The best and PR and comms campaigns of 2024

Elmo’s check in, Domino’s take off, and CALM’s calls to action: The best PR and comms campaigns of 2024

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In a busy and high-pressure year for PR, the industry stepped up with creative comms for brand and awareness campaigns alike.

We asked PR experts to share their favourite PR and comms campaigns of 2024 – here are shout outs for great work from McDonald’s, Led By Donkeys, the UK Black Comms Network, and Sesame Street (to name just a few)…

Much love for Elmo

Estelle Boon, group managing director – brand, social & influence, Ketchum

‘For me it’s a person. Elmo. Yes, Elmo. Yes, he’s a person.

Elmo X post

‘In January, he (okay, Sesame Street’s social team) posted on X, asking how everybody was doing. As of December that post has had more than 360k active engagements. While we know the virality of a social media post cannot be predicted, the simplicity of this human-first approach that stayed true to “brand Elmo” and his fandom, gave it a running start.’

The Migration Museum’s take on the England football team

Gorki Duhra, press manager, Royal National Institute of Blind People RNIB

‘With immigration a General Election issue, and the widespread abuse suffered by black players at Euro 2020 fresh in the mind, a poster for the Migration Museum that pondered what the England team would look like without immigration was simple and powerful. Only Pickford, Stones and Foden remain in the starting 11, while the names of stars such as Bellingham, Saka, Walker and Kane are all struck out.’

Leading comms from Led By Donkeys

Stephen and Sarah Waddington, directors of Wadds Inc. and founders of Socially Mobile

‘Led by Donkeys is well-known for its political activist campaigns. The National Covid Memorial Wall of hearts is a lasting legacy for the people who died during the pandemic. In February, it laid out more than 11,000 sets of children’s clothing on Bournemouth beach in protest at the war in Gaza. The clothing stretched for five kilometres and was a powerful visual representation of the children killed on both sides of the conflict since 7 October 2023.’

UK Black Comms Networks pushing industry inclusion further forward

Ronke Lawal, PR and communications consultant, Ariatu Communications

‘As Chair of The Women’s Group for UK Black Comms Network I am biased, but the ‘One Step Forward Two Steps Black’ report in collaboration with Opinium was a powerful and meaningful campaign that the industry at large should continue to pay attention to. We cannot continue to allow such huge disparities to prevail if we wish to nurture talent from across diverse communities.’

McDonald’s raised smiles (and important issues)

Jonathan Curtis, chief commercial officer, Grayling Global

‘For me the standout was the McDonald’s ‘The Meal’.

‘The campaign removed the iconic Happy Meal smile to help children understand it’s okay not to be happy. As a Dad of two kids going through the trials and tribulations of schools and friendships this was particularly pertinent and was executed with a simple but brilliant bit of creative thinking that only McDonalds could do.’

A cheeky collab for Budgy Smugglers and Transport for London

Gareth Hoyle, managing director, Coveragely

‘Back in July, Budgy Smugglers and Transport for London partnered for a fun, but cheeky, campaign (pardon the pun). The swimwear brand got together with the country’s most talked about travel network and launched a new collection of swimming trunks featuring some of London transport’s most iconic moquette seat designs. And it worked. Unsurprisingly, the media and social media lapped up this news and the brands were able to secure plenty of coverage in a variety of titles, such as the Evening Standard, Retail Times, TrendHunter and Famous Campaigns.

‘It was able to generate a buzz on social media, the quirky campaign came with some interesting pictures of models looking freezing on the tube and in front of various famous London locations and it had a great regional angle.’

Gaming for good, from the British Heart Foundation

Rachel Humphreys, PR lead, Digital Hub, Motorpoint

‘One of my favourite campaigns of the year was British Heart Foundation’s ‘Streams of (un)consciousness’. The campaign targeted Gen Zers through gaming and streaming platforms to educate them on CPR, as there was a significant lack of CPR knowledge specifically in this age group. This is a great example of how digital campaigns can have a real-world impact, raise awareness and educate.’

Purpose-driven comms from The Woodland Trust and Clean Creatives were very welcome

Alice Regester, CEO and co-founder, 33Seconds

‘There have been some great purpose driven campaigns so far this year, encouraging consumers to live more sustainably, spend time in nature and appreciate our planet. The Woodland Trust and Adam Buxton partnering up to encourage us to plant more trees and The National Trust’s ‘Space to Feel’ campaign are a couple that spring to mind.

‘As well as this, there have been some great industry-led campaigns to encourage communications professionals to be more ethical. This has included the Clean Creatives pledge against working with fossil fuel companies – over 1,000 agencies and practitioners have signed up so far already.‘

A call to action from CALM

Rachel Irvine, founder and CEO, Irvine Partners

‘A notable mention is CALM’s ‘Missed Birthdays‘ campaign, which aimed to raise awareness for youth suicide in the UK.

‘The initiative included call to actions, kits, and resources to help those in need, and personal stories through screens and audio in the exhibit and online. It took something celebratory (a balloon) and spun it on its head to show the opposite, which resulted in a creative, poignant and memorable campaign.’

Ryanair flying high

Pippa Brindley, managing director, The Comms Collective

‘Ryanair is just so good at keeping everyone talking. Their no-filter, daring approach to marketing makes them impossible to ignore. Their online presence shows that they know exactly how to grab attention without taking themselves too seriously. They’ve built a hilarious, self-aware personality that works because it feels authentic. Even if you don’t fly Ryanair, you’re probably following their socials because they’re just that entertaining.’

Domino’s took flight, too

Jane Hunt, co-founder and CEO, JBH The Digital PR Agency

‘Over the summer, Domino’s capitalised on their iconic garlic and herb sauce by bottling it in a travel-sized format. This playful product innovation captured consumers’ imaginations, creating buzz and reinforcing brand loyalty. It was a brilliant mix of product PR and a light-hearted nod to customer demand.’

St John Ambulance kept it simple and effective

Kelly Pepworth, managing director, Speed Communications

‘My favourite was the CPR Bra for St John Ambulance. The campaign was based on a simple gender disparity insight that one in three people are afraid to give CPR to a woman.

‘Great execution with the creation of an educational bra, sharing insight on what action to take when dealing with a cardiac emergency. It was worn and endorsed by key female influencers from the world of football, music and broadcast creating great visuals as well as reach. Simple but very effective.’

Premier Inn checks out

Ed Sheldon, account director, Tank

‘The PR campaign that got the Tank team talking the most this year is a recent one. Premier Inn’s What’s Occur Inn campaign to rename its Barry Island hotel ahead of the Gavin and Stacey finale was inspired. It’s a great example of a reactive campaign that puts a brand at the heart of wider cultural conversations.’

Thank you to O2’s AI Granny

Jo Preston, group board director, Teamspirit

‘O2’s AI Granny was a genuine phenomenon this year – created to keep scammers on the phone and waste their time, it really tapped into the zeitgeist.

‘You know you’ve done something right when you’re mentioned on ‘Have I got News for You’ and Chrissy Teigen’s Instagram!’

Specsavers stood out

Nick Owens, founder, Magnify PR

‘Specsavers’ campaign in Edinburgh stands out. The creators made it look like one of their vehicles had smashed into a bollard with their now iconic “Should Have Gone to Specsavers” slogan alongside it. Funny, simple and clever – three of the things campaigns often fail to be.’

Dove keeping it real

Riley Gardiner, founder, No Strings Public Relations

‘In 2024, Dove’s extension of its “Real Beauty” ethos stood out. Featuring women from diverse backgrounds, including Michaela Coel’s powerful portrayal of unfiltered skin, it challenged beauty norms.

‘This wasn’t just an ad—it became a movement, driven by its commitment to inclusivity and sincerity, tapping into deeper social currents.’

Gold for Channel 4’s Paralympics coverage

Fiona Scott, managing director, Scott Media

‘I loved the Paralympics (I do declare an interest, as I work with Paralympian), Channel 4 did a great job of making it exciting, funny, engaging and didn’t focus on disability, but focussed on elite athletes.’

Inclusivity wasn’t impossible for Adidas

Joseph Hagan, founder, Streamline PR

‘Another highlight was Adidas’ “Impossible is Nothing” campaign, which told inspiring stories while embracing inclusivity.’

Horror film campaigns had real substance

Damon Culbert, digital PR manager, Add People

‘I’m a horror movie fan and there has been some real success stories in terms of marketing and PR through 2024. ‘The Substance’ has put a lot of effort into promotion on social media and taken advantage of user-generated content to keep conversations around the film going long after its release.

‘The best campaign I saw, however, was for ‘Longlegs’. Its promotion was definitely behind its box office success and releasing news about lead actress Maika Monroe’s heart rate when she saw the antagonist for the first time was an interesting and unique use of a tried and tested format.’

Want to make a start on your own winning PR and comms campaigns for the year ahead? Check out these 25 PR and communications trends for 2025.

25 PR and communications trends for 2025

25 PR and communications trends for 2025

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In a year where AI seemed to be taking over, social media turned into the wild west, and global political unrest can make many jobs seem somewhat trivial, PR and comms has been under extra pressure to get attention on the right stories, and keeping the public informed.

What lies ahead for the communications industry in 2025? Here are predictions and pointers from 34 PR experts readying for what is to come – take note of these PR trends for 2025…

1) Social media platforms held to account

‘We are already seeing major organisations like The Guardian and CIPR move away from platforms for ethical reasons. However, I think we need to be cautious about how we embrace this. It’s important to use these platforms objectively, otherwise we should look at the ethical practices of all platforms equally. Pausing activity on a platform is symbolic but isn’t necessarily disruptive particularly in an era when clear, fact based comms is crucial. We should be leaning into remaining on these platforms and objectively sharing updates which speak truth to power.’

– Ronke Lawal, PR and communications consultant, Ariatu Communications

2) Conflicting comforts

‘Brand communications will need to be more agile in 2025 as we enter an age of the contrarian consumer. A mindset that cuts through socio-demographics, centred on people’s comfort in being conflicted across their wants, needs and influences.

‘Examples include: the rise of the phygital retail experience; micro communities being Gen Z’s biggest force of influence; shoppers flipping from “quiet luxury” to “underconsumption core”; and the “everyday hacktivists” that are driven by purpose…but simply cannot resist a good deal.’

– Estelle Boon, group managing director – brand, social & influence, Ketchum

3) A return to long-form

‘Tortoise Media’s acquisition of The Observer feels significant. We’re growing exhausted of short-form media. The future for organisational reputation lies in earned and owned media strategies that slowly yet sustainably build credibility and foster long-term engagement.’

– Stephen and Sarah Waddington, directors of Wadds Inc. and founders of Socially Mobile

4) Stronger bonds between PRs and journalists

‘When Connectively/HARO announced they were shuttering the site, some suggested that an influx of AI-generated comments and experts were behind the deterioration of the site. Journalists having to battle ever-increasing amounts of generic AI content is likely to mean strong relationships between journalists and PRs will become more valuable.

‘Engaging with journalists in different ways and demonstrating trust and value in your interactions could mean expert comment outreach looks different next year.’

– Damon Culbert, digital PR manager, Add People

5) Assistance from AI…

‘Artificial intelligence will be a game-changer for B2B PR by 2025, especially in science and engineering. AI will streamline processes like drafting technical press releases, creating thought leadership content, and tailoring pitches to specific industry journalists or analysts.’

– Richard Stone, founder and managing director, Stone Junction

‘Next year’s big trend will be AI-driven personalisation. Demographic segmentation is a thing of the past – now, technology allows us to tailor communications to each consumer. Agencies that embrace this while respecting privacy will see unmatched engagement. But authenticity is key. Brands that give a voice to marginalised groups, like Richie Shazam’s work with Levi’s, demonstrate how real stories resonate and push past traditional marketing tactics.’

