Some trends that will shape corporate communications in 2019

We hope that the new year got off to a good start for you. Wondering what 2019 has to offer for communications professionals, we’ve asked some of our colleagues from CFF, Grayling and Citigate Dewe Rogerson to share their views. Here’s our overview to kickstart your week with some fresh comms insights!

1. Blurry lines and integrated communications

“The lines between corporate communications and other functions, like marketing and corporate affairs, will continue to blur. Successful agencies will be able to support their clients with an integrated approach on communications. Our specific strength is to combine communications with business strategy. By intensifying our partnership with Grayling Nederland, and recruiting Jan Willem Blok to set up our Public Affairs practice, we are expanding the communications services we offer, to strengthen our leading position in the local market.”

Uneke Dekkers – Managing Director, CFF Communications

2. Purpose will shape the public debate about sustainability

Purpose will continue to shape the public debate about investor relations, strategy and sustainability. It has been a hot topic, as also discussed during the seminar we hosted with Allen & Overy in November. And this year, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink published a letter to CEOs about the inextricable link between Purpose & Profit.

DSM CEO Feike Sijbesma referred to Fink’s letter in an interview with the Dutch weekly political talkshow Buitenhof. He grabbed headlines with his call for a higher price for carbon emissions and his interview received positive reviews because of his clear-worded advocacy for sustainable businesses. The viewer could sense that Sijbesma walks his talk.

Earlier, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte already called on Dutch business leader to join actively the public debate. Communicating the purpose of a company, in clear and concise images, does help people to understand why businesses can be an important driver for positive change.

Jan Willem Blok – Director Public Affairs, CFF Communications

3. We’ll be seeing more video

“Video has been cited as a huge trend for the last few years and that doesn’t show any signs of stopping. In fact, some sources say that next year 80% of what we consume online will be video.”

Harriet Chamberlain – Head of Digital, Citigate Dewe Rogerson

4. Media monitoring for internal communications will boost employee engagement

“When it comes to internal communications, we experience that the intranet is evolving from a place for information into a platform for collaboration. A growing number of our clients look into social enterprise solutions, like Workplace from Facebook, Slack and Yammer.

More internal collaboration via internal social networks means that e-mail is set to become less important. Currently, it is still the preferred channel for media monitoring output, but a growing number of comms professionals are looking for intranet or RSS solutions. That’s why we’ve evolved our media monitoring service, so we can publish tailored news on your social or traditional intranet or narrowcasting service.”

Pim te Bokkel – Head of Digital, CFF Communications

5. Google will continue to tweak its algorithm

“Google constantly reiterates that algorithm changes are about ensuring quality content finds its way to the top. The context to this is that there are still a lot of people out there who are trying to trick the system. Tactics such as keyword stuffing or link farming and even brand search manipulation are all redundant in the long-term. Google will always find out. But, if you’re doing things right and use legitimate tactics in a natural way, you don’t need to worry.”

Alex Judd, GCore Business Director from our Huntsworth colleagues at Grayling

6. Social networks demand more relevant content on their platform

“You only reach a small portion of your followers with your social media posts. Whether it’s Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn, algorithms decide what’s get shown to whom. And since these platforms do not want to lose their audience, using hyperlinks in posts to long reads or externally hosted videos may not always be the best strategy to boost your reach. To the contrary, with native content you’ll reach a bigger portion of your audience. And if your content is relevant enough for your audience to spark high levels of engagement, it may not become the next World Record Egg on Insta, but it will deliver your message to your audience.”

Niels Broekhof, Managing Director Grayling Nederland

Do you want to know more?

Contact us with your corporate communications inquiry at +31 (0) 2 0575 4010 or info@cffcommunications.nl.

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