Content drives everything. Brands are creating thousands of assets across formats and platforms. Adobe reports that 88% of companies have seen content needs double in the last two years, with a twentyfold increase expected soon.

This surge in demand creates new challenges. Audiences want personalized, engaging content faster than ever. Traditional methods can’t keep up. To meet this, many brands are turning to artificial intelligence (AI).

AI as a Creative Ally

AI is a valuable tool for creative teams, assisting, rather than replacing. It automates tasks like adapting content or editing visuals, letting creators focus on storytelling and innovation. Tools like Canva and Adobe with AI help designers work smarter and faster, producing impactful content at scale.

AI is an extension of your team, handling time-consuming tasks so you can focus on creativity. It speeds up production but doesn’t create the soul of the content—that comes from humans.

The Magic of Human Creativity

Exceptional content stands out through emotional depth and audience connection—something only humans can provide. Ideas, emotions, and intuition are irreplaceable. AI can refine processes, but storytelling’s heart belongs to people.

Successful brands strike this balance, using AI for efficiency while keeping creativity human. This ensures content stays authentic and true to a brand’s voice.

The Path Forward

As the content landscape evolves, adaptable brands will lead. AI doesn’t replace creators; it enhances their ability to produce great work. By combining AI’s speed with human creativity, brands can meet growing demands without losing their unique edge.

Great content tells a resonant story. AI can improve delivery, but the soul of the narrative is always human. In an AI-driven world, the human touch makes content unforgettable.

At NPS, we combine the power of AI-driven tools with creative expertise to help brands craft authentic, engaging content. Our team ensures that your message resonates by blending innovation with human insight, guiding you through the evolving digital landscape with strategic storytelling and design.

One of the most powerful tools for building brand awareness is tapping into trending videos, photos, and sounds on social media. Leveraging these trends can create viral moments, helping your business reach new audiences, engage stakeholders, and attract followers invested in your brand. 

The Importance of Trending Audios

As vertical video platforms like Instagram Reels and TikTok continue to dominate, trending audio has become key to creating viral content. To get started, explore popular sounds within the app and browse the videos using them. This can spark fresh ideas that align with your brand’s voice and style.

Social Listening Can Elevate Your Brand

Social listening is a powerful tool for spotting trends. By paying attention to what’s resonating with your peers, you can refine your content and spark fresh ideas for your brand. It’s a great way to stay ahead in your industry while finding unique opportunities to stand out.

Case Studies in Trend Adoption

Delta Airlines: By using the viral “Girl Dinner” audio in a TikTok video, Delta Airlines highlights their signature inflight amenities—Biscoff cookies and ginger ale. By aligning their content with a popular, lighthearted trend, Delta created a relatable and shareable video that resonated with its audience.

Samsung: Samsung joined the viral audio trend “In the Club We Are All Family,” to promote their Bespoke AI appliances in a TikTok video. By aligning with this catchy and inclusive trend, Samsung created a fun, relatable moment on social media that highlighted how their products bring convenience and connectivity to everyday life.

Danielle Guzio: The fashion designer behind Guzio NYC cleverly combines two strategies in one TikTok video. Using trending ASMR paired with the viral “office fridge re-stock” trend, she engages followers with a unique auditory experience, elevating brand awareness in an innovative way.

Aligning Trends with Your Brand Strategy

Incorporating trending content into your social media strategy can boost your brand’s online presence and unlock new opportunities. From using trending audios to thinking outside the box and drawing inspiration from peers, these strategies can help create viral moments that make a lasting impact.

If your business is ready to enhance its social media strategy, NP Strategy offers expert digital and social media services. Click here to learn more.

Marketing and public relations each serve necessary purposes in a communication department, however, the definitions of each term can somewhat overlap or get switched around. This can make things convoluted for those trying to learn more about how to leverage both areas of communication. Here’s a quick breakdown of how the two differ.

Marketing specifically focuses on promoting a brand’s qualities to target audiences. Marketing strategies have evolved from just traditional print and radio advertising to also encompassing digital and social media to reach people online strategically. Marketing is presenting something to audiences and explaining to people why and how it is so great. By crafting the right message, being on the right trends and positioning on the right platforms, an organization can benefit from a well-developed marketing strategy.

Public relations, on the other hand, focuses on building and maintaining positive, ethical relationships with target audiences. By reinforcing, defending, or rebuilding a corporation’s or product’s image, public relations professionals ensure that trust is fostered at the core of every stakeholder relationship. Instead of just communicating to target audiences, public relations also includes facilitating opportunities for audiences to have their voices amplified. This is the essence of public relations– creating and utilizing two-way communication opportunities for audiences to listen and provide invaluable feedback.

A strong public relations arm creates many benefits for marketing a product or service, because it adds the necessary trust element to conducting business effectively. Here are three key tactical ways that public relations can enhance your marketing strategy.

Media Coverage
Having professionals on your team who can build trustworthy relationships with the media significantly benefits a marketing strategy. These relationships are great advantages during the pitching process because they add a human element to a delivered press release in a journalist’s inbox. Positive media coverage that is earned exposes the organization’s message to larger audiences and adds credibility and impartiality to the brand.

