current trend of Clubhouse and virtual press rooms. This has allowed for a peek behind the scenes but not the details on how to curate the proper way to disseminate the information to the right audience.” — Chandra Gore, Publicist & Principal Consultant at Chandra Gore Consulting

Virtual events to earn media coverage

“During the pandemic, virtual events have provided a safe way to earn awareness and publicity, and provide even more opportunities for registrations since there are no physical barriers to attendance. Because they don’t require travel, they’re cost-effective, environmentally friendly, and efficient from a management standpoint as well. Members of the media love virtual events because they’re so easy to access, which can make them a great tool for earning media coverage. Overall, virtual events are a 2020 public relations trend with many benefits, and may be here to stay.” — Michael Vaughan, Account Executive at HeraldPR

Brands authoring owned bold content.

“A shift for PR trends to keep watching closely in 2021 comes from brands who are now curating and authoring their own relevant and thought-provoking content specific to their industry expertise. If you want your brand to have a seat at the table, don’t expect to have it given to you. Command your space and prove your worth through content that resonates with your target audiences with solution-based material, and be bold about it. I think risk-taking and resilience are two of the most pivotal characteristics I’ve adopted into my daily mindset on approaching each hurdle since the pandemic, and expect the bar to be raised even higher in a post-COVID world.” — JJ Nelson, Director of Brand Communications at Bergmeyer

Improved cooperation with micro-influencers

“One of the core public relations trends we’ve seen this year is brands’ improved cooperation with micro-influencers. While micro-influencers had been gaining momentum for quite some time due to their accessibility to start-ups and smaller brands, things escalated quite a bit in 2020. That’s because micro-influencers helped businesses start a dialogue and create rapport with a close group of people, which results in higher levels of trust, brand loyalty, and, ultimately, more sales. That’s why it’s critical for small businesses today to continue collaborating with micro-influencers in an effort to establish long-term partnerships and connect with their audiences.” — Bart Turczynski, Editor-in-Chief at ResumeLab

More meaningful communication with clients

“The biggest trend that we saw is businesses having more meaningful, engaging, and real communication with their clients. Currently, as most people have their first interaction with a business online, the customer journey has to provide an authentic human-to-human experience. A great example of this is Walgreens, they took their Ask a Pharmacist series and remade it into “bite-sized” faq videos about Covid for their socials. At the same time, they made a video ad that tells people how to safely put to good use their virtual care services and free prescription delivery. This way the brand executed a communication strategy that truly connected with their user base since it was focused on how they can help their customers and so also helped their PR.” — Chris Bolz, Owner at Coara

The Rise of Podcasts and Podcasting

“After months of being quarantined at home during the pandemic, professionals have taken to podcasting in droves. Podcasts offer exceptional opportunities for executives to conduct long-form interviews during which they can convey multiple key messages, the company’s brand values, and their “hot takes” as thought leaders. They also empower companies to connect in a meaningful way with niche audiences as well as network with adjacent professionals in a mutually beneficial way.” — April White, President & Founder at Trust Relations

Executive thought leadership platforms

“My biggest takeaway from this year — communication has never been more important. Executive thought leadership platforms can drive key messages forward in the media. This can influence economic resilience and instill confidence. However, leadership must understand that what they say matters, but what they do matters more.”- Noah Dye, Senior Vice President, US at LEWIS Global Communications

The emphasis on employee communications

“One of the biggest public relations trends in 2020, the emphasis on employee communications, was really an acceleration of a trend that had been growing in recent years as companies recognize the essential role employee communication plays in continuously improving engagement, morale, productivity, and more. COVID-19 made it more important than ever for companies to consistently, meaningfully, transparently, and, perhaps most importantly, empathetically communicate with employees, an approach that companies should follow in 2021 and beyond.” — Brad Rye, Senior Vice President & Managing Director of Public Relations at Mower

Thank you!

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PRontheGO.com — The Creative Entrepreneur’s source for PR hacks.

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