– Riley Gardiner, founder, No Strings Public Relations

6) …while maintaining trust with a human touch

‘We’re going retro. In a media landscape increasingly cluttered by AI slop, automated messaging and disinformation, savvy practitioners will use their expertise to forge authentic human connections and maintain trust-based relationships.’

– Stephen and Sarah Waddington

‘Consumers are increasingly discerning. Trusted content is valued more than ever, driven by younger generations shaping the media landscape. PR teams must embrace AI and data-driven insights while maintaining a human touch.’

– Jonathan Curtis, chief commercial officer, Grayling Global

7) Moving past purpose washing

‘We are finally turning our backs on purpose-washing, and the stage is now clear for the brands with purpose at their core to have the spotlight. I expect to see purpose-led brands finding new ways to tell stories and drive fame in a way that entertains, educates, and inspires the masses to consume differently.’

– Kamiqua Lake, founder and CEO, Coldr

‘2025 will be the year of accountability for brands – especially when it comes to sustainability commitments. We want to see brands that follow through – proof of what they HAVE done, not just what they say they’re going to do. And, are these sustainability values genuinely carried out across all layers of the guest experience, or selectively applied where it suits? For example – as much as smashed avocado is a widely popular and healthy breakfast dish, why am I seeing it on hotel menus across the world during months when they are not in season?’

– Pippa Brindley, managing director, The Comms Collective

8) Experts needed

‘Short-term tactics no longer suffice; users seek reliable and trustworthy information, aligning with Google’s mission to think like a user. As a result, PR efforts will have to increasingly focus on enhancing the reputation of key experts and spokespeople within organisations, with a strong emphasis on specialist and trustworthy content.’

– Daisy Wolfenden, managing director, Wolfenden

9) TikTok and LinkedIn will continue to grow

‘TikTok will continue to grow and remain an important marketing tool for brands to take advantage of a highly engaged, young audience. LinkedIn will also remain important with more than 700 million reported users across the globe. We’ll see more thought leadership pieces on this platform and in 2025, it will continue to be a powerful tool for brands looking to position themselves as industry leaders.’

– Gareth Hoyle, managing director at Coveragely

10) And Substack will get more subs

‘Many journalists are launching their own newsletters and building strong niche audiences there – from restaurant reviewers to wellness gurus. I’m already seeing this pop up in journo requests.’

– Lucy Sambrook, PR specialist, Seed

11) Podcast infiltration

‘Podcasts are nothing new in the world of PR, but the power of them was proven in the US election this year. The global podcast audience has more than doubled in the last five years, with over 460M podcast listeners globally by 2024, and expected to rise even more in 2025.

‘I think for 2025, we’ll see podcasts infiltrating all our other mediums even further. Rather than just a way for us to listen to peoples experiences and point of views, they will be used as propaganda tools for maximum impact as they can achieve even more significant reach.’

– Jasmine Wicks-Stephens, founder, Known

12) Bigger brand personalities

‘Clarity in branding will be more important than ever – the average person now consumes around 74 GB of information daily, an equivalent to watching 16 movies or spending seven hours online. Having a clear narrative and consistent messaging is crucial to cut through the noise and capture attention.’

– Sarah Woodhouse, director, strategic communications agency, AMBITIOUS

13) Increased client and consumer interaction

‘Consumers are hungrier than ever to get to know a brand deeply – to enter the brand universe via creative, welcoming and exciting activity. This could be in real life interactions via pop-ups and consumer events or simply from receiving extra gifts, online experiences when shopping or surprise and delight moments for loyal customers.’

– Rachel Humphrey, founder and director, Brand Building Co.

14) More metrics

‘How PR agencies and professionals measure campaigns and prove ROI will continue to evolve. As marketing budgets remain squeezed, intelligent measurement will be critical to both understanding what worked and why, as well as informing the strategy of future projects.

‘As solutions become ever more sophisticated, affordable and user friendly, this will democratise measurement even further – meaning boutique agencies and freelancers will have the same opportunities as larger brands to provide clients with bespoke metrics that reflect objectives.’

– Alice Regester, CEO and co-founder, 33Seconds

15) Comms for causes

‘I think some of the most successful campaigns next year will have a societal cause – tackling a social issue, helping to raise awareness or offering a solution at a local or national level. We’re already seeing brands much more focused on living their values and willing to step outside of traditional media comms.’

– Rachel Humphreys, PR lead, Digital Hub, Motorpoint

‘Agencies must guide brands in taking authentic stands on societal issues, as consumers increasingly demand alignment between values and actions.’

– Bethanie Durham, associate director, NORTH

16) Greater inclusion

‘Diversity, equity, and inclusion will continue to shape campaigns. Audiences are demanding action, not just performative gestures, and brands will be held accountable.’

– Joseph Hagan, founder, Streamline PR

17) Accessible content

‘Content creation will continue to be key when many media platforms are struggling with their budgets. The content doesn’t need to be polished or expensive – just accessible to wide audiences, so the continued use of Alt description and Audio Description and subtitling will make messages and content not just accessible for people with sensory loss – but will reach wider audiences anyway especially through smartphone and tablet devices.’

– Gorki Duhra, press manager, Royal National Institute of Blind People RNIB

18) Comebacks for real world experiences

‘While digital remains crucial, the pendulum is swinging back to real-world experiences. I think we’ll see a peak in small, face-to-face activations as well as large-scale events starting to become more important, as audiences crave authentic, in-person connection.’

– Rachel Irvine, founder and CEO, Irvine Partners

19) The pivot to video continues

‘2025 will also see an ever-growing demand for great video content. Whereas a strong set of pictures was once the minimum requirement for any press campaign or release, a clip that works online and across socials is now an absolute must. Agencies who don’t deliver on that are likely to struggle to find a home for their content.’

– Nick Owens, founder, Magnify PR

20) Evolution out of owned/earned/paid

‘Many clients still operate in silos but that is changing, and needs to change. It’s all about how best to reach an audience that now consumes media in a very different way. Content has always been the key to a successful PR campaign, but the industry needs to work hard to convince clients to look beyond traditional channels to help that content reach their audience.’

– Jo Preston, group board director, Teamspirit

‘The changing face of the media, more subscriptions, more paywalls, more ‘charging’ for stories through ‘admin fees’ or similar so advertorial campaigns will become more important as media outlets find other ways to make money. So the snobbery around ‘earned’ content and paid-for content will have to gradually dissipate as media outlets look for other income streams. The media tends not to care about whether content is earned or not (PRs are obsessed with this), the media cares about the value of a story which fits their agenda at any given time.

‘Also terrible press releases are still terrible so that won’t lead to them being used just because money may change hands.’

– Fiona Scott, managing director, Scott Media

21) A revolution for reactive PR

‘With the speed of news cycles and social media, the days of ‘waiting and seeing’ during a crisis or opportunity are over. Next year, the brands that will win are those that master the art of being nimble. Whether it’s jumping on a cultural moment, like a viral meme or breaking news, or responding to public criticism, reactive PR needs to feel authentic, fast, and smart. But – and this is key – it can’t feel like a stunt. Consumers are incredibly savvy now, so reactive moves need to show you genuinely understand the context and the audience.’

– Sheridan Okey, head of digital PR, Tribera

22) Nano and news influencers to take over

‘The focus will shift away from big-name influencers to micro and nano influencers – those with smaller, highly engaged followings. It’s no longer all about the size of the following, but about the quality of those followers and their level of engagement.

‘By carefully selecting smaller but more relevant influencers and nurturing genuine, long-term relationships, the authenticity of the relationship will shine through and brands will gain access to a goldmine of engaged individuals.’

– Fay Clarkson, operations and account director, Honest Communications

‘Alternative methods of consuming media will continue to rise, and ‘newsfluencers’ will play a key role in shaping how we consume information. ‘Newsfluencers’ are individuals who have a significant following through non-traditional media channels such as podcasts, Substack newsletters, YouTube, or social media.

‘They have unique and loyal audiences that are difficult to reach through traditional media, and activating them in PR and comms campaigns will become far more common in the next year. These alternative media forms are becoming far more popular, with 71% of Gen-Z using social media to obtain news, so failing to incorporate this trend could cause companies to fall behind and appear out of touch.’

– David Clare, director, Fire on the Hill

23) PRs navigating a less (cyber)secure world

‘While misinformation is not a new phenomenon, it has been amplified by the advent of the digital age – the wide adoption of LLMs has also exacerbated the issue. Platforms like ChatGPT act as human amplifiers and therefore only as good as the data which feeds into them leaving them prone to biases and inaccuracies.

‘This wave of change could have a significant impact on businesses affected, decimating consumer trust and potentially wiping out a company overnight.’

– Becca Williams, CEO, Antidote Communications

‘With rising concerns over data breaches and ransomware attacks, PR professionals need to focus on crisis management and proactive communication strategies. The integration of AI tools like ChatGPT is enhancing real-time threat analysis and enabling faster, more accurate responses to security incidents. Transparency will also be critical—brands must effectively communicate how they’re safeguarding data to maintain trust. Another emerging trend is the use of immersive storytelling, such as VR and AR, to educate audiences about cybersecurity threats in an engaging way.’

– Rose Ross, CEO, Omarketing

24) Extra opportunities for freelancers

‘The national insurance hikes will almost certainly have a considerable impact on the way that PR and comms teams operate throughout 2025. This could limit opportunities for businesses to grow and scale their in-house teams, but this offers a welcome opportunity for the thriving freelance sector.

‘For PR agencies (as well as in-house teams), the ability to rely on experienced freelance PRs to support specific campaigns (or provide longer term, retained support) offers a streamlined, yet flexible solution that will give businesses more breathing room to adapt to financial, technological and societal changes.

– Amy Dawson, owner, Gatekeeper Communications

25) PR trends 2025 – an industry back at the head of the table

‘2025 will also be the year when the PR industry take its place as the conductor, rather than part of the band. Earned, owned and paid channels are blurring. Digital PR’s stock is rising. Successful campaigns will centre on great insight-led creative thinking that is cleverly executed across multiple channels to deliver measurable impact. Our innate ability to identify a story that will cut through, willingness to lean into new content forms and channels, teamed with increased ability to provide awareness & engagement metrics, means PR is primed to take a bigger slice of the marketing pie.’

– Kelly Pepworth, managing director, Speed Communications

‘Strategic consultation is going to be increasingly important for PR and comms teams next year. After fighting for a seat at the table, PR teams have become a much more valued asset for C-suites to provide trusted counsel.’

– Ed Sheldon, account director, Tank

‘PR is poised to evolve into a revenue-driving powerhouse. Historically, PR’s value was often seen in softer metrics, but the landscape is shifting. With Google’s increased emphasis on brand strength and measurable impact, PR professionals now have the tools to quantify the results of their efforts. This shift is particularly critical in light of economic challenges, where budgets are under greater scrutiny. Both traditional and digital PR practitioners will need to prove their worth, showcasing the tangible outcomes their campaigns deliver. Measurement, transparency, and a clear connection to ROI will no longer be optional – they’ll be essential.’

– Jane Hunt, co-founder and CEO, JBH The Digital PR Agency

Want more 2025 PR trends? For more on the growing influence of social media channels like TikTok, download our reports ‘Tiktok journalism: The platform’s impact on news audiences‘ and ‘Hold the homepage! How scoops circulate through the modern media landscape‘. 

Campaign reporting for PRs

Best practice for campaign reports

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Whether you’re launching a product, hosting an event, or raising organisational awareness, a campaign report is the best way to showcase the successes to stakeholders in an easy and digestible format. Measurement also helps teams to improve, compare strategies, and understand the true value of events and campaigns.

Campaign reporting isn’t only about evaluating what happened in the past, you can also use media analysis to support you before and during a campaign.

