Communications became a strategic business driver in 2020: Prachi Singh, Yahoo

In the last 10 years, PR has taken a different dimension, especially after the entry of social media and the rapid shift to digital, especially in the pandemic period. At the same time the industry has been facing stiff challenges, moreover client expectations have also increased, with more emphasis being given to digital and online reputation management. The industry has undergone a radical shift and the current times have pushed the industry to change gears. 

In conversation with Adgully, Prachi Singh, Director, Communications, APAC, Yahoo, speaks about how perceptions about PR has changed over the years, and more so during the pandemic period, more involvement in brand communication and the ways to measure and track across the PR spectrum. 

You have been both at the client and agency side. PR has evolved in the last 10 years and we are into a new communication world. What are some of the significant developments you have noticed in the last 10 years?

PR now has a seat at the table. Till a few years ago, PR was called in at the last stage of development, sometimes with the launch just a week away – certainly not enough time to frame the best approach, think strategically about how the news should be positioned, identify potential landmines or even book briefings, given journalists’ packed schedules. 

That has changed. Today, C-Suite leaders are bringing PR into the development process and discussion much earlier. Given the pace of transformation since the pandemic, developing a comprehensive view has become critical to make informed business decisions. According to an Edelman survey, 77% of communication leaders say perceptions changed during 2020, when communications became a strategic business driver. Consumers have evolved and so has what they expect from brands. In the context of PR, how brands articulate what they stand for or explain their purpose will become increasingly important. With Comms on the frontlines, business has a trusted partner with their ear to the ground. Integrating PR early can help companies flag sensitive issues, nail down the best positioning for the product, build a narrative, and point out what’s most compelling for the media and also for the organisation’s target audience. 

PR has gone beyond serving as a tool for media relations, to a more holistic, 360-degree view of communication. The rise of social media and digital has been undeniably big trends blurring the lines between disciplines and shaping the function. The speed at which we send and receive information has significantly affected the nature of PR; for instance, we now see PR become more involved in brand communication as brands play a more active role in building online communities, creating thought leaders from their own ranks, and aligning internal employee communication efforts. 

While storytelling remains human and at the centre of creative efforts, we have more immersive and richer ways to tell these stories through next-gen technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR). With digital engagement at an all-time high and an always-on audience, we will continue to see PR further test the limits. 

Digital has transformed the world. How has Yahoo adapted to this transformation and how are you leveraging digital in the new scheme of things for all your PR activities?

Yahoo is an iconic brand, a pioneer of the Internet. We are one of the best recognised digital media brands in the world. Even a decade ago, when I joined Yahoo, digital was our preferred medium. We continue to evolve as a key destination for news, finance, sports, and lifestyle content for Gen Z, the most sought after demographic on the internet. Yahoo News, for example, is the fastest growing news organisation on TikTok, and continues to outpace major media outlets on TikTok. 

This focus on digital informs our Comms approach too. From smartly using social influencers to amplify brand and PR visibility, to devising curated social campaigns to reach diverse audiences, we have found new ways to stand out by thinking digital. 

We all speak about external communication, but equally important is internal communication. What process and framework do you follow to stay engaged with your internal stakeholders and employees to manage the reputation of your company on an ongoing basis?

Our Internal Comms efforts are led by a culture of transparency. All our announcements, big or small, are focused on ‘internal first’. We want all employees to know how they are individually critical to our company’s success. And this holds true externally too, where employees can be powerful ambassadors for a company – any view they share feels authentic and true. The Comms mandate has to span celebrating team members’ successes, championing their wins, but also, preserving their trust. 

In terms of engagement, our objective is to connect, drive greater interaction and collaboration between teams across the globe. After COVID, there are new rules, but also platforms to bring teams together. Comms has the opportunity to rethink and design new collaboration opportunities, which can potentially deliver business impact. 

PR measurement and effectiveness of PR has always been a subject of debate. As a PR professional, what steps should the PR industry take to bring in uniformity so that everyone speaks one language when it comes to PR measurement?

I don’t foresee a one-size-fits-all approach working. With technology, we have the tools we need to measure and track across the PR spectrum – the metrics will change based on the stated goal and campaign. Are you launching a new product? Trying to achieve a spike in sales? Use PR to cost-effectively lower customer acquisition costs? Reach a new audience? Build reputation and credibility? Raise brand awareness… There are other considerations too. An oft-missed metric while measuring a PR campaign is ‘message pull-through’. Did the article strike the right tone, sentiment and hit all the key messages you wanted to communicate? Then there’s engagement – for instance, beyond time spent on your blog post, what kind of influence did the article have on the reader? 

If you can answer “what are we trying to achieve, what is our goal here”, it becomes easier to arrive at the most relevant or useful metric, blanking out the rest. The secret sauce is finding the right balance of art – how effectively you tell your story – and science, how you measure the success and efficacy of what you set out to achieve. 

How do you plan your overall PR strategy and messaging for Yahoo India every year? What is the role of your PR partner here? What are some of the best practices you follow from Yahoo's Global communication team that will help and benefit in India?

We identify the big bets and overarching narratives for the year globally, choosing the areas where we want to shape or elevate conversations. We then distil what can be adapted or work for our market and customize the story and narrative accordingly. 

Cross-pollination of ideas and pooling assets help us amplify the impact of our efforts and achieve faster. Towards the end of each year, the team globally comes together to take stock of what worked in the year, what didn’t and what we can do better or differently. It’s an open, transparent discussion not just within the PR team, but also with our stakeholders, which informs our direction, strategy, and efforts for the next year.