2026 PR and Comms Trends: What Leaders Need To Know
A summary of the insights and trend observations from our recent Comms Carousel event, featuring key advice our team shared with marcomms leaders as they plan for 2026.
The 2026 Shift
Over the past year, the comms landscape has changed dramatically. Audiences are overwhelmed from the influx of content, namely AI-generated material. The media environment is oversaturated too, and journalists are receiving a constant barrage of formulaic, machine-written pitches. Inside organisations, teams are navigating broader responsibilities while operating with tighter budgets. It’s getting harder to cut through the noise.
With this in mind, we sat down with nine marketing and comms leaders for our inaugural “Comms Carousel” event to discuss the challenges they are facing going into 2026 strategy planning, as well as the opportunities on the horizon. There was a clear thread throughout the sessions: Brands that communicate with clarity, insight and confidence are gaining a distinct advantage. They build trust more easily, they earn stronger media opportunities and they are better positioned to engage with the issues shaping their markets.
We also see this in our day-to-day work with corporate and consumer teams. The organisations that maintain a steady, thoughtful drumbeat of content and campaigns are the ones pulling ahead. As Liam, our Director of Content, noted during our session, “PR tests your content against a tough audience. You can publish anything on your own channels, but media scrutiny forces clarity and quality.”
So what does it take to produce this kind of work, and where should comms and marketing leaders focus their energy in the year ahead?
Here are the top insights shared at our recent Comms Carousel event:
Narrative Consolidation
Leadership Visibility as a Growth Driver
Data-led PR in a Noisy Media Landscape
Precision over Volume
Planning Maturity
Aligning PR Strategy with Business Objectives
Partnering with the Right Strategic PR Agency
1. Narrative Consolidation: Building one coherent story
Many organisations are trying to tell several stories at once. This creates confusion both inside and outside the organisation. In 2026, gaining clarity should be top priority. Audiences are looking for simplicity and coherence. Journalists need a clear angle they can use. Search engines and LLMs are focused on content that builds a consistent and authoritative view.
A unified narrative gives the whole business a foundation to work from. It supports stronger PR, aligns messaging and helps teams communicate more confidently.
Strong narrative development often includes:
one central organising idea (the brand pillars, or “trunk”)
adapted versions for specific audience groups (the “branches”)
shared proof points and language
internal agreement on how the story should be expressed
As Liam said to one of the CMOs in the room, “The real value of pushing for earned media is that it forces your message to become sharper. Getting something past an editor makes your narrative stronger everywhere else.” This is why developing and testing key brand messages really matters across every channel.
There is also a growing technical advantage. Jen, our Head of Marketing, shared that “Long-form, high-quality earned media is a core component of a strong GEO strategy, with LLMs favouring authoritative content.” A clear and well-structured narrative is now critical not only for human audiences but for how AI retrieves and interprets information.
2. Leadership Visibility as a Growth Driver
Leadership visibility continues to become more influential. Individual voices attract more engagement on social platforms, journalists look for real, credible expert perspectives and customers often respond more positively to leaders who communicate with transparency and purpose.
Many founders and executives are still building confidence, particularly when it comes to media interviews or public commentary. And that’s okay, it can take time. What matters is building up to a steady, authentic rhythm.
To develop confidence, consider:
Building a bank of pre-prepared comments on topical subjects
Regular media training with supportive experts
The content to create:
Film short explainers as video content for social media
Write or film Q&As, with a focus on simplifying technical subjects
Publish a couple of lines of opinion / commentary on news stories
Founders who lean into their expertise can create significant momentum. Chanel Townsend, PR Consultant, shared that, “Founder expertise unlocks a steady stream of credible content. It strengthens visibility and helps position the brand as a trusted voice in its space.”
3. Data-Led PR in a Noisy Media Landscape
The media landscape is crowded, and LLMs prioritise content that pairs evidence with interpretation. In this environment, stories grounded in data stand out more.
Organisations often hold far more insight than they realise. There will be a plethora of data at your fingertips that can shape compelling stories. As Con, our Director of Client, pointed out, “Your internal data is gold. Understanding customer behaviour and patterns gives you powerful, unique stories for PR.”