By following this framework for your campaign reporting, you’ll be able to:

  • Set meaningful KPIs and understand the media landscape (before)
  • Respond to the media and receive analytical support from a team of experts during a busy period (during)
  • Showcase your successes to stakeholders with insightful evaluation and a greater understanding of what worked well and what didn’t work to identify opportunities for future campaigns (after)

Before your campaign

Goals 

Before your new campaign begins, it’s time to set up clear goals and meaningful KPIs. This will help provide everyone with a clear direction of what is to be achieved and help with the future measurement of assessing the success of the campaign.

Consider the following:

  • Who do you want to target?
  • What message do you want to send, and what action do you want your audience to take?
  • Where does your target audience go to consume traditional media?
  • When is the best time to launch the campaign?

For example:

A mountaineering rescue charity may want to analyse its summer mountain safety campaign. They may want to target novice hikers with the key message to be prepared while hiking this summer. This charity have particular issues in the North of England,  so want to target local media in that region, during the summer heatwave.

SMART Goals

With goals in place, you can set realistic SMART KPIs that align with your overall campaign objectives (SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound).

For example:

The mountaineering charity would like to increase the volume of campaign coverage by appearing in 400 outlets between 5 June – 4 July.

Or, they would like to increase the amount of headline mentions from the previous year by 5%.

Using historical or Industry Data

Once you’ve established your campaign’s goals and KPIs, use data to establish benchmarks to ensure your targets are SMART. Effective comparisons could be to your competitors, yourself, or the industry, and without data, you’re basing decisions on nothing more than a gut feeling.

Using data allows you to:

  • Assess against industry standards or pre-determined goals
  • Track progress over time if you compare it against your own previous campaigns
  • Hold yourself accountable by setting measurable targets
  • Say no to ideas that have underperformed in the past

For instance, the mountaineering rescue charity may have run a similar campaign the previous year and found that they achieved coverage in 300 outlets and a key message penetration of 35%. It would be unrealistic to set a goal of 100% key message penetration if the previous year had a 35% penetration, so an organisation can use this information to set a realistic target against last year’s results.

Vuelio can support you during the pre-campaign period with analysis of competitors or previous campaigns that can allow you to identify opportunities and threats.

Choosing the right metrics

Deciding which metrics to include is important, as the campaign report needs to reflect your SMART goals in a simple way that stakeholders in the wider business can understand.

Base your metrics on what best demonstrates your SMART objectives. This is especially the case with sentiment and proactivity analysis. Unless your campaign is to combat a negative reputation, sentiment will generally be positive, and the campaign itself is proactive, so consider other metrics such as the following:

Campaign-Specific Messaging: Track whether your intended key messages are being portrayed in the media e.g. How much coverage was the key message ‘When hiking this summer, be prepared and take water’ featured in?

Calls-to-action: Analyse if the media has included your campaign actions e.g. Head to mountaineeringrescue.co.uk to find out more about hiking safely this summer.

Prominence: Assess not just the volume of coverage about the campaign, but also the quality – are you appearing in headlines or as passing mentions?

Target Media Analysis: If your goal is to gain attention from specific media outlets, a detailed analysis of these results is necessary, e.g. Mountaineering Rescue is targeting local charities in the North of England so have compiled a list of relevant outlets in the region. It’s worth utilising a media database, like Vuelio’s Media Database, if these are journalists you haven’t worked with before.

The Vuelio team can support you with choosing the correct metrics. The team also typically provides manually analysed metrics that will allow you to analyse bespoke campaign metrics such as campaign messages.

During the campaign

Establish a useful reporting framework

During the campaign, it is important to continuously assess progress with the use of snapshot reports. These reports can help your organisation showcase immediate success, or respond to media reactions that may not be favourable or in line with messaging.

While you may already produce a campaign report at the end of your campaigns, sometimes this can be time-consuming. Vuelio’s Insights team can provide support during busy campaign periods on an ad hoc and ongoing basis. Many of our clients enlist us to provide them with multiple campaign reports per year to utilise our expertise, while some clients require our services on an ad hoc basis.

After the campaign

Once the campaign has finished, it is time to assess if your organisation has met its KPIs. At its core, media measurement is a continuous improvement process.

It may also be useful to consider if any additional data sets would add value to your reporting. For example, it may be useful to understand if donations, sales, or website traffic increased during the campaign.

Finally, when your campaign has ended and all analysis has been completed, you can then use this report not just as a summary of your campaign but as a benchmark for future work.

Find out more about campaign reporting and how Vuelio can help here. 

Five reasons to use the Journalist Enquiry Service

Five reasons to use the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service for your media outreach

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Trawling social media posts from journalists for requests, taking a chance on emailing, or even cold calling – media outreach doesn’t have to be this difficult. The ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service has been connecting PRs with journalists since its launch back in 1998 and is relied upon by the UK media industry every day.

Media professionals sending requests to PRs via the service span leading national and regional press, broadcast, magazines, podcasts, and much more.

Looking for media coverage? Tap into the Journalist Enquiry Service’s huge network to connect with journalists and broadcasters directly with what they need. Here are just five reasons to dip back into the service ( or try it for the first time!) to secure coverage in the press…

1) Journalist requests are relevant to you

Rather than receiving a deluge of potentially irrelevant asks from the UK media to slowly sift through, PRs signing up for the Journalist Enquiry Service have 25 categories to pick from and filter requests with – what you get is what you need.

Categories span from Entertainment & Arts to sector-specific subjects like Medical & Pharmaceutical, and journalists using the service to source PR contributions choose the most relevant categories for their requests.

The Journalist Enquiry Service is also powered by a dedicated team of researchers who ensure each journalist request is clear and is being sent to the right categories.

2) Journalist asks come to you directly

Cutting out the need for extra outreach almost entirely, the Journalist Enquiry Service shares requests from the media directly to PR inboxes. You can choose how often these come through to you depending on your workload and preferred way of splitting up your day.

Sign up for a daily digest of useful requests for review products, case studies, expert comment, statistics and survey results, new research, or filming locations to peruse when you’re ready, or receive each request as and when they’re submitted by media professionals in need of your help, skillset, and contacts.

3) Deadline, topic, format – All the details you need are included

Each request you receive will include the elements you need to ensure your reply is of use for the journalist. Alongside a short enquiry summary, the submitter will include a longer description of what they need in the dedicated Query box – these can include links to previous pieces in a series they’re working on, or extra context for the story the enquiry concerns.

A set deadline is included, as well as a link to more information on the outlet they are writing/filming/recording for. Enquiries drop off from the system once the deadline is passed to prevent any accidental sends for news or features that have already been filed for publication or release.

4) Journalists at the leading UK media organisations use the service to source information

With a quarter of a decade-long track record of trust built with the UK media, the Journalist Enquiry Service is utilised by media professionals across the country’s biggest publishing organisations to source information.

Alongside staffers in newsrooms and on editorial teams across the country, freelancers who work for a variety of top publications rely on the service for the extra information they need for their commissions. And the interaction between a journalist and the public relations professional who offers help with their enquiry doesn’t have to end there. While interactions are managed within the platform for each request, many long-term PR and journalist working relationships have started with contact via the Journalist Enquiry Service.

5) It’s fully secure

The Journalist Enquiry Service platform exists as a place for the media and PR industries to share useful information and build relationships – a neutral meeting space with benefits for both.

A journalist sending a request via the service genuinely wants to hear back from PRs with relevant contributions, removing the need to source contact details, or reaching out without knowing for sure if your offering will be useful or even well-received. Contact begins through the internal network, with email replies coming via a generic address until both sides are ready to share their contact details directly.

Ready to start receiving requests from the UK media? Sign up for a trial. 


Featured image for Seeking Audiences event

How do journalists find audiences in the platform era?

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How has the emergence of new media platforms impacted journalism, and its audiences?

To explore the state of journalism today and how it’s evolving for the future, we invited two panels of industry experts to share their expertise with an audience of PRs and fellow media professionals for the Pulsar x Vuelio event: ‘Seeking Audiences: Journalism in the Platform Era’ event.

Seeking Audiences panel

Joining us to discuss the ‘new news’ landscape – including the challenges of capturing audience attention amid fragmenting forces like TikTok; the role of podcasts; and comebacks for local news – was Press Gazette UK Editor Charlotte Tobitt, ITV News Reporter and Producer Siham Ali, Polis Founding Editor and Director of The Journalism AI Project at the London School of Economics Professor Charlie Beckett.

Second panel for Seeking Audiences

Covering changes in audience perceptions, brands, and behaviours was CNN International Commercial Vice President, Audiences & Data Tini Sevak, The Economist’s Media Editor Tom Wainwright, and BBC News Journalist, Producer, and Presenter Kamilah McInnis.

Here are key points from the speakers, as well as extra answers we ran out of time for…

The new news: Reaching audiences with journalism today, from TikTok to podcasts, to local journalism

So many platforms, so little time for each: What are the biggest hurdles to reaching an audience for journalists?

‘Two main things – the fragmentation of the media landscape, and Google sending less traffic to them,’ was the verdict from Press Gazette’s Charlotte Tobitt, who covers the fortunes, and fluctuations, of the media as part of her daily beat.

Charlotte Tobitt

‘It’s rarer for someone to search for ‘The Telegraph’ to find their news now, and publishers are finding it harder to engage directly. They need to future-proof against the many other platforms out there by building brand connections – trust is at a real low in the UK and the US’.

Charlie Beckett, whose organisation Polis campaigned hard for amendments to the Online Safety Bill, highlighted just how much the media industry has been transformed by competing platforms pumping out information, 24/7:

‘I remember when it was just papers and TV. We were the only place you could get news – life was great!

Charlie Beckett and Siham Ali

‘Social media is the biggest thing to happen to journalism in a hundred years. You have incredible access to different sources, and that can be overwhelming. But as an audience, we don’t want to go back.

The problem for publishers is having to start from a place of what people want. But journalism has always been good at that.’

Is the plethora of platforms warring for audience attention actually an opportunity for journalism? ITV News’ Siham Ali, talking as a reporter with ‘boots on the ground’ across the UK, sees the positives:

‘I think finding an audience is easy with TikTok and Instagram. Especially with local news – Facebook has made our jobs easier.

Siham Ali

‘We have stories that perform well on TikTok. The trick is adapting our storytelling to this new way of sharing news. I don’t think it’s a bad thing. But then, I’m young, so…’

Another ‘newer’ format for storytelling is podcasting, a medium the publishing industry has invested in heavily over the last few years.

‘[The podcasting format] is infecting ‘traditional’ broadcasting and making it more casual,’ believes Charlie. ‘And they aren’t much different – they’re merging.

‘Podcasts are ambient. TikTok, you’re more focused on it. When we talk about audience attention, it’s skeletal – it doesn’t tell us everything we need to know.’

Rebuilding trust in the news industry when bad actors also have a platform

Vuelio’s head of insights Amy Chappell asked if the extra competition for audience engagement has meant more clickbait (and as a result, more misinformation).

Panel for Seeking Audiences

‘You have to be really careful where you get your news from,’ said Siham. ‘I’d like to think the big media names are the good actors. There’s clickbait everywhere.’

Charlie pointed out that this isn’t a phenomenon born from the digital age:

‘Audiences have a lot of agency – they consume “fake news” because they want to. People are driven by identity and emotions, by fear – they choose to consume what panders and pays attention to fears they have.

‘Clickbait wasn’t suddenly invented. Marketing and advertising people have known this for decades.’

Trust was also highlighted as a difficult part of the local journalism ecosystem –

‘People are at the heart of everything we do. In journalism – people are the story,’ said Siham.

‘I was only able to work on certain stories because of people in communities. I saw their need to be heard.’

