PR has shifted from a primary source of customer acquisition to a crucial mid-funnel tool for building credibility. Its main value is providing social proof that validates a brand for consumers and supports other channels like paid media and affiliate marketing.

Let the market validate your ad creative. Post content organically and when a video goes viral, repurpose it for paid advertising. Tweak the validated creative by adding a direct call to action, like a price overlay, to convert brand awareness into sales performance.

PR professionals often feel their ROI measurement is weaker than other marketing channels. However, many business expenses (like boardroom TVs) face no ROI scrutiny. A well-measured PR campaign that tracks digital impact can demonstrate value more effectively than an average advertising campaign, challenging this internal bias.

Don't guess what ads will work. Monitor organic social media for posts that get disproportionately high engagement. These posts have already proven resonance with your audience. Turn these validated content pieces directly into paid ads for a higher probability of success and better ROI.

Startups can appear much larger by purchasing the smallest possible unit of a large-format ad (e.g., a Times Square billboard for two minutes), capturing high-quality photo/video, and then amplifying that content across all owned digital channels like LinkedIn and email.

With the consolidation of traditional media, business conversations have moved to platforms like LinkedIn. Positioning it as the modern way to do PR helps justify investment beyond simple lead generation metrics.

Stop planning creative and media buys simultaneously. Instead, post creative organically first. Then, exclusively allocate media spend to amplify the content that has already demonstrated strong consumer engagement, forcing creative to be effective on its own merit before receiving paid support.

Instead of creating ads from scratch, identify top-performing organic content and repurpose it for paid campaigns. The viral creative has already proven its appeal (brand building); simply add conversion-focused elements like banners and direct copy to drive sales performance.

Instead of paying a continuous high retainer for PR, brands should deploy it in focused 'sprints' around specific story-worthy moments. This includes new product launches, funding announcements, or major partnerships, maximizing impact and ROI for the brand.