Sources of insight that are often underused include:
proprietary datasets
customer or user trends
case studies with measurable outcomes
small directional surveys to mailing lists or in-app
recurring questions or pain points raised by buyers
We have written countless reports and whitepapers for our clients, using internal data as well as commissioning our research partners to collect data. When it comes to the latter, it’s important to be thoughtful in shaping the brief to strategically build the narrative.
4. Precision over Volume
Many teams are feeling the pressure to communicate across more channels, pursue more press and create more content. Yet the most effective results often come from focusing attention where it matters most. Precision creates impact. Broad activity spreads teams thin without necessarily reaching the right people. Con advised one CMO to, “Find out where your audience spends time, what they read, what they trust. Then build your PR around that insight.”
Focused strategies often involve:
selecting a limited number of media titles and journalists that actually influence your audience
tailoring content for specific buyer personas
producing detailed or technical stories for the experts
creating small communities or become leading voices within in-person or online groups, like forums
Liam urged that “National coverage isn’t always the goal. What actually moves the dial is coverage that reaches the right customers, with the right message - not the biggest masthead.” Precision gives teams the ability to deliver stronger results with fewer resources.
5. Planning Maturity
Operational consistency is becoming as important as creative strength. Many teams struggle with last-minute content, slow approvals or unclear measures of progress. A more mature planning approach makes strategy easier to execute and drives steady results.
To invest in structure, consider key activities such as:
prepare monthly or quarterly editorial themes
align stakeholders by mapping out the content workflow from ideation → review → approval → release
offer media training for spokesperson readiness
Another core component of this is contextual awareness, as Con put it: “It is vital to consider the wider societal context of the business and brand. PR must account for the political and cultural environment in which stories land.” An important planning exercise as we head into a new year is to review the geopolitical landscape to identify and plan around the key ‘flashpoints’.
Con also highlighted that preparedness matters as well. “Prepare expert commentary ahead of time and build it into the plan so the organisation is ready for reactive opportunities.” This approach helps teams participate in news cycles with confidence rather than scrambling when an opportunity appears.
6. Aligning PR Strategy With Business Objectives
PR becomes significantly more effective when it aligns closely with the organisation’s commercial aims. Different goals require tailored approaches.
For example:
organisations seeking trust benefit from insight-led PR and strong spokesperson development
teams driving pipeline often see results from highly targeted, buyer-specific communication
companies pursuing market authority gain traction with long-form editorial and consistent thought leadership
organisations focused on investor or partner confidence rely on visible leadership
When strategy begins with clear objectives, the right actions naturally follow.
7. Partnering with the Right Strategic PR Agency
Internal teams are being asked to do more with less, all while navigating a more crowded and unpredictable communications landscape. In this environment, a strategic PR partner can provide the direction needed to keep activity purposeful and aligned to commercial priorities.
A strong partnership can help:
Sharpen the strategy - External perspective makes it easier to refine messages, stress-test ideas and shape a clear point of view that aligns with commercial objectives.
Sustain momentum - When teams are stretched, the steady flow of content and storytelling is often what slips first. A partner helps surface ideas early, keep programmes moving and ensures activity remains focused and timely.
Share a broader view of the market - Agencies see what journalists respond to across sectors and can advise on which narratives, angles or channels are worth the effort. This helps teams prioritise actions that are more likely to drive impact, rather than getting stuck in reactive mode.
As Jonathan, Rosely Group Managing Director, shared, “A good agency does not increase noise. It helps the organisation express itself with clarity.”
The right partner adds structure, judgement and direction, supporting internal teams to deliver communications that drive real impact.
Conclusion: The 2026 Mandate
The organisations that succeed in 2026 will communicate with intention and coherence. They will establish a strong narrative, support their leaders, use insight effectively and focus their efforts where they have the greatest influence. They will also build the planning structures and partnerships that enable them to act with confidence and agility.
With these capabilities in place, brands are well positioned to shape conversations, earn trust and build lasting commercial momentum throughout 2026.