The importance of time covering a local new beat on a journalist’s skillset was underlined by Charlie – not just for the journalist, but also for building loyalty with audiences:

‘Editorial diversity is what’s needed – knowing what it’s like to grow up on a council estate, for example.

‘Most national press get their stories from local news. The media have to be honest that we’ve messed this area up by reducing news teams – fewer journalists are left now in regional journalism.’

Is social media and vertical video making news accessible, and can it bring media success?

‘The news industry was slow to TikTok, and then a few individual journalists picked it up,’ explained Charlotte.

‘The Daily Mail is now one of the biggest news publications on TikTok, and it’s a good thing for the longevity of the brand.

‘People were hesitant initially because the monetisation wasn’t there. But for brand building, it’s worth it. The TikTok algorithm is so good that the right stuff should find the right people.’

But Charlotte also recommended caution regarding social platforms like TikTok:

‘It would be risky to rely on them completely – the platforms can change up the algorithms anytime. Publishers shouldn’t get too excited about one platform.’

‘Audiences that are underserved [by traditional media] are on TikTok,’ added Siham.

‘They might then come through to ITV at 6.30pm. An 18-year-old then knows what’s happened in Westminster today. They’re now able to pass that information to their friends at the pub.

‘TikTok used to be an afterthought, but now it’s part of the planning stage at ITV. The social team make up a chunk of our output on the platform’.

The opportunities for PRs and a bright future for journalism

‘I used to work in PR, and we didn’t think to add vertical assets – there’s a lot of potential in that space, said Siham. ‘Show that your content is multiplatform.’

‘I’ve seen politicians doing interviews directly with social teams, and not the digital news teams. That trend is quite interesting.’

‘I’m excited by the new platforms, adapting as a news organisation is exciting.’

‘If I wasn’t optimistic about the future of journalism, I would be in the wrong job,’ said Charlotte. ‘People are aware of the challenges, but there’s lots of innovation and cool stuff going on.’

‘The news industry is more aware than it’s ever been. News is incredibly resilient – the dogs won’t die,’ said Charlie.

Journalism in the platform era: Audience perceptions, brands, and behaviours

How worried should the media and comms industries be about increasingly polarised communities?

The Economist’s Tom Wainwright highlighted just how split media audience are along political lines – particularly in the election-heavy 2024:

‘More extreme takes travel further online than more moderate ones. That makes the space seem very polarised. And what you see in polling is that trust is very split along partisan lines in readerships and viewer bases. After Brexit, the big fallout between ‘leave’ and ‘remain’ audiences, for example.

‘It’s part of a broader mistrust from more conservative audiences with what they see as ‘elite’ institutions. This split is a hard thing to fix. Organisations need to increase their diversity of staff partly because of this. There’s a divide that’s baked in.’

Tom Wainwright

‘People still value credible and well researched journalism but news is dominated by organisations that focus on sensationalism and misinformation,’ added BBC News’ Kamilah McInnis.

Kamilah McInnis and Tini Sevak

‘Organisations should apologise when mistakes are made, listen to audiences and be consistent to rebuild trust. Respond to what audiences need. And remember that they also tune in for escapism and analysis.’

CNN’s Tini Sevak emphasised how vital established and non-partisan media organisations are for the public, whatever their political outlook:

‘When people are making big decisions, they’re still coming to news organisations.’

Tini Sevak

Bringing audiences back to engaging with news reporting, wherever it’s published, posted, or shared

The panel talked about the rise in news avoidance over the last few years, and how this is increasingly impacting audiences across demographics. It’s not just younger people who avoid hard news – not tuning in to ‘traditional’ news mediums like ITV News at 10, or picking up a daily print newspaper. Even those who had previously been avid news-followers are tuning out for a variety of reasons – the increase in global conflict; the ways awareness of this has seeped into all other mediums to become a constant in the background of modern lives; even the lack of censorship and inclusion of distressing images and updates.

Much has been made of this increase in news avoidance over the last few years – both at industry conferences for journalists, and in reports detailing challenges for publishers. Could a factor be a simple lack of visibility for ‘traditional’ news platforms?

As Tom pointed out: ‘As a child, I had to watch Newsbeat to get to Grange Hill. People are moving from a news-rich environment to a news desert. Maybe people are bored of news, but I think they’re just seeing less of it.’

Discussion also centred on the lack of news on the streaming channels now available – Tom mentioned Netflix as an example of a platform that doesn’t have an option for news updates. For many of the public, the only way they will encounter broadcasts devoted to news reporting specifically will be by seeking it out. How can new organisations build relationships so that audiences will search for them as sources?

For Tini, reputation and reliability are vital:

‘When you’ve got a brand that stands for something, you have a relationship with your audience. It’s about giving back – news has to be a reflection of life. Hard news, but also culture – reflecting what life is about’.

The impact of paywalls and subscription models

Tom pointed out the difference that a subscription model makes to an outlet’s overall focus, not just their audience:

‘Organisations that focus more on subscriptions are more likely to go niche. The New York Times has shifted to a subscription model and is aiming to be more in tune with their readers – for the good and bad.

‘If you’re funded by advertising, however, you’ll be more generalised and centrist. With subscriptions, readers want to engage with content they agree with. The way publications respond to that dilemma depends on their business model’.

‘The brand safety aspect is very real,’ added Tini.

‘Advertising within news doesn’t have to be a detriment to your brand. There’s an opportunity to engage with a tuned-in audience’.

For more on this topic, as well as the Pulsar and Vuelio research discussed during this event, check out our reports ‘TikTok journalism: The platform’s impact on news audiences’ and ‘Hold the homepage: How scoops circulation through the modern media landscape’.

How news media brands itself: Centring the civic value of journalism

How news media brands itself: Centring the civic value of journalism

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With trust in the media increasingly fragmented, how is the journalism industry re-engaging with audiences?

Two approaches emerge. First, building brand reputation around journalism’s vital role as a civic good. And secondly, centring the role journalism has in making its readers smarter and able to make better decisions.

How news media brands itself

To explore what this means for some of the UK and US’s leading brands, we analysed over four million online conversations, revealing the degree to which audiences identify brands including BBC, New York Times, Reuters and The Wall Street Journal with high-quality reporting.

Read the report to find out:

  • Which news brands are viewed most favorably (and unfavorably) by audiences, and why
  • The themes and messages that most resonate with current audiences
  • How brand campaigns align – or clash – with audience perceptions
Hold the homepage!

Hold the homepage! How scoops circulate through the modern media landscape

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Good news can travel quickly across the variety of platforms that make up the modern media landscape, but bad news often spreads just as fast.

How and why do certain stories make the leap from news columns to widely-shared social posts? And what do organisations and their comms teams need to know to push the positive stories further, and address negative narratives?

Our latest report ‘Hold the homepage! How scoops circulate the modern media landscape’ tracks two major reputational crises from the last year to uncover the forces at play. Using data points from traditional and social media – alongside public statements from UK political heavy-hitters – we examine how news reports evolve as they travel through different platforms & audiences.

Download the report to explore:

  • How scandal can spread beyond publishing paywalls, impacting everything from regulation to brand reputation
  • The forces that propel journalistic scoops from traditional media platforms to social virality
  • How an evolving story can embroil brands, including competitors, in unexpected ways
How podcasts shared the story of water pollution

Listen up: News podcasts share the story of water pollution in the UK

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Bad news has the ability to spread quickly in our hyper-connected modern world of multiple platforms. For PRs, this means more channels to monitor than ever before for signs of crisis… but it also provides extra ways to boost important stories, connecting audiences to vital information.

One crisis with far-reaching implications for the UK audience over the last few years has been polluted waterways. This issue was put to politicians in the run-up to our General Election this summer, discussed with frustration across social platforms, and covered by the media in print, online, and in podcasts.

To highlight the impact of the podcasting format as an increasingly useful way to connect with audiences, we tracked the story of water pollution in the UK, and internationally, across podcasts from 1 November 2021 to 29 September 2024.

So many podcasts… and for good reason

2022’s Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers’ report on podcasting projected that the industry would generate $2 billion in revenue in 2023, and $4 billion by 2024. The prediction of podcasting’s emergence as a format for storytelling has proved right – not just among friendship groups sharing anecdotes on their sofas (of which there are many), but for publishers, too.

The Daily Telegraph’s political editor Ben Riley-Smith highlighted podcasts as ‘a huge booming area for news consumption’ when speaking on the changing political landscape in the UK in 2023, and other publishers and big media brands have capitalised on this in 2024:

‘It makes sense for publishers to be moving towards the podcast space,’ believes Reach Studio’s head of content Yara Silva, whose team launched The Division Bell podcast to coincide with the UK General Election, and the Euro Thrash vodcast for Euro 2024.

‘People are just busier and busier – it’s so easy to consume a podcast while you’re doing other things. Podcasts are only going to get bigger and more important to publishers’.

The importance of news podcasts to audiences is also clear when tracking mentions of the format on X since 2021:

Mentions of news podcasts reached a zenith on X in June 2023 as the industry ‘boomed’, and it continues to be a source of discussion on social media. It’s now a firmly established format to turn to for news, with listeners/viewers no longer posting about a ‘podcast’, but specific shows, namechecking where they heard about certain topics.

Examining mentions of the two biggest podcasts in the UK – The Rest is Politics, which launched in March 2022, and The News Agents, launched in August 2022 – proves podcasting’s utility as a news source. Peaks occur around key events in the news cycle – the obvious example being the UK General Election causing a spike in mentions for both podcasts this summer.

The News Agents X post

Podcasts aren’t just for entertainment – they are also turned to by the public as a way to stay informed on events happening around the world, as well as closer to home.

How podcasts reached audiences with reports of water pollution

Water pollution is an issue faced across the world to varying degrees – tracking related news shows a firm focus on the topic in UK and US regions especially. Following mentions also shows how these stories reached further audiences with publisher-affiliated podcasts.

UK media outlets including BBC News and The Guardian have an outsized impact on the global conversation. Their influence on ‘greener’ socially progressive conversations is to be expected within their UK base, but this international dominance is surprising… Until the impact of their podcast brand extensions is considered. Both outlets reported on water pollution, and then took up the story in their podcasts to share extra information and delve deeper into the specifics. By contrast, US and Australian outlets like The Washington Post or ABC Australia produced a significant amount of written content, but did not fully utilise their podcast channels.

X post about BBC Indepth on water pollution

The ‘boom’ of podcasting as a format for news reporting isn’t just the result of a faddish focus within the publishing industry – audiences are listening (and watching, when there is accompanying video). PR and comms teams tasked with raising awareness by securing coverage in the press should expand their focus to aural formats alongside the traditional written word – important stories can reach audiences across every platform out there to engage with.

For connecting with podcasts relevant to your brand or niche, try Vuelio’s Podcast Monitoring – providing access to 65k podcasts as well as insight into audience sentiment and emerging trends within the world of audio content.

Not sure which platform is right for your next campaign? Check out the benefits of each social media platform – and how Vuelio can help you make the most of them – in this blog post.

TikTok Journalism: The platform’s impact on news audiences

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The emergence of short-form video has forced an evolution in news rooms and editorial teams across the publishing industry at large. Media organisations big and small have adapted to audience appetite for quick updates across apps, and PRs must be prepared to switch platforms when necessary.

Our new report ‘TikTok Journalism: the platform’s impact on news audiences’ uncovers audience patterns and the impact this is having on journalism by analysing online news and social media data from 1 January to 20 October 2024.

Vuelio TikTok Journalism Topics Mainstream vs Citizen Journalists

We examine how mainstream media channels are utilising video to reach new audiences, and the rising influence of independent ‘citizen’ journalists sharing news in vertical formats.

