PR, communications, and marketing professionals are entering 2026 with learnings from the year past. This means taking best performing strategies, tactics, and tools into the new year based on relevance and results, including smarter AI adoption, creator partnerships, data quality, thought leadership, and (more) strategic measurement practices.
Organizations are now aligning new tools and modified KPIs to more effectively gauge results across PR, SEO, and digital marketing programs. McKinsey reports that 88 percent of organizations now use AI in at least one business function, underscoring how quickly these tools are becoming foundational across PR, comms., marketing, and operations.
We anticipate the following ten trends shaping PR, marketing, and communications in 2026 PR. Each reflects opportunities for nonprofits, education institutions, animal health organizations, food retailers, and healthcare systems and providers to strengthen program outcomes, elevate thought leadership, and achieve measurable results in the year ahead.
Trend 1: AI’s use in Content Creation
AI now supports every stage of the content process from research and planning to personalization, testing, and ongoing updates. Regardless of industry, PR and marketing communications (“marcom”) professionals are building structured systems, including prompt libraries, voice guides, and review checklists that ensure accuracy and maintain consistent brand standards.
Human oversight remains essential, however. Organizations that thoroughly document how AI should be used, validate outputs through expert review, and ensure every asset aligns with their mission and tone, will be most successful. This combination of efficiency and responsible oversight protects brand integrity and trust. It also allows PR and marketing pros to spend more time on strategy and building thought leadership while AI is deployed to support with repetitive, routine tasks.
Trend 2: Thought Leadership as a Primary Growth Driver
Thought leadership will play an even greater role in organizational growth in 2026. Executives and subject-matter experts are becoming the face of their organizations through commentary, thought provoking articles (LinkedIn, op-eds, and byliners), conference speaking engagements, expert Q&As, podcasts, e-books, and more. These expert voices provide fresh ideas and insights helping stakeholders understand the value a company or not-for-profit brings.
More organizations are treating thought leadership as a strategic imperative. Investments in KOL media training, editorial support, and updated positioning and messaging ensure leaders communicate with confidence and consistency across earned, owned, social, and paid media channels. When experts articulate insights that reflect real experience, they influence policy conversations, funding decisions, community partnerships, and industry news.
As a top thought leadership PR firm, since 1980, we’ve counselled hundreds of mission-driven organizations in the areas of strategic media relations, content marketing, positioning, messaging, conference/tradeshow marketing, bylined and op-ed articles, tradeshow PR, and related services.
Trend 3: Community-Based Storytelling Fuels Engagement
In 2026, community-focused storytelling should play an even larger role; this means mission-driven organizations will be highlighting the voices of students, patients, teachers/professors, volunteers, researchers, KOLs, practitioners, and other credible and authentic individuals. These first-person narratives are at the core of organic, real-life storytelling and build trust by demonstrating the real-world impact of programs, partnerships, products, and services. In addition, we anticipate short-form video remaining a mainstay in effective marcom efforts. Nonprofits and for-profits alike are building and utilizing systems that help automate work and sharing genuine stories without the need for large budgets or expensive equipment. In the coming year, we anticipate stakeholders continuing to respond better to organic, short video clips rather than overly produced, lengthy ones.
Integrating “community voice” into thought leadership programs should be on the rise in 2026 as well. Pairing expert commentary with real perspectives strengthens narratives, increases donor confidence, and supports stronger stakeholder engagement across PR and digital marketing channels.
Trend 4: Search Engines Continuing to Push AI-Generated Search Results
Search engines will continue shifting toward AI-generated search results in 2026. Instead of presenting long lists of resources and links, generative tools pull information directly into summarized responses. This change places greater importance on credibility, accuracy, data, detail, and clearer positioning, because the most in-depth and authoritative sources are cited in these results.
Digital marketers are adjusting strategies and tactics accordingly. It is crucial to create content that is precise, well-sourced, and written in a way AI systems understand and prioritize. This includes answering specific questions, adding expert commentary, and ensuring every asset reflects the most up-to-date information. As AI takes a larger role in how search results are generated and ranked, marketing professionals who maintain accuracy, authority, and attention to detail will achieve stronger outcomes across organic and AI-driven search.
Trend 5: Creators Working to Turn Content into Engagement
Mission-focused organizations are moving beyond one-time influencer posts and toward long-term collaborative partnerships that spark real interaction. Instead of hiring influencers for a single announcement, they are partnering with credible voices who understand their mission, community, and programs. This shift leads to more authentic storytelling and significantly stronger engagement.
To illustrate, let’s look at an example from Lady Freethinker, an animal advocacy and animal rights nonprofit. They partnered with Blake Moynes from The Bachelorette to spotlight the cruelty facing tigers in Thai zoos. Together, they developed a joint awareness effort that included an investigative report, a petition calling for an end to these practices, and a recent episode of the Species Unite podcast discussing the issue. After the episode, the petition received more than 30,000 signatures, illustrating how creator-led collaborations can foster meaningful action.
When it comes to evaluating the impact of creator collaborations, efforts can be measured based on outcomes that reflect real behavior including sustained engagement, donations, sign-ups, volunteer inquiries, petitions, and other actions that come from creator-led storytelling. We envision this will continue to outperform transactional influencer campaigns in 2026.