Having your product or service in earned media placements can also help build awareness and drive more traffic to owned media channels, such as your website or social media platforms.

Thought Leadership
The great benefit of public relations is that it leverages an important stakeholder group to foster positive relationships with external stakeholders– employees. Employees are some of the best brand advocates an organization can have due to their subject matter expertise. Leaders within the organization, in particular, have significant influence through their unique perspectives and forward-thinking ideas.

When leaders consistently provide their insights, it helps build brand authority and drive engagement. This differentiation is crucial when seeking stakeholder buy-in in a crowded, competitive market.

Crisis Management
One of my college professors introduced me to the idea that public relations serves as the moral compass of an organization’s communications strategy, and this could not be more true. The crisis management aspect of public relations is essential in supporting a marketing strategy because it protects a brand’s reputation while preserving customer trust. Public relations prioritizes the organization’s values and goals at the forefront, maintaining a strong brand reputation to prevent or mitigate crises.

Even with the best plan in place, crises can still occur, whether accidental or not. A key strength of crisis management is its proactive nature, which helps organizations have a plan in place when inevitable trouble arises. Open and transparent communication during a crisis demonstrates that the brand is honest, responsible, and willing to take accountability, which ultimately strengthens its brand reputation.

Conclusion
Media relations, thought leadership and crisis management are vital components to support your marketing strategy. These elements of public relations work together to build credibility, expand reach, establish authority, and protect your brand, ultimately creating more thoughtful and impactful marketing efforts.

Take the next step to enhance your marketing strategy by contacting one of our experts today. Click here to learn more.

Community engagement is the foundation of a strong strategic communications plan. Actively involving the community builds trust, strengthens relationships, and earns support by demonstrating your organization’s commitment to listening.

Tailor Strategy to Your Audience
Every project and community is unique. Using tools like GIS data, connecting with local leaders, and collaborating with city or county staff can help you profile and understand your audience, ensuring your tactics reach and engage effectively. This approach signals to stakeholders—especially elected officials—that you’re committed to working with constituents to find a solution that benefits all.

Address the NIMBY Culture
For economic development projects, the “Not In My Backyard” (NIMBY) sentiment can be a hurdle. NP Strategy has developed targeted methods to engage with these passionate groups, whose concerns can impact public perception and policy. Addressing NIMBY perspectives early through transparent dialogue helps counter misinformation and build mutual understanding. This collaborative approach can be applied broadly, not just with NIMBY groups.

The Power of Community Engagement
Public relations thrives on relationships and community impact. Including engagement in your strategy fosters genuine connections, resonant messaging, and stronger stakeholder support. When we engage thoughtfully with communities, we shape positive narratives and build bridges that benefit everyone.

NP Strategy specializes in helping organizations connect meaningfully with communities. Click here to learn more about our community assessment strategies.

As a member of Generation Z, I’ve seen firsthand how we use the internet to connect, stay informed and shape culture. Gen Z isn’t just the future—it’s actively influencing the present with its values and expectations. To succeed, PR strategies must resonate with this audience.

Authenticity and Transparency
For Gen Z, authenticity and transparency are non-negotiable. Brands that communicate openly, respond to feedback, and address concerns directly are more likely to earn trust and foster stronger relationships. This approach creates a sense of community built around shared values, making audiences feel more connected.

Social Issues Matter
Social justice and environmental concerns are top priorities for Gen Z. PR campaigns that showcase diversity and demonstrate genuine corporate social responsibility (CSR) help brands forge deeper connections with this generation. It’s important to use both visuals and narratives to convey a true commitment to inclusivity and positive social impact.

Embrace Interactive Engagement
Interactive content is key to capturing Gen Z’s attention. Polls, quizzes, and stories on social media are particularly effective. By incorporating participatory elements into PR strategies, brands can boost engagement and build a more dynamic relationship with their audience.

Keep It Short and Impactful
Gen Z’s attention spans are short, so concise and impactful content is key. Quick storytelling, eye-catching visuals, and relatable themes help capture interest, especially on platforms like TikTok and Instagram where short-form content thrives.

As Gen Z reshapes the digital landscape, PR professionals must stay agile and proactive. NP Strategy offers expert guidance to help your brand connect authentically with today’s audiences. Contact us to learn more: www.npstrategy.com/contact.

As a college student, I wanted to ensure that I was pursuing a field of study that aligns with my passion and career goals. Securing a fall internship was a critical step in determining whether public relations is the right fit for me. At NP Strategy, I’ve had the chance to work on diverse projects across various areas of focus, collaborating with different people and clients. This experience has been invaluable in helping me solidify my career path.

Networking Opportunities
In public relations and marketing, building a strong network is essential. Networking plays a major role in landing jobs, especially after graduation, when many people have limited industry experience. Interning at a place where colleagues are approachable and offer opportunities to connect with others can make all the difference. NP Strategy embodies this type of workplace. The team has been open, encouraging and always ready to provide guidance, which has made me feel comfortable asking questions and building meaningful relationships.