This report covers:

  • How, and why, public and media interest in TikTok journalism has grown so quickly
  • The most influential voices and the audiences they attract
  • What the rise of this new type of journalism means for ‘hard news’, including elections and global politics
  • The rise of news as entertainment

Fill in the form below to download the report

Lifelines for local journalism

Lifelines for local journalism: How the media is reconnecting with communities

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Aiming to engage local audiences with media outreach for an upcoming PR campaign? First for the bad news, and then for the good…

Fortunes have undoubtedly been rather bleak for local journalism in the UK for a while now. Newspapers relied upon by their local communities for generations have closed in favour of shiny new centralised news hubs. Long established publishers have been bought out and absorbed into larger organisations. Where did the readers go? Many to social media, joining private Facebook groups or following hashtags on X to find out what’s happening in their area – risking misinformation, and further increasing the pressure on existing local journalists.

But now for the good news: local journalism is fighting back. It’s the perfect time for comms teams tasked with connecting with communities across the country to take another look.

To examine the ways local journalism is making a comeback across the UK, we analysed mentions of the phrase across online news and social media from 2019 to 2024. The story told by the data – a more positive outlook for the UK in comparison to other regions across the world.

What renewed public interest in local journalism?

Local journalism trends in UK and US

 

Examining spikes in discussion of ‘local journalism’ across the UK in comparison to the US highlights commonalities in times of increased interest over the last four years.

To be expected – April 2020’s discussion of local journalism spiking as the effects of the pandemic on the job market also hit newsrooms. In the US, posts focused on job losses at papers including the Tampa Bay:

X post

Support from local journalism came from senators in Virginia and even Ben & Jerry’s in Vermont. Since then, interest has tended to taper off. That is not the case within the UK.

Back in 2020, #buyapaper trended as local outlets faced closures, with reminders to support local journalism coming from within the media itself, and the public:

 

X post supporting local journalism

January 2022 saw a huge spike in discussion around local journalism in the UK, driven in part by recognition for the stories it remained capable of breaking, even after successive years of declining budgets and readerships.

X post about local journalism

 

Political controversies and coverage in the wake of, and run up to, our respective election seasons in the UK and US are causing discussion of local journalism to rise in both regions again. While trust in ‘mainstream’ media channels has fallen, confidence in localised reporting appears, by comparison, to have strengthened.

A ‘continued rise in community journalism’ was how Sefton Council’s senior communications officer Ollie Cowen described this trend when talking about his team’s task to raise awareness of changes in UK voting laws across the UK in 2023. They reached out to local reporters to do this, also making the most of ‘geographically centred pages on social media that had either been created or grown exponentially as a result of the increase in “good neighbour” behaviour during lockdown.’ As the pandemic kept people apart physically, it would eventually bring local communities back together – this has been a boon for local journalism, too.

Publishers and journalists have had to find news ways to connect with audiences and rebuild followings in the wake of how the world changed – advocating for communities across the UK with targeted, audience-first reporting.

For an example, let’s head to Manchester…

‘What local journalism should be about’: The Manchester Mill finds its community online

X post about Manchester Mill

 

The Manchester Mill was launched in June of 2020 by Joshi Herrmann, a journalist with experience at national outlets including The Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Telegraph, the Evening Standard, and The Spectator. Unlike these publications, the Manchester Mill is not available on newsstands to pick up in person, but is instead accessible online on Substack, a newsletter platform.

‘The Mill is my attempt to build a media company around readers rather than advertisers,’ reads Herrmann’s mission statement. ‘We won’t copy and paste press releases. Instead, we will dig deeper into local stories that matter – whether they are about crime, culture, business, or new ideas.’

The Manchester-focused Mill publishes one in-depth article via email and online daily to paying members (also known as ‘Millers’), and provides a free option in the form of a weekly digest email. This is paying off in both engagement and revenue. Meanwhile, its journalists have become part of the local ecosystem, helping to spur engagement with other localised reporters and continually grow the audience for the publication.

Influential voices in Manchester local news

In terms of the most influential local voices, Herrman himself drives much of the conversation, generating the most engagement overall with almost as many posts as the main Mill account.

Manchester Mill employees actively share news articles and express positivity about their contributions to local journalism and the work the Mill is doing – something its community of ‘Millers’ are also grateful for. Subscribers number 50k so far, with reader reaction to its success highlighting commitment to community ‘collaboration’ and its focus on breaking important stories, including its Sacha Lords scoop.

Summing up this commitment to localised reporting, senior editor Sophie Atkinson said ‘Nowhere else do you get this level of engagement, comments, emails, tips. It’s exciting and rewarding’. And, from looking at the numbers, it’s working.

Nichification: Success in Suffolk?

Centralised news hubs dolling out automated updates to readers living across the country removed journalism from its audience in other ways than the physical. How can local news publications reconnect with locals? By tapping into existing loyalties through coverage of local heroes – their sports teams.

By analysing how often audiences (and other media outlets) link to these publications, we can get a sense of what’s driving growth or re-engagement among audiences.

Themes in Suffolk news engagement

Clearly, sport is playing an outsized role here – and the story becomes clearer still when we break things down on a topic-by-topic basis.

News themes in Suffolk journalism

 

Outside of the football pitch, engagement goes to reporting on the local environment, including stories on crime (with spikes for fox hunting and a local criminal case) and amenities (road closures, criticism of Anglian Water, and the construction of a local solar power plant).

It could be argued that the extra interest – and potential revenue – driven by engagement with a local team (one experiencing its greatest success in decades) is in some senses underwriting more traditional local journalism topics. Recent promotional campaigns from The East Anglian Daily Times suggests they certainly view it this way, touting a subscription model that appears closest to that of The Athletic (which sells subscriptions based on unparalleled attention on local teams).

However, this comes with two potential problem points. Firstly, the financial implications of this engagement (whether it is truly able to support dedicated local journalism over a prolonged period) is yet to be tested, Likewise, a local team enjoying back-to-back promotions to the Premier League is hardly a model for all local journos.

Similarly, some would point to the Mill’s success and suggest it could only work within parcels of the wider country – namely those boasting large, youthful populations.

Whether or not these approaches could work for the local journalist scene at large, it proves that publishers and journalists are continuously finding ways to breathe new life into a sector long neglected. A local football team cannot be counted on to drive a mass of feelgood engagement – but it does provide a model for nichification, around sporting or cultural institutions. Likewise, the Mill shows the opportunity latent in an increasingly tech-savvy population, used to getting its news via non-traditional means.

The story told by the data – people care about what’s happening in their local community. News teams that make the effort to find their communities where they share and consume news – and pay attention to what they genuinely want to read and react to – are providing a lifeline to local journalism as a whole, as well as a place for longer-term loyalty and connection.

To connect with local communities through media outreach, find out about the Vuelio Media Database and the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service.

Want to know more about the state of journalism in 2024? Check out our analysis of audience attitudes across the globe.

The state of journalism

The state of journalism in 2024: What do audiences think?

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PRs will always need journalists, and journalists – in turn – will always need an audience. But how do audiences across the world see journalism in 2024?

While the media has always had to evolve to meet the changing needs and expectations of its audiences, this requirement has only accelerated in recent years. The changing role of journalists in our fast-moving modern climate presents challenges – for society as a whole, media organisations, and for the PR and comms industry professionals who navigate the media landscape.

How has citizen and independent journalism on platforms including TikTok, and in increasingly popular formats like podcasting, impacted the way news is shared? How are international news brands and local reporters each effected by these alternatives to ‘traditional’ news sources? And how do stories spread across media, platforms, and audiences in this climate?

Journalism is…

These are all questions we’ll be exploring over the coming months, as we conduct our research into journalism and news audiences. But first, to investigate the current perception of journalism across the world, we’ve analysed over 1.2 million media and social data points internationally, tracking mentions of ‘Journalism is…’ from May to September 2024.

Let’s begin with a look at the differing attitudes towards journalism across the world, and specifically, the UK…

How is journalism perceived in the UK in comparison to other regions?

How audiences around the world perceive journalism

The short answer – not in a particularly positive light. When tracking words commonly used following the phrase ‘Journalism is…’ online, ‘dead’ tracked the highest in the UK, followed by ‘biased’, and ‘corrupt’.

The source of this negativity isn’t hard to find, with press coverage of this summer’s UK General Election sparking criticism from the public across social media en masse. As debates, interviews, and analysis filled television schedules and column inches, the people watching and reading at home went online to share their frustrations, with high-profile journalists bearing the brunt.

The US audience shared a similarly dim view of journalism across social and online media – also unsurprising, perhaps, considering the political unrest stirring in the light of their own leadership race.

While the US and UK are aligned on attitudes towards the media, the ways in which they are expressed in public spheres and the media is where they differ (and not just in the UK audience’s willingness to share opinions with a sprinkling of swear words in their X posts).

So which audience of those we tracked considers journalism most important? Those in Australia and New Zealand. ‘Journalism is important’ was a more popular opinion shared online than ‘journalism is dead’ in these regions. A higher number also believed journalism to be ‘crucial’ than in the US and UK.

Is journalism ‘dead’?

Aside from UK fans disagreeing with reporting regarding their favourite sports team, celebrity, or other niche personal interest, the sharing of the view that journalism is ‘dead’ among UK news audiences has been rampant.

2023’s Edelman Trust Barometer found that the UK is one of the countries with the lowest faith in the media. Of the 27 countries surveyed, respondents were only less trusting of the news industry in Japan and South Korea.

While trust was up by 2% from Edelman’s previous survey in 2022, regaining confidence from the public is going to be hard going for the UK news industry. A consideration being taken seriously, as shown by the debates happening at media industry events across the country, including last year’s Society of Editors’ Media Freedom Conference.

The past year has also seen criticism of media reporting on the ongoing Gaza conflict, with disconnects between images and video shared on social media, public protests happening across the world, and the choices made in media coverage sparking further distrust.

Is journalism still ‘crucial’, ‘essential’, and ‘important’?

While use of positive descriptors by those sharing their view of journalism in the UK was much lower than use of the more negative ones, news reporting – in all of its different formats – continues to be cited as ‘important’…by invested communities. Journalists themselves, and those in adjacent industries, see and share reasons for optimism, but how can this be transmitted to audiences who have become distrustful, and disconnected?

Among the challenges facing the news industry – misinformation, lowering revenues, and distrust – audiences still seek information, and reporters, broadcasters, and content creators of all kinds are adapting to provide this.

Media brands making the effort to stay attuned to changing audience needs are building back loyalty and trust. For some recent examples: The Independent has doubled its profit and revenue over the last five years; the Financial Times is adopting data-driven personalisation as part of an audience-first strategy; and Reach plc’s launch of its Reach Studio hub is bringing each of its brands to new viewers in new formats.

The current state of journalism in the UK is in flux, and the prognosis can perhaps seems bleak. But there are causes for optimism to be found in emerging audience behaviours, platforms, and brands, which we’ll be exploring as part of our continued State of Journalism series.

Interested in how the media is evolving? Sign up for the 23 October Vuelio and Pulsar webinar ‘The New News Audiences’.

Sugar & Health: A PR guide to healthy FMCG & HFSS comms featured image

Sugar & Health: A PR guide to healthy FMCG & HFSS comms

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HFSS (High Fat, Sugar, and Salt) public health initiatives are complex to navigate, with regulation for food and drinks communications and advertising in the UK in flux.

As food and drink brands prepare for the UK Government’s upcoming ban of HFSS food adverts on television before 9pm, what do PRs need to know about public perceptions, political maneuvering, and media interest around sugar and health? 

Our latest report ‘Sugar & health: A PR guide to healthy FMCG and HFSS comms’ uses political intelligence from Vuelio, audience insights from Pulsar, and media expertise from ResponseSource to gain a complete picture of how the topic is discussed and understood. Featuring insights from social media, online news sources, the press, and journalist enquiries, uncover key information for crafting impactful comms, generating positive media coverage, and supporting stakeholder engagement. 

