COVID-19 may not have delivered a business boost to most industries, but it’s caused many more consumers to rely on digital shopping. The trend had been steadily growing but accelerated after the pandemic was declared. Yet, according to Smart Insights, digital PR and...

The maturing of social media, and other PR power trends
If social media belonged to a generation, it would be Generation X, those born between 1955 and 1980. Launched in the 1970s by the University of Illinois through an extension of what was called the PLATO system, social media has since exploded and matured to become a...
Disruptions in leadership amp up calls for transformation
COVID-19 caused just about everything to go topsy-turvy for everyone. Industry leaders—including in public relations—were certainly not exempt. As 19th century British philosopher Bertrand Russel once said, “The issues we deal with are complex and require nuance,...
Why it’s critical for brands to ramp up YouTube marketing
Brands that market to Gen Zers (ages 5-25) had to have been elated over the results of a recent Hootsuite study that extolled the popularity of YouTube. That study revealed that 81 percent of Gen Zers between 15 and 25 use YouTube, and that doesn’t include the ones...
PR tips for building a strong email list
For many brands and corporations, with the rise of social media platforms and many other digital channels, email marketing has been put in the backseat, even though it was a very popular strategy in the past. However, this still rings true today, and email is just as...
Brand pivoting is critical in the COVID age—how agile are you?
Many basketball coaches say the reverse pivot is one of the fastest ways to improve a young player’s attack skills. Similarly, brands that are quick to adapt and pivot may also see quicker success as consumers emerge from under the pandemic. What’s changed Sure, many...
CX is the new comms battleground—is your brand prepared?
A lot has changed this year. First, the pandemic with its rules, travel bans, and restrictions, then BLM and subsequent logo and mascot name changes, and all this against the backdrop of a hotly contested presidential election. The common denominator is that all these...
U.S. podcast ad spend now surpassing $1 billion
This year, the U.S. podcast advertising industry is already seeing notable growth and will continue to do so for the rest of the year, compared to the ad spending for any other audio formats. In fact, according to estimates, the podcast ad spend will grow by 10.4...
Social media is today’s growth engine—is your brand on track?
Brands seeking to generate more sales and grow their markets need to focus on social media. Pre-pandemic numbers gathered by a Pew Research Center survey showed 72 percent of Americans use it to connect with others, follow the news, share information, and be...
Facebook says pandemic affected its ability to police the platform
Just days after top officials at four international technology companies appeared before a Congressional committee, one of these companies—Facebook—responded to complaints that the social media giant is still not doing enough to protect users from bad actors online....
All-platform marketing gets your message out on every channel—how’s your outreach?
The practice of marketing across a variety of platforms, including email, the website blog, social media, digital PR, apps, printed ads, retail location, as well as promotional events is called all-platform marketing. This is an approach that can allow businesses to...
How to create unique experiences with interactive content
Most businesses and individuals already know the basics when it comes to creating good content. In fact, most people these days are already creating more content than they were just a couple of years ago. That’s precisely the challenge that everyone seems to be...