This year three of our team – Nick, Emma and Becky – attended the CIPR Midlands Conference to get the latest insights. With four keynote speakers and nine breakout sessions, the day was full of thought-provoking sessions covering everything from broadcast to big tech, and crisis management to coaching.  

This year’s theme was ‘Future-focused: The evolution of PR’, so naturally there was a lot of excitement about where the industry was heading, as well as discussion about the key challenges it’s facing.  

Here’s our top takeaways on the future of PR and… 

…AI  

While it may feel like most PRs are focused on how AI may impact quality copywriting (the spike in dashes on LinkedIn posts has been noted…) it also offers a huge opportunity. AI is still widely distrusted and PR, the strength of which lies in building third party credibility, can be strategically wielded to improve the output of large language models.  

For example, many people now use ChatGPT to decide whether to purchase a product, as it can quickly summarise hundreds of reviews. AI chatbot sources are often earned media, primarily in premium titles, whereas a traditional Google search wouldn’t often prioritise a news site’s review over a website like Quora or Reddit where anyone can share their opinion. As users make the switch from search engines to chatbots, the value of editorial coverage will increase.  

…Westminster  

The wheels of devolution are picking up momentum and soon a huge number of areas will become combined authorities and have their own mayors. For the political PRs and lobbyists, while Westminster will still be an area of focus, the importance of the regions is only going to grow. Mayors’ jobs exist to represent the interests of their communities – businesses and individuals – so the opportunity to use them as a tool for political engagement is only going to grow.  

The Lobbying Act, which governs what public affairs pros can (and cannot) do when engaging in political persuasion is well due an upgrade. This is something that certainly could be on the cards for the near future. 

…Diversity, Equality and Inclusion (DEI) 

DEI is moving away from being merely policies and paperwork, newer employees are expecting a  ‘human’ aspect. It’s important for businesses to have conversations with employees to ensure that they are being properly supported, so don’t be scared to ask for feedback.  

Not all differences are visible, and it can be scary for employees to open up about their protected characteristics or background. Creating an environment where they feel they can open up and discuss these is key to ensuring that nobody is missed.  

…Paid, owned and social channels  

A lot of focus has been given to understanding the difference between the different marketing and comms disciplines. However instead of spending so much energy on putting strict borders between each of them, it’s time to accept that each one supports the other and, ultimately, they all need to be aligned and integrated.  

Comms is starting to move away from the separate approaches, and the most successful campaigns currently are often ones with multiple interwoven strands. Each discipline has its own strengths and should be dialled up or down according to need. For example, what earned media lacks in guarantee – you can’t necessarily control when or if an article will be published – it makes up for in credibility that money can’t buy or paid media what it lacks in trust from the consumer, it makes up for in amplification. The time of working in a silo is over. 

…The Midlands  

And finally, the biggest impression from the day was just how many talented, inspiring PR and comms professionals are based in the Midlands. For a long time, getting a PR or comms job meant upping sticks and moving to London, however the hundreds of attendees showed firsthand this is not the case. 

Pearl Comms is proudly based in Birmingham and it’s exciting to see the industry we’re passionate about thrive in our hometown. We can’t wait to see what’s on the agenda next year!