Download the full white paper to learn…. 

  • How the sugar conversation has grown in UK politics, the press, and across social media since the UK Government’s initial announcement of firmer regulation in 2022
  • What PRs in the FMCG and HFSS space need to know to get the attention of relevant journalists and broadcasters, and achieve positive coverage in the media
  • The brands that have been successful in their comms campaigns, amid the current climate of changing regulation and fluctuating audience expectations

Download the report by filling in the form below 👇

How PRs can get media coverage in October 2024

Media trends: How to get press coverage in October

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Wondering what the media are covering as we ‘fall’ into October? The change of season and weather is often a popular angle for journalists and requests sent to PRs via the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service this month backs that up.

Read on to find out what else journalists were asking for in September, and what you can do to catch their attention, and gain press coverage, in October.

Halloween on the horizon

Journalists have been getting their Halloween content sorted early – just over 2% of the total enquiries in September were around ‘Halloween’.

PA Media, The i paper, Bella, and Stylist.co.uk have all sent requests to PRs via the Journalist Enquiry Service, looking for a variety of things, from Halloween snacks to home decor, costumes, and spooktacular themed days out for families.

Going forward? With Halloween at the end of the month, journalists will likely be making short deadline requests to get information and products. Be prepared to have product samples to send over with easy-to-read information, and you could get featured in a national press title or consumer magazine.

Gift guides and advent calendars in high demand

Requests for Christmas content have been coming in since July, and September saw a significant increase with ‘Christmas’ appearing in just under 14% of all enquiries. This is over double the amount we saw in August and a 3% rise on this time last year.

A lot of the festive requests are for ‘gift guides’, with that phrase cropping up in nearly 9% of enquiries last month. ‘Advent calendars’ are also popular, with 3.5% of journalists looking to review them. It also meant big increases for the consumer-focused categories on the Enquiry Service with Children & Teenagers seeing a 44% increase between August and September, 39% for Men’s Interest, 31% for Food & Drink, and 21% for Women’s Interest & Beauty.

Going forward? October is usually the most popular month for ‘Christmas’ content on the Journalist Enquiry Service. Last year, 18% of enquiries were for festive material. The majority of journalists will be looking for gift guide products and advent calendars, as well as Christmas events, decorations, and recipes. You could get media coverage in The Guardian, Good Housekeeping, The Independent, or The Sun.

Autumnal advice, mental health experts, and fashion in focus

Seasonal content is frequently requested on the Journalist Enquiry Service and the change of season has seen nearly 4% of journalists in September including the keyword ‘Autumn’. The topics have varied from interiors to wellbeing, to staycations, and beauty products for the new season.

Fashion has also featured in the Autumn requests and on its own as a keyword appeared in just under 4% of the requests. This is possibly linked to the London Fashion Week taking place. 2% of enquiries in October were also for ‘mental health’, with journalists looking to get expert opinion and advice ahead of World Mental Health Day on 10 October.

Going forward? Now that we are firmly into Autumn, journalists often send requests about heating and how to stay warm in colder months, plus skincare advice, and what to do with your garden during this season. Have expert commentary ready and there is the potential to feature in The Metro, The Times, Ideal Home, and The Daily Telegraph – journalists from all of these outlets sent requests last month about ‘Autumn’.

Other opportunities for PRs in October and beyond

While both still a little way off, Bonfire night (5 November) and Black Friday (29 November) are approaching. Journalists will be looking for the best places to watch fireworks and any related events, plus the best deals and offers on at different retailers for Black Friday.

The Health category, which had an 8% increase between August and September, could rise further as October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and includes World Menopause Day (18 October). Experts in these fields could get media coverage as a result. Food & Drink should also perform well again as a category with International Chefs Day (20 October) and World Pasta Day (25 October). Have chefs ready to interview, and pasta recipes to share.

To connect with the media on these topics, and much more, check out the Journalist Enquiry Service and the Vuelio Media Database.

Find out more about how Vuelio can help you gain and track your coverage in the media here.

What trade can learn from brands

What trade can learn from brands: How to raise your media profile through media evaluation

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Vuelio was a proud sponsor of the Trade Association Forum’s Best Practice Exchange 2024, a space for professionals across UK trade associations to share sector insights and predictions for what lies ahead.

Want to raise the profile of your organisation or association in the UK media? Check out advice shared during the Vuelio masterclass on what can be learned from big brands, including client stories to illustrate use cases adoptable for trade associations

Why learn from brands?

Sharing her expertise on how brands can amplify their message in such a saturated media landscape was Vuelio’s head of account management Katharine Feltwell, who talked tactics for cutting through the noise.

Raising your media profile masterclass

‘There are clear similarities between brands and trade associations,’ said Katharine.

‘Where the customers drive the revenue for brands, members drive the revenue for trade associations.

‘Where the brands make their money through customers purchasing their consumer products, trade associations make their money through members buying into things such as training and events.

‘Brands strive for a clear brand identity against their competitors, and trade associations strive to develop a brand identity which is industry linked.’

Key differences to consider:

‘Brands are usually the most well-off organisations. They tend to have the most financial freedom to be seen as early adopters of new tech and trends. As they are consumer facing, they generally have more competition and can have to try harder to be the loudest voice in the room to have the most commercial or b2b impact.’

The key challenges of amplifying your voice?

Katharine shared challenges frequently faced by industry clients who want to amplify their voice in the media, highlighting:

– Difficulties in ensuring messaging is both cohesive and concise
– A lack of audience consideration and understanding
– Struggles with rebuilding trust once it has been lost.

In light of these, how can trade associations facing the same issues overcome them?

Understanding your audience and where to aim your comms

Katharine shared two case studies from her experiences aiding clients in getting their messages out to the world, the first being a top 100 charity based in the UK who successfully reached its target audience with its comms.

Starting right at the ideation stage, the charity didn’t know who to contact with its story, or which publications should be in its target outlet list for coverage.

‘Ensuring a not-for-profit budget is channelled in the best direction, with the best return, is of utmost importance,’ said Katharine.

‘This charity wanted to work smarter not harder, and put its effort into reaching specific key audiences rather than just shooting wide and hoping for the best. This particular charity had five different audiences of financial donors that it wanted to reach, spanning from so-called “traditional wealth” to “concerned neighbour”.

‘We focused on something the charity already knew – its own donor personas.’

By enhancing Vuelio’s own analysis with the audience intelligence of sister company Pulsar, it was possible to understand which media and social profiles these personas would engage with – and the ‘traditional’ publications they may read – resulting in a robust list of media to target with messaging.

‘Every month, our team of analysts work together to create a report for this charity. These reports delve into what topics resonate best with each target audience. I.e. Do fundraising case studies appear more commonly in the types of publications that “concerned neighbours” read rather than “traditional wealth”? Is the “traditional wealth” demographic is mostly interested in the policy change stories?

‘If you are starting from the very beginning of your strategy and are not sure where to start – begin with something that you already know, or expertise you already have, and work backwards to your end goal.

‘As a trade association, you will have incredible amounts of industry data from your members. This is powerful information that can help shape your media activities.’

How to cut through the noise with your comms

Want to be seen as a leader in your industry sector? Learn from the story of an international bank that wanted to share its ESG credentials in the media, without incurring greenwashing accusations (a pitfall many brands have fallen foul of over the last few years).

‘What we did for this client was to provide a status quo report,’ said Katharine.

‘Our team of analysts examined a group of six international banks (themselves included) and the tactics used when talking about each element of ESG; which ones resulted in a positive and neutral result versus negative coverage, and where the reach was the highest.

‘We created an eight-page report filled with charts, graphs, and written analysis, finding that banks that relied heavily on press releases, blog content, and quotes from CEOs did not see the largest volume of high quality, high reaching positive/neutral coverage.

‘Instead, those who focused on press announcements of actionable changes made the most splash. Actions speak louder than words when it comes to creating a credible ESG profile as a bank – sweeping statements do not work.’

The client pivoted to communicating actions, and has gone on to win multiple sustainability awards.

‘Learn from other people’s mistakes and victories and craft your plan based on what has already happened in the story so far,’ said Katharine.

Key takeaways to remember when elevating your voice

– Simplicity is key when it comes to working smarter not harder
– Look around you and think about the voices that are already loud on your chosen topic – what is and isn’t working for them?
– Create your ideal audience from information you already hold, analysis of external channels, and the right support
– Once you have decided what ‘good’ looks like for you, consistent tracking of your performance against goals will ensure lasting success

‘Doing these four things will allow you to create your own bespoke playbook for managing your own reputation,’ advised Katharine.

‘This ultimately will enable you to take this strategy whatever may come your way – be it a curve ball from the Government where you have to amplify your external voice at pace, or a positive opportunity for change.’

Learn more about Vuelio’s Media Monitoring and Insights solutions, and Pulsar’s audience intelligence tools, for sharing your organisation’s story and successes.

What journalists want this Autumn

What the UK media are looking for in September and beyond

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Looking for insight on what journalists will be covering in September? What will make the news isn’t always predictable, but the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service can give a strong indication of what will be trending and popular with the press.

Below, we analyse what journalists have been requesting from PRs during August and shed light on what we expect them to be sending enquiries for this month and beyond.

Christmas content in demand

In July, we saw the first flurry of ‘Christmas’ requests. August saw a more substantial covering as over 6.5% of requests contained the word last month.

The majority of enquiries in August were focused on gift guides. This meant lots of requests for review products. However, we also saw journalists looking for Christmas decorations, throwing a successful Christmas party and festive events taking place around the UK.

Going forward? September 2023 saw the amount of Christmas requests double from the August number and we would expect similar numbers again this year. Gift guides and advent calendars will likely be the most in demand. Journalists from The Independent, PA Media, Country Living and Prima all sent enquiries last month, presenting opportunities to get featured in high profile media titles.

Summer season falls into Autumn

A lot of media professionals use the Journalist Enquiry Service to source seasonal content and August saw a shift from requests for ‘Summer’ towards ‘Autumn’. 2.5% of the total enquiries last month were for ‘Summer’ but this was surpassed by ‘Autumn’ which appeared in just over 3% of journo asks.

These encompass all sorts of topics and angles, and included health and wellbeing, fashion, home decor, fitness, and recipes. Journalists from The Daily Express, Good Homes, Bella, The i Paper and Sunday Brunch all sent requests last month.

Going forward? Topics such as getting your garden ready for Autumn, changing your wardrobe for the new season, and health concerns as we head into the colder months are all common requests around this time. Make sure you have gardening and fashion experts ready and doctors and health professionals to comment on these areas.

Four day work week, winter fuel payment, and AI

UK politics is always a focus for the media, even more now with the change of government. Topical issues like the proposed four day working week, the cuts to the winter fuel payment, and changes to pensions have all been the subject of enquiries by journalists during August.

‘Work’ proved popular as a keyword, appearing in over 3% of enquiries, and ‘pension’ cropped up in over 1%. ‘AI’ also regularly performs well on the service and in August even more than usual as 5% of the total requests included the topic. That could be in part due to the Government’s plans to scrap funding for an AI project.

Going forward? September in the UK is annual Party Conference season and journalists will be keen to cover the major policies and announcements. If you have political commentators as clients then have them ready to provide comment – you could get coverage in titles such as The Times, Metro and Reuters. Information and experts on AI are also likely to get write-ups, as it remains a popular topic to cover in the media.

Other opportunities for PRs in September and beyond

Halloween is just over six weeks away and journalists are always keen to cover it. Requests are usually for products to review such as costumes or party decorations. This presents a good opportunity to get items featured.

Fashion experts are likely to be in demand with London Fashion Week (12-17 September). Fitness proved popular in September 2023 with nearly 3% of requests containing the keyword, likely linked to National Fitness Day, coming up on 25 September this year. We also expect the Food & Drink category to get lots of enquiries, with many towns and cities holding events for Oktoberfest. If you have experts or information about this, relevant journalists will want to hear about it.

