Can PR support your growth in 2025-26?
Let’s paint a picture.
At times, 2024 felt like navigating a ship through stormy seas. Businesses faced choppy waters of economic uncertainty, changeable buyers, and winds that sent many markets adrift.
The aftermath? Some vessels soared, some made it to shore battered but afloat, others were lost to the tempest, leaving behind a leaner fleet of industry players.
Now, as we look to the skies in 2025, the question for many is simple: what tools kept the ship steady, and which ones need to be tossed overboard?
Is it time to reset and chart a new course?
If this is where you’re at, you might be asking, ‘how can PR support my journey?
Below are a few ways PR can be a lighthouse that guides your businesses toward calmer, more fertile waters in the year ahead.
And that by enhancing storytelling, building enduring brand loyalty, and aligning with sales strategies, PR serves as an essential engine to connect with and nurture key audiences for long-term stability and growth..
Step 1: Start with intention
Mindset matters. If you’re ready to leverage PR to support sales and brand-building in 2025, it starts with fresh optimism and clarity. Just as in sales, PR success hinges on relationships and consistency.
Here’s how to recalibrate:
Commit to storytelling: The market DESPERATELY needs authentic narratives. Highlight your purpose and share stories that resonate with your audience.
Focus on connection: PR is about people. Build trust and empathy through human-centred campaigns.
Stay adaptable: Just as markets evolve, so should your PR tactics. Be curious, test new approaches, and refine your strategies.
Play the long game: While PR campaigns can generate immediate buzz, their real value lies in fostering enduring brand loyalty that supports sales over time.
Step 2: Build (and stick to) a simple and agile PR strategy
Without a clear strategy, PR efforts can feel scattered and unproductive.
An effective PR plan aligns seamlessly with your sales goals and amplifies your business’s voice.
Here’s how to design a strategy that works:
Define or redefine your key messages: Know what you want your audience to feel, think, and do when they encounter your brand.
Identify your target audiences: Spend some time nderstand your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and craft tailored stories that solve their pain points.
Select the right channels: Whether through media relations, LinkedIn Thought Leadership, or community engagement, choose platforms that resonate with your audience.
Set measurable goals: Align your PR metrics with your business objectives, such as increasing brand awareness, website traffic, or lead conversions.
Coordinate with sales: PR and sales should work in tandem. Ensure both teams share insights and collaborate on messaging.
Step 3: Execute PR tactics that drive results
Sounds obvious right? Well, yes and no. PR can supercharge your business growth when paired with smart execution, but it can also become a bit of a millstone once it starts lagging behind the business.
Here are some tactics to prioritise:
1. Amplify storytelling: In today’s crowded market, stories differentiate your brand. Great storytelling enhances emotional connection, making your business memorable and relatable.
Media coverage: Secure articles in industry publications to establish thought leadership.
Case studies and testimonials: Showcase success stories to build credibility and trust in intreresting ways,
Employee advocacy: Empower your team to share authentic stories that reflect your brand’s values.
2. Build and nurture relationships
The middle of the funnel (MOFU) is where trust is earned, and PR can help deepen relationships:
Engaging content: Use thought leadership, webinars, and whitepapers to educate your audience.
Personalised pitches: Tailor media outreach to highlight specific challenges and solutions.
Community involvement: Strengthen relationships through events, sponsorships, and cause-driven initiatives.
3. Create human-centric engagement
In a world of automation, personal touches stand out. Leverage PR to create meaningful moments:
Host events: Whether it’s an industry breakfast or a virtual Q&A, events foster connection and visibility.
Celebrate milestones: Share updates about your team, products, or clients to humanize your brand.
Give back: Community engagement and CSR initiatives show that your business cares beyond profit.
4. Move quickly on gateway campaigns
PR can help ease prospects into your sales funnel. Smaller, accessible campaigns build trust and pave the way for larger opportunities.
Limited-time offers: Create buzz with campaigns around exclusive deals or product launches, with honesty and integrity to get your audience involved
Collaborations: Be ready to piggyback on cultural moments by partnering with influencers or complementary brands to extend reach.
5. Integrate data-driven insights
PR today is as much about analytics as it is about storytelling.
Use data to refine effort:
Track media impact. Measure website traffic, lead quality, or social engagement resulting from PR campaigns.
Optimise outreach. Identify what’s working and double down on effective channels.
Align messaging. Ensure your brand’s voice remains consistent across sales and PR.
Step 4: Align and empower your team
To make the most of PR, collaboration is key. Ensure alignment between PR, sales, and marketing:
Clarify roles: Define who handles what in your PR strategy.
Encourage collaboration: Share insights to strengthen campaigns understanding and consistency
Stay accountable: Regular check-ins keep everyone aligned with goals.
Let’s look at the Captain’s Log!
Think of 2025 as your chance to steer your ship into fertile waters and out of the storms of uncertainty.
Here’s how PR can help you navigate successfully:
Start with intention: Adjust your sails by committing to authentic storytelling and consistent effort
Develop a strategy: Chart your course by aligning PR with your sales goals and defining clear, measurable outcomes
Focus on execution: Keep your crew focused on building relationships, nurturing leads, and creating engagement moments that resonate
Leverage data. Use your navigation tools to refine your campaigns with actionable insights
Empower your team: Ensure every crew member works in harmony by fostering collaboration between PR, sales, and marketing
When its course is set properly PR is more than a nice-to-have on the journey, it’s the steady hand on the wheel, guiding your business toward new opportunities and lasting connections.
By making PR a cornerstone of your 2025-26 strategy, you’ll not only support your sales team but forge meaningful relationships that endure well beyond the horizon.
Full speed ahead!
Hi, I’m Sarah Rice. With more than 30 years experience of building brand voice and winning share of voice, I know how to help chart communication courses that get results.
I am always up for a chat so please do email me for a discussion about how your business can benefits from PR’s navigational properties!
M: 07944798380