1. AI-powered marketing
The reach of Artificial Intelligence (AI) will continue to expand throughout 2025 with marketing teams turning to tools such as ChatGPT and Co-Pilot to shrink delivery time. These tools can provide deeper insights into customer personas and behaviours faster, research keywords for SEO, compile potential blogs topic lists. Elsewhere, platforms such as Meta Ads Manager, Canva, and Adobe are integrating AI to provide an easier, and faster user experience.
This shift presents both opportunities and challenges for PR and marketing professionals. On one hand the tools offer clear efficiencies for marketing teams but on the other, there is an increasing belief that thanks to AI anyone can be a marketer because AI does it all for you. That belief is putting brand reputations at risk.
Successful marketing and PR campaigns are based on creating authentic human interactions and moments. While AI reduces task time, and can support with automating some personalisation activity, it requires an experienced marketing team to understand how to use the tools available to create stand-out campaigns that resonate with your customers. AI is here to improve efficiency of marketing teams – not replace them.
2. Retaining trust on social media
If the first month of 2025 is anything to go by, this could be a pivotal year for social media use. Brands must keep a close eye on how they are using platforms and how much emphasis they place on their use.
There’s no denying that social media use continues to increase and be a major strand of most brand’s marketing strategies, but could 2025 be the year where brands consider a back-to-basics approach to reduce their exposure to the behaviours that the owners of these platforms have been displaying that are unlikely to align with most brand values?
Meta ends fact checking
We’ve seen Meta (owners of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) announce that they will no longer be fact-checking content in favour of creating ‘communities’ of fact checkers. This is similar to what’s been seen with X (formerly Twitter) which commentators are concerned could lead to an increase in right-wing and fake news content. Recent comments by Mark Zuckerberg’s lawyer, on why he fired his client, provide little reassurance.
TikTok ban reprieve
Long-standing security concerns about how TikTok’s owners use data saw it briefly go dark in the USA before a 75-day reprieve. With rumours swirling about a possible USA buy-out by Meta – fuelled this week by Meta hiring a TikTok executive, it will be interesting to see how the platform navigates the increasing political pressure.
Trouble at Twitter (now known as X)
Last year, many businesses – and journalists – moved away from Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) because of increasing racist, misogynist, and hateful content. With Musk making ‘that’ salute at the recent inauguration ceremony, could we see even fewer brands including X as part of their strategy?
So, what does this mean for you?
Quality trusted content: For companies, the need to create and share content that can be trusted, is authentic, and holds both employees and followers to a higher social standard will help set them apart and build loyalty.
Explore new channels: New platforms such as Blue Sky and Mastodon have seen people move to them in favour of the more established channels, while LinkedIn too has enjoyed an increase in followers.
Expand marketing tactics: The changes with the major social media platforms offer an opportunity for companies to reassess their marketing priorities and increase efforts to engage with clients and customers by building newsletter lists, improving SEO, direct engagement, as well as media relations.
3. Interactive video and personalisation
Video content continues to dominate in 2025, but two advancements will make it easier than ever before for companies to capitalise on the appeal and reach that short-form video offers.
AI-generated video: In 2024 Toys R Us created the first advert made completely by AI (watch it here). Advancements in the technology is making it easier for companies to create their own videos – from adverts featuring virtual actors to re-using videos of a CEO interview but changing the words. While the technology clearly offers huge benefits, like anything with AI the trade-off must be whether there will be an impact on consumer trust.
Personalised and shoppable videos: The importance of personalisation within marketing is an established approach. Now, interactive video allows consumers to better engage with they engage with content – from choosing which products to explore to being able to buy products within the platform (see how Ted Baker used shoppable ads to boost revenue).
According to the Chartered Institute of Public Relations CIPR PR, 78% of audiences are more likely to engage with content that feels tailored to them. This has led to innovative video formats with interactive storytelling and AI personalisation. These videos with clickable elements or branching narratives let viewers shape their experience.
4. Community generated content
As brand compete for audience attention against a backdrop of AI-fatigue and fake news, community generated content can be a powerful tactic.
Brands that successfully spark a positive emotional reaction from followers can begin to build a genuine community of employees, customers, and other supportive stakeholders. This supportive ecosystem of champions who actively want to create and share their engagement with the brand helps reinforce it as an authentic, trusted, and purpose-driven organisation that people want to be part of.
At Korero, we help businesses achieve their growth ambitions by creating and implementing marketing and PR strategies with impact. Find out how we can help you grow. Contact us today at hello@korero.co.uk