To connect with the media on these topics, and much more, check out the Journalist Enquiry Service and the Vuelio Media Database.

Find out more about how Vuelio can help you gain and track your coverage in the media here.

PR winners at the Paris Olympics

Winners and losers: Who placed on the PR podium for the 2024 Olympics?

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There are no medals for PR at the Olympics (yet), but comms teams across the world were busy bigging-up sponsorships and superstar athletes throughout the 2024 event in Paris. Which PR campaigns were successful and deserving of plaudits, and which could have done better?

With the Paralympics (and a whole new load of PR moments) on the way, here is our overview of what worked, and what didn’t, at this year’s Olympics…

Our gold medal goes to… cheese

Probably an unsurprising choice (if you’ve been online at all throughout the games) is Italian gymnast Giorgia Villa’s partnership with cheese brand Parmigiano Reggiano. Sponsored by the cheese since 2021, Villa’s past photoshoot with wheels of the good stuff was rediscovered by X users at the end of July, to widespread joy and social virality.

X post about Giorgia Villa sponsorship

As said by one X user: ‘Dunno how much the Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese Consortium has been paying Giorgia Villa since this deal was arranged in 2021 but they’re certainly getting their money’s worth this week’.

Will Villa further build her own brand with other tie-ins, like Usain Bolt, George Forman, and Mo Farah have in recent years? It’s a solid PR strategy for sportspeople, and the brands they work with, for getting attention online and press coverage.

Silver goes to… Mongolia’s opening ceremony uniform

Way before the serious sporting even started for this year’s Olympics games, competition was rife among the countries taking part… around the release of their uniforms.

While Team USA had tagged in fashion heavy-hitter Ralph Lauren to clothe their competing athletes, it was Mongolia’s uniform that received the majority of attention online, as shown by analysis of social and news platforms using Pulsar.

Olympic uniforms in the spotlight

A common feeling among the takes on Mongolia’s uniform – positivity for the nods to tradition, careful crafting, and textile choices.

X post about Mongolia's Olympic's uniform for 2024

Reaction to the US’s uniform – perceived laziness for the choice of ‘dated’ brand Ralph Lauren.

X post comparing Olympic uniforms

Mongolia’s uniform got the public talking, with pleasant surprise. All this, despite the lack of a big PR and comms function behind the team.

When looking at brands involved in the Paris Olympics, Ralph Lauren received plenty of mentions on social and news write-ups – both prior to and post-competition – much of it negative.

Brand buzz before and after the Olympic opening ceremony

There’s a lesson here for those tasked with tie-ins and team-ups for the upcoming 2028 Olympics: find out what your intended audience actually wants to see by researching their interests. Integrating cultural relevance into branding was effective in this case. Well-researched choices can spark those watching at home – an average of 30.6 million people watched coverage of the Paris Olympics on Comcast Corp.’s US media outlets, by the way – to dive into the conversation.

Bronze goes to…Snoop Dogg and Flavor Flav

Bringing ‘delight to the games’, as reported by The Guardian, was superstar Snoop Dogg, who served as a special correspondent for NBC’s Olympics programming.

Plenty of celebrities featured at the Paris Olympics – including, confusingly, the Minions during the opening ceremony – but none got quite the same level of fondness in their press write-ups. Apart from Flavor Flav.

Fellow musician and memetic star Flav’s signing of a five-year sponsorship deal with the US women’s and men’s water polo teams, and help with landing sportspeople brand deals, has strengthened his profile. AND, more importantly, is sure to help more people of colour into the sport – a hope he shared during an interview with NPR.

And the ‘better luck next time’ award goes to… a well-intentioned misstep in memeing

Shout-out to the PRs who flagged this one – a brand post aimed at highlighting inspirational female athletes… with subtitles related to relationships.

‘I mean, it’s 2024, right? […] It’s sad to see this stereotype being used yet again. Are we not past the point of thinking women are only interested in men and relationships?’ was one take on LinkedIn. The company later deleted their Instagram post – a wise strategy when a piece of PR isn’t winning over the audience.

Want to connect with journalists who’ll be reporting from upcoming sporting events, and track your coverage? Try Vuelio’s Media Database and Media Monitoring.

Interactive content to boost coverage

How the creation of interactive content can help you gain coverage

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This is a guest post from Anna Morrish, director of Quibble. 

Whether you’re a startup or an established company, interactive content can provide substantial benefits and it’s not just for big brands to utilise and benefit from.

Understanding interactive content

Interactive content is any digital content that requires user participation. It includes quizzes, polls, surveys, calculators, games, assessments, and even AR (Augmented Reality) or VR (Virtual reality) experiences. The key is that it actively engages users, creating a memorable and personalised experience.

Why should your business invest in interactive content?

1. Enhances user engagement: Interactive content typically sees higher engagement rates than static content, on average 2x more conversions and 4-5x more pageviews than passive content, making it more likely to capture and hold your audience’s attention.
2. Builds trust and loyalty: By engaging users directly, interactive content fosters a sense of connection and investment, which can build trust and loyalty.
3. Improves SEO and PR: High engagement can lead to increased sharing and backlinking, boosting your SEO and attracting PR coverage.
4. Gathers valuable data: Interactive content can collect data on user preferences and behaviours, providing insights that can inform your marketing strategies.

Interactive content and digital PR

Digital PR in general is all about collaboration and building relationships. When diverse minds come together and share ideas, they create powerful stories that resonate and forge genuine connections in the digital world.

This approach is especially important when creating interactive content, as it allows a gathering of a wider range of thoughts and ideas from those with different skills and mindsets, including further insight into the technical considerations required when developing interactive content pieces.

Successful examples of interactive content

Let’s look at some real-world examples of how UK businesses are successfully using interactive content:

1.Gamification and Duolingo: Gamification is a powerful form of interactive marketing. It involves incorporating game elements and mechanics into non-game contexts to make them more engaging. The goal is to increase participation, interaction with the brand, and actions that achieve specific marketing objectives.

A prime example is Duolingo, a language eLearning tool that uses gamification to boost user engagement. Users build streaks, earn achievement badges and crowns, and climb higher on the leaderboard. The drive to compete and maintain an impressive streak are key motivators, demonstrating how gamification can effectively captivate and retain users.

2.USB Makers Data Transfer Speed Calculator: USB Makers develop customised USB drives, integrating unique designs and personalised branding to meet client needs. To promote their product they needed an engaging PR tool. Implementing an interactive calculator on their website, allowed users to easily estimate costs and select options, which significantly boosted user engagement and streamlined the ordering process. Over three months this calculator helped increase organic traffic by 50%, gain 250 new links and 700 new keywords.

3. Tesco’s ‘Food Love Stories’ Recipe Hub: Interactive content can be a game-changer for businesses looking to enhance their visibility and engage audiences, as demonstrated by Tesco’s award-winning ‘Food Love Stories’ campaign. This campaign, which earned the Cannes Lions award for media planning, stands as Tesco’s most effective effort to date, achieving a remarkable 38% year-over-year sales uplift and generating an additional £231 million in sales. The success was also reflected in an 18% increase in YouGov quality scores, with 75% of this improvement directly attributed to the campaign. By leveraging engaging and relatable stories, Tesco not only captured the attention of consumers but also drove significant commercial results, proving that interactive content can substantially elevate a brand’s presence and impact.

4.Thomas Cook and virtual reality: Thomas Cook revolutionised the travel booking experience with its ‘Try Before You Fly’ campaign, allowing users to virtually explore destinations such as the US, Greece, Singapore, and Egypt using Samsung Gear VR. Customers could virtually snorkel in Sharm-el-Sheikh, visit the pyramids in Egypt, or take a helicopter tour of Manhattan. This innovative campaign made Thomas Cook the first travel company globally to offer in-store virtual reality experiences. The results were impressive, with a 180% increase in NYC bookings, 500,000 YouTube views, an 11% increase in followers, and 22,000 competition entries, significantly boosting engagement and conversion rates.

5. Rebel Therapies and LinkedIn poll: Even smaller organisations can harness the power of interactive marketing. For instance, Rebel Therapies utilised a straightforward LinkedIn poll to foster engagement and raise awareness. Through this simple yet effective tactic, they not only garnered increased interaction but also gained valuable new contacts in the process. This demonstrates that interactive marketing strategies can be accessible and impactful for businesses of all sizes.

Boosting engagement through newsjacking in interactive content

Incorporating newsjacking strategies into your interactive content endeavours can further enhance engagement and relevance. By leveraging current events, trends, or breaking news in your interactive content, you can capture the attention of your audience and capitalise on the buzz surrounding these topics. For example, if there’s a viral challenge circulating on social media, you can create an interactive quiz or game that ties into the theme of the challenge. This not only increases the likelihood of your content being shared but also positions your brand as timely and in touch with the latest trends. Additionally, newsjacking allows you to inject personality and creativity into your interactive content, making it more memorable and impactful.

Creating interactive content on a budget

You don’t need a massive budget to create impactful interactive content. Here are some cost-effective ideas:

Social media contests: Host simple contests on platforms like Instagram or Facebook. Ask followers to share your post or tag friends to enter. This can increase engagement and grow your online community.

Quizzes and polls: Use tools like Typeform, Google Forms, or SurveyMonkey to create engaging quizzes or polls. These can provide valuable insights into your audience while entertaining them.

Calculators: Create useful calculators relevant to your industry. For instance, a mortgage calculator for real estate businesses or a calorie calculator for a fitness brand. Online tools and templates can help you build these with minimal investment.

Intermediate interactive content ideas

If you have a bit more budget, consider these options:

Interactive infographics: Combine data and design to create infographics that users can interact with. Platforms like Canva or Piktochart can help you design these affordably.

Interactive videos: Tools like Wistia or Vidyard allow you to create videos with clickable elements, branching narratives, or embedded quizzes. These can increase engagement and provide a more immersive experience.

Virtual try-ons: For fashion or beauty brands, virtual try-ons can be a game-changer. Use tools like ModiFace or YouCam Makeup to let customers try products virtually before they buy.

Advanced interactive content for bigger budgets

For those with more resources, consider these advanced interactive content types:

Custom games: Develop simple yet engaging games related to your brand. This can be a fun way to educate users about your products and encourage them to spend more time on your site.

Interactive storytelling: Create a narrative experience where users can choose their path. Tools like Twine or Unity can help you develop these interactive stories.

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR): Invest in AR or VR experiences that allow users to interact with your products in a virtual space. This can be particularly effective for industries like real estate, automotive, or retail.

Tips for creating effective interactive content

1. Start with clear goals: Understand what you want to achieve with your interactive content. Is it increased engagement, data collection, or brand awareness?

2. Keep it user-friendly: Ensure your interactive content is easy to use and accessible to your audience.

3. Promote your content: Share your interactive content across all your channels, including social media, email newsletters, and your website. Reach out to journalists and influencers who might be interested in sharing your content.

4. Measure success: Track engagement metrics and gather feedback to understand how your content is performing and where you can improve.

Conclusion

Interactive content stands as a formidable asset for any business seeking to expand its reach, foster engagement, and cultivate customer loyalty. Whether operating on a shoestring budget or with ample resources at hand, there exists a multitude of avenues to craft and capitalise on interactive content to great effect. Embark on your journey of exploration today and witness firsthand how interactive content can revolutionise your online presence.

Navigating the Green Claims Code blog

Are you following the Green Claims Code with your comms?

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A growing awareness of the impacts of climate change has meant greater accountability for PRs communicating company ESG credentials.

Alongside the potential for bad press if you’re doing it wrong are the dangers of falling foul of legislation – the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)’s Green Claims Code, this Autumn’s DMCC, and incoming EU regulations being just three possible pitfalls.

