Less Noise, More Impact - 10 PR Predictions for 2026
By any measure, 2025 was a bruising year for public relations. Budgets tightened, headcounts shrank, media fractured further and AI arrived not as a distant horizon but as a daily reality. As a profession, we spent much of the year reacting: to generative search, to shrinking newsrooms, to sceptical boards and to a public increasingly alert to spin. It often felt like PR was being squeezed from all sides.
And yet, coming into 2026, I sense that the ground is finally settling. Not back to where it was — those days are gone — but into something more interesting, more strategic and, frankly, more grown up. The opportunity ahead for PR is significant, provided we are honest about where the risks lie and disciplined about where we focus.
With that in mind, here are the ten predictions I believe will shape PR in the year ahead.
1. Storytelling will matter more — but only if it’s true
Much has been made of Katie Deighton’s Wall Street Journal feature on companies hiring “storytellers”. She’s right, of course: in a fragmented media landscape, controlling the narrative has never been more important. But there’s a dangerous misunderstanding creeping in.
PR can only ever present the best version of the truth. It cannot invent one. The Post Office Horizon scandal, which continued to unfold through public inquiry findings in 2025, is a stark reminder that no narrative can survive once the internal truth is exposed.
The organisations that win in 2026 will be those with a strong internal reality underpinning their external story.
2. Internal credibility is where the storytelling starts
Reputations will increasingly be built from the inside out. When people are happy, aligned and proud of where they work, it shows everywhere — on Glassdoor, on LinkedIn, in customer experience and in earned media.
Media coverage matters. Social mentions matter. Headlines matter. But what your staff say about you matters more. You can’t build a strong reputation on a weak core.
Hiring will rebound. It always does. Because people create brands — not the other way round.
3. Media fragmentation will make PR more strategic, not less relevant
Fragmentation will increase demand for PR — but as part of joined-up thinking, not bolt-on delivery. Campaign success will depend on how well earned, owned, social, influencer and paid activity work together.
4. Trust will become PR’s primary currency
PR will play a central role in building trust with customers, employees, investors — and increasingly with machines. Expect to see more Chief Trust Officers at the top table, reflecting reputation as a business asset, not a comms output.
5. AI becomes a first-class communications channel
AI should be treated as a new channel. In 2026, an AI strategy joins media, social, influencer, content, risk and investor strategies by default.
This is where GEO comes into play. SEO gets you listed. GEO makes you the answer.
Earned media now influences the majority of LLM outputs. Visibility is no longer just about audiences — it’s about whether your brand exists coherently for AI.
6. Advertising and PR will finally grow up together
Despite recent industry sparring, 2026 will be the year PR and advertising become genuine partners. Paid and earned are no longer rivals — they are complementary tools within a single narrative system.
7. The end of content for content’s sake
“Stop the slop” should be tattooed on every briefing deck. Attention is finite and care is even scarcer.
In 2026, quality wins. AI will amplify good work — not excuse bad work. The agencies that thrive will use AI to do less, better.
8. Smarter briefs, braver procurement
RFPs need to lighten up. Disclose budgets. Be clear on expectations. Stick to timelines.
And to procurement teams: loosen up. Category experience often guarantees sameness. Some of the industry’s most distinctive work has come from fresh perspectives.
9. The return of strategy — and its value
Strategy is back, unapologetically priced. PR agencies will increasingly operate as communications management consultants, offering judgement, clarity and long-term value.
Yes, it has a cost. And yes — it’s worth it.
10. The Year of the Horse will reward the bold
From 17 February 2026, we enter the Year of the Horse — a symbol of energy, ambition and momentum, intensified by fire.
For communications leaders, the message is clear: boldness will be rewarded. Hesitation will be exposed.
This is not a year for half-steps or superficial storytelling. The Horse demands alignment between intent and action.
After a turbulent 2025, 2026 offers PR a chance to redefine itself: less noisy, more trusted; less tactical, more strategic; less about chasing coverage and more about building something that lasts.
If we take it, 2026 could be a genuinely defining year for the profession.