Rewind 2022: The silos and impediments between PR & advertising are blurring

It’s time to review the most significant industry developments as the year 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, Sonam Shah, Founder and CEO, Treize Communications, and Nidhi Sidhana, Founder & Director, PRtainment Media & Communications, speak about how 2022 has been an optimistic year for the PR Industry, and how the realms of PR and advertising started to blur in 2022.

The year 2022 for PR & marketing communications

Sonam Shah: Last year has been quite a good year for the PR and marketing industry. Budgets, which were cut during the lockdown, came back. There was an increase in demand for PR services, specifically by start-ups and B2B companies.

2022 also witnessed the comeback of Print media, which further strengthened the importance of the fact that while Digital is the way forward, there is a very large audience for Print media. And this audience is the mature and loyal TG.

From a media standpoint, I would say there have been drastic changes. And this is mainly due to the fact that consumer consumption patterns have changed a lot. The consumer is literally everywhere, at all touchpoints and digital media has evolved a lot to keep up with it. This shift will play a long role in the coming years within the PR industry and will be exciting to see how it unravels.

All in all, a good year for the PR industry.

Nidhi Sidhana: The year 2022 has been a complete resurgence for the Public Relations, Marketing, and Advertising ecosystem. During the year, the clients exhibited significant confidence and backed that with budgets.

The silos and impediments between the realms of PR and advertising are eventually blurring, which was foreseen by many experts, and I stand by them. More brand campaigns have increasingly emanated from PR firms, with a convergence of creative thinking, PR, digital, and influencer management. The PR agency awards at Cannes did make a loud noise supporting the development.

Key trends and developments in PR

Nidhi Sidhana: In today’s time creative ideas are no longer a designated responsibility of a specific industry segment; it can come from anywhere. Our revamped live model ensures that our clients receive an exorbitant amount of attention by participating in current, tropical, and pertinent dialogues. In addition, we now have access to data-driven insights and a better landscape understanding thanks to digital technology. The unique opportunity of digital may redefine brand narratives and help brands become more relevant by fusing the strength of creativity and PR in an overcrowded marketplace.

Agency performance

Nidhi Sidhana: Being a niche setup focussed on B2B and Corporate PR, PRtainment Media & Communications works in a very different manner. The agency’s performance has been on par in per last few years, except in 2020, where we noticed a pause mode in the client. For us, it is imperative to have regular conversations with clients to understand what best can we offer to maintain PR visibility for them and this has been an area we focussed very heavily on. We have built a stronger internal process to work in a closer capacity with each client and offer more focused-driven PR solutions.

Sonam Shah: For us, 2022 has been a mixed year. We worked with innovative startups and well-established entities, where we were entrusted with creating brand awareness and building brand image.

PR is changing and adapting to the new age trends and requirements in our ever-changing world. And we are constantly on our toes to respond to changing stimuli. We worked on a two-pronged strategy based on the client’s needs to boost clients’ PR activity. We create an amalgamation of the old media tools with the new-age tools in a customised strategy, as every client needs a different approach. For a corporate client, we emphasise traditional media, and if it’s a lifestyle or beauty brand, we work alongside influencers and bloggers to increase the client’s media presence and visibility.