The start of a new year is a good time to focus on industry forecasts, and to reflect on the successes and challenges of the past 12 months.
In 2019, we have seen internal changes and a further maturation of the PR industry itself. One important development in this context is the new formula and development of the PSPR, which aims to effectively integrate our environment. In particular, the reactivation of the Public Relations Ethics Council is worth mentioning here, which confirms the growing awareness of watching over ethical standards in our industry. The very prestige and essence of PR is also increasing, as evidenced, for example, by the introduction of this category to the Effie.
PR itself and the PR profession is evolving towards holistic, integrated communication. Thus, the PR professional is slowly becoming a man-orchestrator with a wide range of competences, versed not only in his 'mother' field, but also in SEO and SEM, social media communication or influencer marketing. There are no apologies. The PR profession requires constant acquisition of knowledge, information and staying up-to-date. And so, the big surprise, not only for those in our industry, was the news in the last quarter of the past year, namely the disappearance of Marquard Media's press titles from the market. This shows how ruthless the laws of the modern media market are.
In terms of channels and tools, in 2019 we could see the first attempts of brands to communicate on TikTok. For the moment, it is still an unknown, exotic land for many, but the next few months will certainly bring increased traffic for companies on the aforementioned service. Instead, companies understand influencer marketing better and better. The category continues to grow at a very impressive rate, and more and more entities are hiring individuals or even creating entire departments solely responsible for implementing activities in collaboration with influencers. Fortunately, after the initial 'splurge' on influencers and actions in the dark, we are seeing more and more thoughtful and quality campaigns implemented in collaboration with creators. A tool that has surfaced strongly in recent months is, of course, podcasts. The next year will surely bring their further triumph - looking at Western markets, there is still plenty of room for improvement here.
Events and topics covered in 2019 were:
- Parliamentary elections. Traditionally, these have generated a buzz, but we have not seen spectacular twists and turns. Not much changed in the political arena, well, except perhaps the return to the stage of the united left. Other than that, we have continued to see the polarisation of society. And, worryingly, the further rise of hate speech and the scourge of fake news. This is a huge challenge, especially for political marketing experts, but also for all PR specialists. Especially in the context of the upcoming presidential elections.
- Poland's promotion on the international arena, mainly in relation to culture. We are, of course, talking primarily about the Nobel Prize for Olga Tokarczuk, but also about the writer's impressive speech. Another topic that a large part of the public lived by was the premiere of the Witcher series on the Netflix platform. Although it has divided Sapkowski's fans, it is undoubtedly breaking viewing records and, right after the game, is becoming another vehicle for information about the Polish literary output. We keep our fingers crossed that an Oscar for 'Corpus Christi' will be added to the list of recent cultural successes.
- Eco Themes. It is encouraging to see that CSR is no longer a fad or a necessity to survive in business. The last year has shown that the debate around nature conservation and climate change is a socially and business-relevant topic, generating real, credible commitment among more and more people and companies. The involvement of young people and their face and voice in the form of Greta Thunberg is of course worth noting here. The situation is very serious, so the next few months will certainly bring a further struggle against the climate crisis and further communication of this issue. However, one cannot fail to mention greenwashing on this occasion, which has unfortunately also been 'threaded' through brand communication in recent months. This is, of course, nothing more than pulling the wool over the eyes in the wave of 'green' communication.
10 years of Good One PR and the opening of a branch in Wroclaw
In summarising 2019, I cannot leave out the topic of our agency development. Last year we celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Good One marketing group, including the Good One PR agency. Today, our team is made up of ten ambitious people who are realising themselves in public relations projects. Last year two people were promoted within our company - Martyna Dziopak took the position of Account Manager and Ewelina Jaskuła became Senior Account Executive. Both have been with our company for many years, where they are responsible for corporate and product PR projects.
2019 was also full of further tender wins and new collaborations with brands such as Ultimo, which is one of the largest debt management companies in Poland, Ice Dream - a promising concept based on the idea of 'self-service ice cream', children's clothing manufacturer Endo, one of the largest entertainment centres in Warsaw, which is Hulakula, hair stylist Piotr Sierpinski or CyberRescue, a startup specialising in helping people who have fallen victim to hackers.
At this point, it is also worth mentioning contracts that have been extended. For the next consecutive year, we will be carrying out PR activities for POLOmarket, Würth Polska, Funtronic, Bobby Burger, Brześć, Podlaski Fundusz Kapitałowy or BCAST.
Moving on to the three most interesting campaigns and realisations of the last 12 months, I will start with the activities conducted for Mazurska Manufaktura Alkoholi. The company, which is not widely known on the market, raised - from more than 1,000 new shareholders - funding of PLN 2.54 million, thus ranking 6th in the history of equity crowdfunding collections. Magda Gessler became the ambassador of the campaign. Behind the success of the fundraising is, among other things, an intensive, engaging communication campaign implemented by our agency.
The second such project is Senior Citizens' Day, organised together with Funtronic for the charges of the House on the Świder River and invited guests. The programme of the event included a presentation of exercises, a lecture by a dietician on nutrition for the elderly and a debate on the activation of seniors in Poland, attended by the President of the National Institute of Senior Economy, a member of the Funtronic Board, Vice President of the Board of the Polish Association for People with Alzheimer's Disease, President of OPUTW Foundation and director of Dom nad Świdrem. There was also a presentation of our client's product, the "Funtronic Senior" interactive floor for physical and mental activity for seniors.
Our third project, which deserves a special mention, is the launch of the first vegan burger in the history of the Bobby Burger chain. The launch of the product was preceded by so-called blind tests, where invited customers shared their opinions on the new burger based on "plant meat", and their reactions were recorded on a video, which was published in Bobby Burger's social media after the launch. Prior to the introduction of the 'Power Plant' burger to all 45 outlets of the chain, we also organised a press meeting, thanks to which information about the novelty appeared not only in general, lifestyle, business and trade media with a nationwide reach, but also in social media - on the profiles of invited influencers and in thematic groups concerning vege and vegan products. As a result, after the product launch, the number of burgers estimated by the chain for a whole month was already sold in the first week, half of which in the first weekend. The burger was also ranked among the best plant-based gastronomic debuts of 2019 according to a poll by PlantlyJemy.
The year 2019 also saw preparations for the opening of the Wrocław branch of our company, which was finalised with the start of the new year. The branch is located in the first pop-up office in Wrocław called "Under Pressure", which "unleashes creativity through a friendly space".
Ewelina Puławska
Senior Account Manager at Good One PR, where she coordinates work for the agency's clients and manages a team of consultants. She has been in the PR industry for almost 9 years. She has worked for many clients from the FMCG, retail, consumer&health or financial industries, as well as for non-governmental organisations. She is a graduate of the Faculty of Humanities at UKSW, the Higher School of Promotion in Warsaw and the London School of Public Relations, completed with an international PR certificate. As of May 2019, she is a member of the Polish Public Relations Association, which brings together PR professionals.
Martyna Dziopak
PR Account Manager at Good One PR, where she has worked since November 2015. She has been working in the PR industry for more than 7 years. Previously, she gained experience in agencies such as Edelman and Baddog PR, and for more than 2 years she also worked for the Polish Human Resources Management Association, where she was responsible for PR activities for the Association and its members. She is a graduate of the University of Warsaw, where she majored in journalism and social communication with a specialisation in PR and media marketing. PR and media marketing.
Originally published on portalmedialny.pl