Trend 6: Accessibility Continues to Improve SEO
Prioritizing accessibility helps reach more people and strengthen the outcomes of digital programs. When websites, videos, and graphics include alt text, captions, descriptive headers, and clear formatting, search engines can read and index content more effectively. These updates also support optimal user experience (UX), which contributes to stronger organic search performance and higher engagement across various devices.
PR and marketing groups are now incorporating fast accessibility checks into their processes. This ensures content is inclusive, easy to understand, and aligned with UX technical standards that help promote content online.
Partnering with a digital marketing and PR agency can help an organization integrate accessibility into SEO and content marketing programs, ensuring every asset is optimized, compliant, and aligned with stakeholder needs.
Trend 7: Organizations will Rely More on Their Own Data
As third-party cookies continue to phase out, brands are placing a greater emphasis on collecting data directly from stakeholders who provide their consent. Loyalty programs, surveys, event sign-ups, and other online interactions help build this trusted first-party data, which supports more accurate personalization and stronger communications.
Partnerships that prioritize privacy are key. When data is gathered and analyzed responsibly, marketers can extract meaningful insights without compromising trust. This strengthen relationships and supports delivering content, services, and experiences that reflect real stakeholder needs.
Trend 8: Marketers and PR Pros Will Find Smarter Ways to Measure Results
We expect marketers and PR executives to continue adopting more precise measurement practices in 2026. Companies and charitable organizations are moving away from metrics that merely scratch the surface and focusing on indicators that reflect true impact over time. Assessment tools are constantly evolving and can help professionals understand which efforts influence actions such as sales, donations, registrations, and engagement, rather than relying on just clicks or impressions.
Quality of earned, owned, paid, and social media has become as important as quantity. Metrics that demonstrate how (deeply) stakeholders interact with content provide a clearer picture of impact across PR, SEO, and digital marketing programs. This shift requires more strategic planning and researching comprehensive and integrated measurement solutions. Rosica’s Thought Leadership Measurement Matrix™ aligns with this trend. This proprietary tool evaluates more than 20 indicators of thought leadership, detailing what’s working and where improvements can be made.
Trend 9: Trust and Transparency Underscore Value
In the new year, trust and transparency will continue to shape how stakeholders assess value. Audiences expect honesty, ethical AI use, and responsible data practices. Clearly explaining how data is collected and used strengthens credibility and prevents backlash and confusion.
Organizations are also expected to communicate openly about program results, community impact, and operational decisions that affect their supporters, advocates, and key stakeholders. Those who acknowledge challenges, correct errors quickly, and communicate quickly and consistently are far more likely to build confidence among their audiences.
Integrity is and always has been a clear differentiator in PR, corporate communications, and digital marketing. Trust grows when messaging aligns with actions. When subject-matter experts or KOLs communicate clearly, and content is authentic, it reinforces their expertise and engenders confidence. This level of transparency strengthens relationships and supports increased engagement across PR, marketing, and fundraising efforts.
Trend 10: Virtual and Real-World Experiences Come Together
Virtual and augmented reality will continue to shape how organizations tell their stories. These tools allow mission-driven professionals to create immersive, interactive experiences that help stakeholders understand programs, services, and impact in a more engaging way.
Blending digital and in-person experiences will also become more common. Virtual tours, interactive demonstrations, campus walk-throughs, and donor or patient stories can be paired with real-world events to deepen connections and create memorable moments for audiences across the nonprofit, education, healthcare, and animal health sectors.
In 2026, marketers and PR professionals will be testing creative approaches to measure how these experiences influence attendance, depth of engagement, and participation. As these tools evolve, early adopters who ensure they remain accessible and mission-aligned will see larger participation.
Building Stronger Marketing and PR Programs in 2026
In 2026, marketing and PR practitioners will need to balance AI scalability with human oversight (and thoroughly training the AI), performance with reputation, and speed with compliance. The organizations that perform best will utilize AI as an intuitive, teachable support tool, not a substitute for talented people.
Success in the year ahead will rest upon integrating PR, SEO, social media, KOL programs, and content development/marketing initiatives to build authority, demand, and engagement across channels. Purpose-driven organizations that elevate thought leadership, maintain consistent messaging, strengthen stakeholder trust, and expand PR measurement practices will remain competitive as technology and media continue to change.
It will also be essential to maintain strong data practices, invest in accessibility improvements, and communicate transparently about how technology shapes PR and marcom work. These commitments, paired with authentic storytelling and effective implementation, will deepen stakeholder involvement throughout 2026.
National PR Agency Credentials
Rosica Communications is a 45-year-old national, award-winning PR agency specializing in media training, thought leadership, crisis communications, cause marketing, SEO, content marketing, and digital marketing and PR. With deep expertise in nonprofit, education, healthcare, and animal health sectors, Rosica helps organizations grow thought leadership, amplify perceived credibility, protect their reputations, and measure PR, marcom, and thought leadership efforts.
To measure the success of our client’s PR and thought leadership programs, Rosica developed the Thought Leadership Measurement Matrix™, the most comprehensive thought leadership measurement tool currently available, which evaluates 20 PR, thought leadership, and marcom categories.
Learn more by scheduling a call with Chris Rosica: https://calendly.com/rosica/30min.