Page 55 - PR Communication Age January-June2020

Six PR trends that will impact

businesses in 2020

2 020 will see a rise in strategic tive to support businesses being more human element to remain relevant. PR

firms will need to hire/train consultants
roles across organizational
visible online to generate the right traf-
marketing plans with a focus
gagements- from developing content,
on metrics and measurement. fic to their corporate platforms. to create and maintain meaningful en-
A further shift is happening towards 2. Niche and specialized PR will to hosting events, to other forms of
impact- and outcome-based results. gain popularity : communications that people can relate
The industry is the midst of a commu- In 2020, organizations will be even to. With the masses of content online,
nications era, with earned media ap- more selective in deciding which PR consumers are moving towards digital
proaches being more strategic, more firm they will partner with, placing decluttering. PR professionals will need
measurable, and more essential than unprecedented pressure on PR profes- to present consumers with content that
ever before, creating demand for like- sionals. Businesses will select an agency is sharp, meaningful, and relevant. With
minded public relations (PR) profes- based on their specialization. Industry this trend, we can expect opinion pieces
sional to lead the way. With so many experience and having a clear under- to take the center stage, helping busi-
different platforms and technologies in standing of the local market, cultural ness leaders connect with their audi-
play, here's my pick on the powerful PR aspects, and its trends will be seen by ence on a personal level.
trends that will dominate the year brands as critical factors for selecting
ahead: an agency to work with. PR consult- 4. New types of content that
1. Importance of data with in- ants will thus need to be proactive and drives sales :
teractive content explosion : smart to support brands effectively in There is a growing hunger for new
More than 2.5 quintillion bytes of data a fast-moving environment. Moreover, types of content. Voice, for instance,
is generated worldwide every day, and PR firms will need to demonstrate a is expected to be a US$40 billion chan-
the amount of global data sphere sub- deep understanding of their clients' nel by 2022. Moreover, it is also re-
ject to data analysis is projected to businesses, and provide examples of ported that at least 47% of sales are
grow to 5.2 zettabytes by 2025. With integrated campaigns that focus on driven by buyers who have viewed 3-5
the influx of digital content, PR efforts results, which have made an impact on pieces of content before engaging with
will need to be smarter and even more their audience. a sales representative. Consumption of
engaging than ever before. 2020 will thought leadership has grown from
witness hyper-focused digital cam- 3. Meaningful engagements 50% to 58% over the past year- this is
paigns that are designed to reach a will have a deeper impact : especially the case in the B2B segment.

niche audience group. SEO PR will be- Despite the introduction of new tech- And 55% of decision-makers say they
come an integral part of communica- nology, specialized algorithms, and use thought leadership as an impor-
tion campaigns, with the main objec- fancy electronic devices, PR needs a tant way to vet a business. In 2020, PR

"When you're in a relationship as a taker, the giver will eventually get tired."

PR COMMUNICATION AGE January - June 2020 55