Rewind 2022: PR industry recorded robust double-digit growth this year: Girish Huria

It’s time to review the most significant industry developments as 2022 draws to a close. Adgully is reviewing the year 2022 for the M&E, advertising, digital, marketing, PR and communications, along with leading names in the industry as part of our annual Rewind series.

Recapping the year 2022, Girish Huria, EVP Growth and New Initiatives, Avian WE, shares some notable key trends and developments that dominated the PR industry during the year. He also speaks about the overall performance of Avian WE in 2022.

The year 2022 for PR & marketing communications

2022 was an interesting year with its set of challenges and opportunities. We recovered well from the pandemic, but new disturbances surfaced in the form of the Russia-Ukraine war, global inflation, and energy shortage, to name a few. Though affected by these socio-political issues, the communications industry in India proved its resilience once again. We remained focused on the urgent needs of our clients and helped them rise above the noise and successfully connect with their audiences. As a result, the industry recorded a robust double-digit growth in 2022.

Key trends and developments in PR

Technology continued to evolve and transform the PR industry, with agencies adopting new tools and apps to meet clients’ needs. This current industry-wide digital acceleration will carry on next year as well. But we are just scratching the surface when it comes to implementation of technology. There are several cutting-edge tech tools which can enhance our work, but we are not using them. We must delve deeper and use new technology like the endless possibilities of AI, lives-stream purchasing and social listening to make our work more unique and impactful.

Data-driven storytelling has become critical as consumer skepticism rises. PR always had a finger on the pulse of latest trends, consumer perception and market conditions. But the complexities of our time demand in-depth expertise. Our latest WE Brands on Motion study, The Bravery Mandate: Make it Real, has revealed that lack of data and data-driven goals is the No. 1 reason for increasing consumer skepticism about brands’ true intentions. To win over consumer trust, we must ensure that our storytelling is backed by research and hard facts and numbers. Avian WE, for example, has created a separate data and analytics team that helps all our practices to move beyond vanity metrics and truly understand the effectiveness of our campaigns. PR firms looking to increase brand affinity and drive business results must, therefore, continue to invest in data and analytics.

Integrated marketing communications rule the roost: Gone are the days of siloed communications and we should stop over emphasizing the word, integrated. If consultancies are not able to provide solutions which encompass all aspects of PR, then we are doing disservice to both the profession and our clients. Just offering numerous services is not enough, PR firms must also upskill their people to deepen their knowledge of various facets of communications.  

Double down on ESG goals. The call for businesses to increase their environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance is stronger than ever. As their communications partner, PR firms have actively advised and supported their clients in their journey to become more sustainable. For example, Avian WE helped amplify the collaboration between Godrej & Boyce and WWF India for their Magical Mangroves campaign that highlights the significance of mangroves conservation and urges citizens to join the conservation movement. As brands double down on their ESG goals, PR firms will continue to help companies share their purpose journey – from commitment to action – with the public through vibrant and precise storytelling.

Purpose starts at home. While we counsel our clients on purpose, we also need to walk the talk and make it our purpose to build an agency culture that has employee engagement, growth, and welfare at its core. The key to a holistic company culture lies in flexibility and inclusivity. Progressive firms have, therefore, adopted the hybrid model with openness in 2022. To cite our example, we have a work model that requires employees to come to office twice a day. Plus, we have invested in mental health resources to help employees achieve work-life balance. 

We must also create a culture of collaboration, where employees feel comfortable and respected. And this can be made possible only when diversity, equality and inclusivity goals belong to everyone in an organisation. At Avian WE, for example, we have taken several targeted measures. We celebrate Pride Month every year; we wrote and published a book of terminologies, called Consciously Speaking that addresses unconscious gender bias; we have been the communications partner with Rainbow Literature Festival since its inception in 2019, and we hold regular workshops for employees to identify the unconscious bias and blind spots, root them out and make room for everyone. 

Overall performance of Avian WE in 2022

Our company achieved robust growth in 2022. Throughout the year, we worked together with our clients to support them, prioritising their needs versus our bottom line. Guided by our Clients for Life philosophy, we continuously checked on our performance and actively identified and solved issues as they arose. Especially in current times, we looked for ways to add value to our clients. Citing a few steps taken by us to boost growth:

Healthcare Communications: The pandemic has reawakened public interest in health, and we believe communications will play a pivotal role in strengthening the bond between the public and health and pharma brands. So, we bolstered our existing healthcare communications service to navigate a fragmented, post-Covid world. We already had experience of working with clients like Fortis, Nathealth, J&J and Philips Healthcare. We used our wealth of experience to launch a dedicated practice and have been able to double our client base and revenues from the practice in less than 12 months.

Environmental Social Governance (ESG): The pandemic was a clarion call to make meaningful long-term investments in the issues that our stakeholders care about most. Driven by the belief that ESG measures need to be in focus for any business that wants to future proof itself, we launched our ESG practice. From working on Magical Mangroves project with Godrej & Boyce to Amazon Future Engineers programme with Amazon, we are using our expertise to align sustainability with purpose.

Data and analytics: We continued to deepen our integrated capabilities by setting up a Data Centre of Excellence to collect and analyse data across paid, owned and earned channels. This team not only supports clients in India but also supports clients in US, EMEA and APAC regions.

Additionally, we did not let up on the areas where Avian WE is already well established. Core practices such as Social Impact, Digital, and Public Affairs posted double-figure growth, and we continued to win new clients and expand existing partnerships.