The year 2021 was a challenging one, no doubt influenced by the continued lingering pandemic. The past year in public relations and the Good One PR agency is summed up by Ewelina Pulawska.
Important developments
Research by the EXACTO team confirms that the industry public relations rebuilds stability despite the pandemic crisis. In 2020, we were learning to work remotely and hybrid. For many companies, even in our industry, this was new. Surprised by the change forced by the pandemic, we tried to find our way smoothly into the new reality. Over the past year, this type of work has become standard. A standard that has been refined and adopted as the new norm.
At the same time, internal communication in companies improved, which in the current situation required a refreshed approach and reaching for new tools. This was helped by the digital transformation, which has greatly accelerated in Polish companies. Pandemic has made it a top priority and taught us that in order to succeed, we need to be not only customer-focused, but also open to change.
New developments/surprises
Market influencer marketing is developing at a surprisingly fast pace. The number of campaigns carried out in collaboration with online creatives is increasing, as is the quality of the benefits offered. At the same time, mega- and macro-influencers have started to lose the interest of brands to micro- and nano-influencers. The priority continues to be on authenticity, an engaged community and the right fit.
The activities of influencers are being looked at by UOKiK in 2021. The authority wants to tidy up the market for sponsored material - checking that creators label advertising content appropriately and do not mislead their audience. The investigation is currently still underway and the first significant change in this area is already visible - influencers are far more likely to visibly label materials created in collaboration with brands. The OCCP will also check whether influencers are promoting scams of the scam type. After all, influencers have an impact on the behaviour and mental health of their audience, so it is important that they use this to good effect. I see this as an important step towards the professionalisation of the market.
Disappointments
A definite disappointment of the past year was the communication related to the COVID-19 vaccination and the inept fight against fake news, of which there was particularly a lot on this topic. Educating the public should have been a priority here. Unfortunately, looking at how many people are vaccinated in Poland and how these numbers differ from other European countries, I rate these communication activities as the biggest disappointment of last year.
In this context, it is also worth mentioning the very strong and committed anti-vaccine movement, which can often be a challenge for those in charge of brand image.
Good One PR
2021 was our agency's twelfth year on the market and our second in the new, pandemic reality. We continued to combine remote work with creative meetings in the office, where we could exchange ideas and good energy in addition to coffee talks. Teamwork and understanding the client's needs are key for us.
We are delighted with the tenders we won last year, e.g. for Coccodrillo, Glosel (Bee.pl and TaniaKsiazka.pl brands) or HempKing, and even more pleased with another year of activities with our existing clients, such as Wurth Polska, Manufaktura Czekolady Chocolate Story, Kontigo, Speedmail, Novakid or BookEdit, among others. We completed several project collaborations and, for another year in a row, we carried out pro bono activities for the Culture Without Barriers Foundation.
Our team has expanded with more great specialists. We ended 2020 with a team of 9 people, today these people are already 12. No less important is the development within the agency itself. In 2021, the following people were promoted in the company's structures: Ewelina Jaskuła and Ilona Rutkowska took up the positions of Account Manager, Jakub Macyszyn became Account Executive and Grzegorz Koper and Anna Bukowska became Junior Account Executive.
Industry awards
In 2020, we had our debut in the PR industry's biggest competition, the Golden Clips. Last year, we once again took part in it and also submitted a sweetheart deal that we realised crowdfunding campaign Las Vegan's. It was awarded a Gold Clip in the 'food sector' category and a Bronze Clip in 'financial PR and investor relations'. In turn, in the new PR Wings industry competition, it won first place in the 'effectiveness of the year' category and an award in the 'PR innovation of the year - next generation campaign' category. This is great recognition of our work by an independent panel of public relations industry experts.
In the Kantar Polska survey, we continue to be one of the best-rated agencies, where, overall, clients particularly appreciate the standard of service, cooperation with us and media relations. And let's hope it stays that way!