Contributing to the Organization
One of the most rewarding aspects of my internship has been contributing to real projects that showcase my initiative and allow me to feel like a valuable part of the team. Internships can sometimes feel like you’re just a small fish in a big pond, but being trusted with meaningful work has given me a sense of purpose.. For example, I recently worked on a community outreach project that aligned with NP Strategy’s goals. Seeing the tangible impact of my contributions has been incredibly fulfilling.

Feedback and Self-Improvement
An internship is, above all, a learning experience. Receiving constructive feedback is crucial for identifying areas of improvement and tracking progress.. One of my key goals is to leave this internship feeling more confident in my public relations skills. At NP Strategy, feedback is given in a thoughtful and helpful way.. Recently, I received feedback on a press release I drafted, which helped me refine my writing and grasp the nuances of effective communication. Learning to accept and apply feedback is an important skill, and this internship has provided an excellent environment to hone that ability.

Looking Ahead
While it’s important to embrace every learning opportunity, it’s equally vital to be intentional about your growth. The variety of tasks, networking opportunities, meaningful contributions, and constructive feedback I’ve received at NP Strategy have all contributed to building a solid foundation for my future career. The goals and objectives I’ve set for myself during this internship reflect my commitment to personal and professional growth, and I am confident this experience will serve as a pivotal step in shaping my future.

At NP Strategy, we are committed to fostering talent and providing meaningful opportunities for our interns. If you’re eager to learn, collaborate, and make a real impact, we want to hear from you! Click here to explore to take the first step toward shaping your future with us.

For budding PR professionals, building a strong network is invaluable, but it requires intentional effort. Rather than sending random LinkedIn invites, focus on connecting with people you’ve met or plan to meet soon. Personalize your messages to make a genuine impression, whether online or in person, so your connections are meaningful. Following these steps will ensure that your network supports your growth and opens up new opportunities.

Establishing Your Presence

Building a strong professional network is essential for newcomers in PR. While it can be intimidating to compare yourself to peers, remember that every professional started where you are now. Reaching out for advice through informational interviews can provide valuable insights and open doors to future opportunities, even if it doesn’t lead directly to a job.

Leveraging Connections for Job Opportunities

Leveraging your connections can significantly ease your job search, whether you’re looking for an internship or full-time position. While you still need to be a strong candidate, your network can help you secure interviews and stand out early in the process. Don’t hesitate to ask contacts if their company is hiring; even if they aren’t, they may know of opportunities elsewhere and provide valuable referrals.

The Power of Secondhand Connections

Networking benefits can arise unexpectedly through secondhand connections—professionals adjacent to your network. For example, I recently tried to reach a local PR professional but had no direct contact. During a conversation with someone else, I learned they were great friends. With our mutual connection as a middleman, I connected with the PR professional that same day, illustrating how secondhand connections can facilitate valuable introductions.

Maintaining Your Professional Relationships

Building your network is only the first step; maintaining relationships is equally important. Engage with professionals on LinkedIn, send follow-up emails, and express gratitude. A handwritten thank-you card is a thoughtful touch, but ensure that your connections are genuine and meaningful, rather than just numbers on your profile.

I’m always surprised by how current and prospective clients react when I mention customer advisory boards and their effectiveness. The typical response is, “Really? I haven’t thought of that.”

Well, it’s definitely worth considering. Here’s why.

A customer advisory board can offer invaluable insights and steer your company’s strategic direction. It provides a structured platform for key customers to speak candidly about why they chose your company, what they appreciate about your products, and what improvements they’d like to see. This feedback is essential for understanding where to focus your efforts and resources.

As businesses evolve, they face an expanding range of challenges. Managing any business—large or small—can be highly complex, from legal and financial compliance to growth, operations, technology, marketing, and sustainability (which, trust me, no one has their head around quite yet).

Creating an effective CAB requires careful planning and follow-up. Here are some steps to consider:

Board Member Selection is Everything.

Hand-pick 8 to 12 members who represent your core business, have equal stature to foster a peer exchange environment and are willing to provide candid feedback.

Define Your Mission.

Be clear about what you want to achieve with your CAB. You only have this captive audience for a limited time, so be prepared.

Location, Location, Location.

Your customers’ time is valuable. Ensure your location is convenient, has well-equipped meeting rooms, and includes time for social interaction.

Record and Document.

With members’ consent, record meetings to capture clear and concise discussions.

“Here’s What We Heard.”

Review the recordings and documentation, then follow up within a week to recap insights, action items, and outline next steps.

Maintain Ongoing Engagement.

CAB membership should typically last for one year, with meetings held quarterly. In-person meetings are generally more engaging (and focused) than virtual ones. Rotate CAB members annually but allow those who were particularly collaborative to renew their membership.

I’ve had the pleasure of organizing and facilitating customer advisory boards, and I can attest to the immense value of the feedback. CABs provide a deeper connection with your customers and help build lasting relationships that foster brand loyalty. And I guarantee you’re likely to experience several “Aha!” moments along the way.

Click here to learn more about how a customer advisory board can benefit your business and how NP Strategy can help you get started. We’re here to guide you every step of the way.