As 2025 nears, it’s poised to be another year of new challenges, excitement and PR industry growth for those on their toes and prepared to adapt as necessary. Raffetto Herman Strategic Communications is one such agency, with agency practice leads already manning their telescopes to anticipate what the near year will bring.
Below, many of the firm’s experts share how they predict the PR industry will change in 2025 and how professionals will need to shift strategies.
Bonnie McLaughlin, Vice President and Public Affairs Lead
A Shift Toward Owned Content Channels
“The trend of an extremely crowded and chaotic news media landscape will continue in 2025. Ultimately, this will make it very difficult to plan for news of the day, announcements, and press releases, and companies will need to invest more in their owned channels to share their news and messaging. This also means a bigger investment in promoting those owned channels, using tools like paid media or social media boosting.”
Danielle Ruckert, Vice President and Healthcare Lead
Healthcare Companies Will Increasingly Emphasize Human Interest Stories
“In 2025, companies will embrace human interest storytelling to break through the noise. As healthcare companies introduce innovative approaches and solutions, they will increasingly need to humanize stories to build trust, authenticity, and emotional connections with target audiences. Effective communication strategies will highlight real patient stories, focusing on their unique but relatable challenges and the positive impact a healthcare company has had on them. By investing the time to unearth these real-life experiences, brands can foster deeper engagement, build loyalty, and enhance their reputational strength.”
Hally Wax, Senior Vice President and Technology Practice Lead
2025 PR Game Changers: AI Tools for Content Development and Data Analytics
“In the coming year, we will see technology companies integrate AI and data analytics in more meaningful ways. PR teams will shift from experimenting with AI to using these tools for more precise audience targeting and content generation. These tools enable PR professionals to expedite the delivery of tailored content across channels and improve the accuracy of reaching their customers and prospects.
“We will also see a major uptick in the integration of data analytics to inform more strategic decision-making for PR programs. This will result in improved trend identification, audience segmentation, content optimization, sentiment analysis, and ultimately, integrated campaign measurement. Together, AI and data analytics will reshape how PR campaigns are planned and executed, offering greater precision and actionable insight.”
Jason Poos, Vice President
Companies Will Diversify Their Distribution Channels Through Omnichannel Marketing
“Marketers have a more complicated world to operate in than ever before. The rapid rise of AI Search as an alternative to Google has the potential to upend inbound marketing. Plus, social media platforms continue to grow, as does the participation of brands and influencers who covet user’s attention. Offline, events continue to bounce back in popularity as a way to connect person to person. As a result, in 2025 more companies will adopt an omnichannel marketing approach to account for the increasing number of channels and the diverse behaviors of their customers.”
Brittany Jacobsen, Account Director
Cleantech Will Embrace Coopetition in Business and Communications
“In 2025, the cleantech industry is poised to embrace “coopetition” – a collaborative approach where competitors unite around shared environmental goals. As technologies evolve, organizations will recognize the power of collective storytelling and discover innovative ways to collaborate while maintaining their competitive edge, leveraging media opportunities to more effectively showcase their collective impact and accelerate progress toward sustainability. With mounting climate pressures and the increasing urgency to develop scalable solutions, this collaborative model will become critical in rapidly advancing environmental innovation and addressing global challenges.”
