Public Relations and Reputation: Ditch the Messaging, We Mandate Behavioral Change

 Some in public relations are still making a buck. Actually, a good one. The Business Research Company reports:

"The global PR market is healthy, growing from $105.12 billion in 2025 to $110.35 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5%"

But those thriving likely are not the usual players in the sector such as large Manhattan agencies. One-time powerhouse Edelman had three straight years of revenue decline. Boutiques that got the hang of the structural changes in the market have been taking over. 

And as for in-house personnel, inertia will probably prevail. They'll hold onto their jobs - without effectiveness or influence, though. 

During the Epstein Files fallout the spokespeople at Goldman Sachs and Paul, Weiss spun all that reputation management messaging. Got 'em nowhere. The news cycle kept running with the decline narratives. It still is. Social media pounded. Keeps pounding.

See, the traditional functions of PR matter less and less. Remember those high-priced placements in legacy publications such as The New Yorker or The New York Times? Those were to introduce a fresh narrative. The objective was to push down in the collective memory bank as well as old-line SEO problems of the past. 

Forget that now. The New York Times op-ed defense of Goldman Sachs' Kathy Ruemmler buddy-buddy with Jeffrey Epstein even elicited pushback. That extended to ridicule in some circles of Ruemmler in a demure powder blue "Little House on the Prairie" frock. 

Obviously, reality is taking a bit bite out of old-line public relations. 

There are now too many channels of information: professional anonymous networks such as Reddit, Substack posters, tabloids, congressional investigators, plaintiff lawyers, attorneys general, researchers (as with CTEs), former employees and influencers. 

Public relations can neither create nor control the buzz.

Meanwhile 40% of information requests go directly to AI platforms like ChatGPT. To become a link in that, content has to be configured for AEO - Answer Engine Optimization. But how many traditional PR players have audited client output to review if it's configured for AEO?

And, even if all that gets attention, who believes it? Where's the trust? Coverage is no longer correlated with acceptance of the narrative. No automatic moving the needle on persuasion. At least, not with messaging.

The shift is to reputation, including resets, based on just-in-time behavior. 

What is "saving" businesses in general as well as those caught in crisis had been that they're making lots of money. This is capitalism. That's the real story. Include Goldman Sachs and Paul, Weiss in that. US President Calvin Coolidge hammered: The chief business of the American people is business." Aka profits and shareholder returns.

Other watched behavior metrics could be:

Personnel upheavals. The old guard out. A clean sweep. That dates back to Biblical times. Saul disobeyed, David became king (1 Samuel 16:13, 13 -14).

Adoption of straight talk. Throw tomatoes at the rhetorically guarded spokespersons. The Lee Iacocca turnaround team at Chrysler in the bankruptcy crisis ditched corporatespeak. For decades so did other businesses. In these crazy times there's been a flight back to language safety. The irony, though, is that risks credibility. 

Bringing on new leadership, rank and file, clients/customers. The crowd needs fresh faces.

Commitment to total reform polices. The motivating ethos for all the sarcrifices during World War II was that it was to the war to end all wars. That seeds hope for the future.

Funding for related reforms. Support for a foundation for noble outreach like transparency in governance.

This distaste for messaging has extended to what sells in the labor market. I warn job searchers to tone down the personality. Sure, let them know who you are. But they're hiring what you can do for them. Be concrete on that. When you land the job, its all about your behavior. 

Careers. Forget all that. It’s about earning a good living, no matter what.

Complimentary consultation with Jane Genova, StreetSmart Coaching (janegenova374@gmail.com)




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