In our latest webinar ‘Navigating the Green Claims Code: How to avoid the pitfalls of greenwashing’, The Grocer’s editor-in-chief Adam Leyland explained the clampdowns, why your words matter, and how to communicate your credentials to the media.

The clampdown on ESG claims

‘Greenwashing has been going on for a long time – it’s rampant,’ said Adam.

‘In the FMCG space, sustainability-related terms are used liberally – words like ‘eco’, ‘green’, and ‘sustainable’ are scattered into comms. Sometimes this is innocent and well-meaning – linked to positive initiatives to minimise the impact on the environment. Sometimes it’s cynical and glib – and PRs are among the worst offenders.’

Is PR all bad, then? No, explained Adam.

‘The point is this is all relative. Using different packaging doesn’t make a product ‘green’. To make that claim now, you have to undertake some onerous lifecycle analysis of all aspects of the supply chain – packaging, sourcing, catching, energy, water, and what happens to it at the end of the cycle. It’s a difficult thing to make these claims when you have to be so exhaustive.’

While there have been rules set in place on sustainability to be aware of already – Trading Standards and International Standard ISO 14021, for example, Adam warned that ‘it’s only getting more onerous’.

‘The Green Claims Code was established in 2021; Autumn’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC) could mean great whacking fines – the pressure is on,’ said Adam.

‘The market is saying enough is enough. It’s unfair to claim you’re green and gain an economic advantage if you’re really not that green, or you’re being highly selective about it.

Why words matter

‘The reason I said that PRs are the worst offenders for greenwashing is because of the frequency of the stuff you’re putting out,’ explained Adam.

‘All brand marketers are looking for ways to make claims. But when you’re producing that many words, that frequently, things can slip out. It’s different with ads, which have to be ratified by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) – they’re going through a level of scrutiny before they go out.

‘With PR, you’ll see certain words everywhere – people pick journos up when we use these words, too.

‘“Ethical” is contentious, even words like “responsibility” come with difficulty. This also applies to images – leaves, skies, all these things that suggest a perfect world are under scrutiny.

‘Phrases like “saving the planet” – remember, the planet is going to be fine. It is lifeforms that are in danger from climate change. The planet will still be there, even if it’s a nuclear wasteland. We need to be careful with the words we use.’

Mistakes to avoid

On what not to do, Adam shared what the team see at The Grocer:

‘Setting targets, and then backtracking is incredibly embarrassing. You’ve traded on something you will do, rather than something you have done. That gives a halo that may not be warranted.’

‘Another issue is dressing up simply following rules and regulations, and putting out press releases about it.

‘Hyperbole isn’t good and neither is hypocrisy. Or glibness. But there are degrees of seriousness, and as much as I’ve been critical, there are worse things than trying to do something good, to reach for the stars and not be able to get there. There’s lying, there are cover-ups, and avoiding the truth – that is the worst form of PR, burying the truth.’

‘Sometimes brands get away with it, and sometimes they don’t.’

The difficulties of the Green Claims Code

‘While the principles of the code sound really simple, the truth is that practicing these principles is actually really difficult,’ said Adam.

‘There are those who don’t know where they’re going wrong. You have to avoid technical jargon while being clear and meaningful. It’s not that straightforward.’

What do journalists want from PRs on ‘green’ topics?

‘The first thing I’d say is honesty’ said Adam, highlighting an example of Abel & Cole rectifying a claim around recyclable packaging in an ad that ran in The Grocer.

‘This is where PR can disarm criticism – admitting that something you did was wrong’.

Abel & Cole went on to win a Grocer Gold Award for Sustainability Initiative of the Year.

‘There’s huge amounts of data needed, and PRs need access to toolkits, and business insights. Start with the data and then make your claim, not the other way around.’

‘Seemingly small things are interesting – we wrote about Quality Street changing their wrapping. We also wrote about British Snack Co working with Aquapak to produce recyclable packaging. You don’t have to make major claims.

‘There are marginal gains, little changes, that chime with the consumer.’

But be careful – as highlighted by Adam, even something as ‘small’ as teabags can come with greenwashing dangers. Moving from plastic? Claiming a teabag is sustainable also means double-checking the tea’s own lifecycle.

Reaching for the stars on ESG

‘I do have a concern for the future in terms of comms. And a concern for a lack of progress towards sustainable development goals. I worry that people will only change because of legislation,’ said Adam.

‘But I think there is a competitive advantage in reaching for the stars with comms. It requires you to do the work on transparency, on data, because without that you can’t take action.

‘If you stop communicating with shoppers, it makes it harder for them to know what’s more sustainable. Those who do the right thing, try to lessen their impact on the environment, and communicate what they’re doing clearly, honestly, and carefully, will be those that flourish.’

For more on PR’s part in ESG, download the Vuelio white paper ‘The perception of PR in sustainability communications: How to avoid greenwashing and be an advocate for change’.

Journalist Enquiry Service overview July 2024

Political commentators, destination experts, and sports professionals: What the media are looking for in July

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Want to get your clients featured in the media in July? While the General Election has been the media’s focus for the last six weeks – and will be a priority for a while yet – there are plenty of other opportunities for coverage, and the ResponseSource Journalist Enquiry Service is a good gauge for what is trending. Here is what journalists have been requesting throughout June, and what we predict their focus will be in July.

General Election fallout

Unsurprisingly, ‘election’ became a popular keyword on the Journalist Enquiry Service, appearing in 2% of all enquiries in May, growing to 2.5% in June.

Journalists focused on gathering interviews, and the viewpoints of CEOs and leaders from different sectors, including technology, retail, and business. There have also been requests for information on tactical voting, analysis of the manifestos, and for an expert to comment on election marketing and advertising.

Going forward? Journalists will most likely be looking for expert comment on what to expect from the new Government, the impact on the public, and the economy. The Times, The Independent, Reuters, and ITV News all sent requests concerning the election in June, giving an opportunity to feature you or your client in the national news now.

Summer holidays and gardening remain popular

‘Summer’ was the top keyword on the Journalist Enquiry Service for a second month in a row, as it featured in 9.5% of all requests. This is also an 8% increase compared to this time last year, maybe a sign that we’re in for some better weather as well? ‘Holidays’ cropped up in just over 3% of the enquiries in June this year. ‘Gardening’ proved even more popular as it appeared in 5.5%, and this is a 51% increase compared to June 2023.

Requests around ‘summer’ varied widely last month with everything from fashion to health to skincare to food and drink. The enquiries about ‘holidays’ tended to look more for travel experts and information on places or activities for the school summer holidays. Journalists sending requests about ‘gardening’ were primarily looking for experts to give tips and advice.

Going forward? Journalists will be looking for gardening experts and travel experts/information on destinations, so have these clients ready to engage with these media coverage opportunities.The nature of summer requests are harder to predict, but fashion experts could be needed to comment on the best clothing to wear and health advice/information on what to do to stay cool during warmer temperatures. Journalists from The Guardian, The Sun, The Daily Telegraph, Homes & Gardens, and Woman’s Own all sent requests on these three topics last month.

Other opportunities for PRs in July and beyond

It’s just a couple of weeks until the Olympics starts in Paris and in June, just under 1% of all enquiries featured ‘Olympics’. This will receive a lot more traction this month as we approach the games, with journalists looking for former athletes and sports professionals to interview. ‘Euro’s’ has also featured as a keyword and if England continue to progress in the tournament, journalists will likely look for information on the best places to watch the matches, as well as the impact it could have on the economy. Both of these events, plus Wimbledon as well, means sports spokespeople will be in high demand from journalists.

There are several food and drink related days this month including World Chocolate Day (7 July), National Hot Dog Day (19 July) and the whole of July is National Ice Cream Month. Journalists could be looking for food experts to give related recipes and advice. Finally, while school will only just be finishing, the media will begin in July to look for information on back to school items. This could be for uniform, stationery, lunch boxes, and more. This will gain in popularity throughout July and into August, so have the information you need prepared to send to journalists and get media coverage in both national press and consumer media.

To connect with the media on these topics, and much more, check out the Journalist Enquiry Service and the Vuelio Media Database.

Find out more how Vuelio can help you gain and track your coverage in the media here.

Reform UK manifesto release

Reform UK releases ‘contract’ manifesto – what was the press and public reaction?

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By Phoebe-Jane Boyd, Dahye Lee, and Ingrid Marin. 

After a wave of manifesto releases last week, Reform UK have released their ‘contract’ for the UK General Election.

In rebranding the manifesto as a ‘contract’, and repositioning the vote for country leadership as ‘the immigration election’, have Farage’s efforts to distinguish his party from its competitors, and get people talking, made an impact?

Here is analysis of the UK General Election 2024 conversation across online and print news, TV, radio, and podcasts as well as TikTok, Threads, Facebook, blogs, and forums, from midday 17 June, as we map the media and audience reaction.

What topics cut through the conversation regarding Reform UK’s manifesto?

Reform UK manifesto reactoin

Reform UK’s manifesto/’contract’ has significantly impacted one theme – immigration. As anticipated by anyone paying attention to Farage’s media appearances, the data shows just how much the topic has cut through into the public consciousness – immigration (+15.04%) emerges as a critical topic.

The party’s primary commitment to freeze what it has branded ‘non-essential’ immigration, and deport individuals crossing the Channel in small boats, has dominated the news coverage alongside the switch to the ‘contract’ nomenclature.

Perhaps surprisingly, this narrative has gained momentum on TikTok – the home of Gen Z – through Channel 4’s coverage, amplifying engagement among younger supporters of the Reform UK party.

Reform UK on TikTok

While conversation across other social media platforms has been comparatively quiet in comparison to that of other parties, Labour supporters – particularly vocal pro-Palestinian activists – have passionately engaged with Reform UK’s immigration agenda. This segment of social media users are actively positioning Labour as the antidote to Reform UK’s potential influence on the 2029 election.

Stand up to racism tweet

Energy and sustainability, largely overlooked in Reform UK’s pre-manifesto discussions, have also come into focus with a modest increase (+1.02%). The controversial move to abandon Net Zero goals in favor of bolstering fossil fuels has been extensively covered by the press, including BBC, ITV, LBC, and Sky News, alongside the party’s core policy pledges.

The practicalities of Reform UK’s manifesto – will it help the party’s chances at the voting booths this year?

The ‘contract’ was ambitious and could be considered somewhat scattergun in its policies – perhaps a reflection of Reform UK’s diverse voter base. Reform committed to around £140bn in spending commitments and tax cuts including raising income tax thresholds; abolishing stamp duty; tax relief for independent schools; and abolishing inheritance tax for all estates under £2 million. The party revealed this would be funded through £156 billion in savings in public spending and an assumption of increased tax revenue from higher growth.

These plans have drawn criticism around credibility, with the Institute for Fiscal Studies noting that Reform’s tax cuts and spending commitments would cost more than stated. Meanwhile, the Tax Policy Associates observed that £33bn of Reform’s commitments were found to be uncosted – this amounts to nearly double the unfunded commitments in Liz Truss’s mini-budget.

Concerns around the fiscal credibility of Reform UK’s manifesto are maybe not so important, however. A recent poll by Ipsos revealed that a significant portion of voters do not believe the main parties will be able to fund their own manifesto commitments anyway. The poll showed that 50% did not believe Labour could afford their plans, while 62% thought the Conservatives’ plans were unaffordable. 57% were not confident in the affordability of the Liberal Democrats plans either.

Perhaps this best encapsulates the relative apathy in the UK right now regarding choices at the 2024 General Election: with the UK facing significant economic and political challenges in the forthcoming years, a majority of voters do not believe that the main parties’ manifestos can deliver.

Could Farage’s warning during the 7 June TV debate that change is on the way, with support for Reform UK set to grow, prove true?

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