Five expected PR trends for 2025
Five expected PR trends for 2025
By Ella Darnell, Intern at Kai Communications
As we progress into 2025, the PR industry is gearing up for another year of change. With technological innovation and evolving audience expectations, PR professionals must adapt to the changes in the landscape to continue creating effective campaigns, and successfully connect with audiences. Here are five expected trends that you should embrace to optimise your PR strategy in 2025.
Artificial intelligence is here to stay, so use it right.
AI is not just an impending tool of the future anymore, and we are living in its presence in day-to-day life. The influence of AI in PR culture is huge, with a 2024 survey showing that communications professionals are using AI for content creation (54% of respondents), data analysis (40%), and background/landscape research (37%). AI can be an incredibly useful tool, especially when used to provide data-driven reports on how campaigns have performed, and to capture actionable insights. AI’s ability to inform audience analysis, performance measurement, and content form and type optimisation, can help create more tailored, personalised, and impactful communications which deeply connect with audiences. AI has the power to drive engagement efforts and notably produce more effective work, as the same survey from 2024 also explains that PR professionals using AI frequently are 93% more likely to express that they feel valued for the work they do.
However, a large majority of PR professionals state that they are relying on AI for writing content (54%). Whilst this is understandably time and resource efficient, no AI-generated writing will ever be able to capture the tone, emotion, and values of a brand or organisation in the way that human creativity can. Audiences need to connect emotionally and on a personal level, so generic, inauthentic AI-written content will not be able to fully leverage this. So whilst PR professionals should utilise the abilities of AI, we still need a balance with strong human influence and creativity.
The power of storytelling.
In today’s digital world where platforms are increasingly saturated with AI-generated content and audiences must navigate an endless stream of information, the ability to create attention-grabbing and memorable campaigns grows even more crucial. In light of this, the art of storytelling and creating compelling and impactful narratives that reflect genuine human, emotional experiences are key.
Storytelling is particularly effective as it evokes emotions and empathy in an audience, driving the feeling of connection with the brand, which in turn can inspire action and impact decision-making behaviour. However, the storytelling must be authentic and credible, core to the brand’s unique values and vision. In a media environment flooded by AI-generated content, which can often feel generic, inauthentic, and impersonal without the spark of human creativity, messaging which incorporates storytelling can instead humanise a brand, and drive meaningful connection.
Embracing purpose-driven PR.
This year, purpose-driven PR will continue to flourish, and brands will look to demonstrate their positive broader impact. Brands that incorporate purpose into their campaigns will demonstrate values capturing social, cultural, and environmental commitment. Building on the previous point about the efficacy of storytelling, effective campaigns incorporate genuine and authentic messages that are guided by core values, rather than a focus on what would drive profit.
The evidence is there to strongly support the advantages of purpose-driven PR. The Kantar Purpose Study, 2020, demonstrated that brands that were purpose-led, with a higher perceived positive impact, had seen a growth rate of 175% over a 12-year period, as opposed to 70% growth for brands with low perceived positive impact. Adopting a purpose-led approach, which demonstrates a genuine commitment to making a positive impact, is a successful strategy for both the brand and the world around us.
Amplifying reach and engagement through multi-channel communications.
Audiences are now dispersed across diverse digital and traditional platforms, including many social media services, podcasts, newsletters, and traditional press releases. By utilising the range of platforms and synchronising communications across channels, brands can enhance the efficacy of reaching a wider target audience, and increase the impact of their messaging. It is important that messaging is coherent, and that the brand’s tones and values shine through no matter what channel utilised, in order to create a seamless and gratifying audience experience across interactions.
Additionally, using analytics to really understand your audience and track performance can allow you to tailor your strategy accordingly across platforms. To amplify your brand and expand the reach of your message, implementing a multi-channel communications strategy is incredibly valuable.
Improving outcomes with data-driven PR.
With the development of data analytic abilities in PR, there is significant opportunity to implement more effective and targeted campaigns. Whilst traditional metrics such as Advertising Value Equivalency (AVE) used to provide a sufficient indication of PR impact, modern data analytics provide a far more sophisticated, concrete and nuanced understanding of campaign performance.
Utilising data which provides crucial insights about demographics, engagement rates, campaign performance, and consumer behaviour can help brands to make informed decisions to amplify impact and engagement, and really target key audiences. Furthermore, in the context of multi-channel communications, data is crucial in identifying the most effective platforms for reaching specific demographics, ensuring that PR efforts are focused on where they will have the greatest impact.
