News + Views

by Jessica Clifton| December 22, 2020

Communicating through COVID—in Hong Kong or anywhere—continues to be illuminative. Working for a global consultancy in a region that was hit first means I’ve now been counseling clients and supporting international colleagues at opposing stages of the cycle for the best part of a year. Anyone with skin in the game—from brand strategists to crisis […]

by Hilary McKean| December 22, 2020

At Ketchum, we close each year with a look back at our top-performing blog posts—always a powerful indicator of emerging industry trends, thought leadership topics and communications themes. This year, our review reveals a dramatic shift in high-performing content. COVID-19 pushed traditional thought leadership off the tally sheet in favor of a balance between human-focused […]

by Tori Kwan, Chris Magura and Elyse Richter| December 18, 2020

In the everything-virtual world of this past year, digital content creators have worked to find some sense of normal by learning to collaborate in a productive way without ever setting foot in a studio or office. Why did we need to continue making? Because consumers never paused their conversations. Whether with brands or our extended […]

by Simeon Mellalieu| December 17, 2020

I made a prediction recently in Ketchum’s 2021 Social, Influencer Marketing + Analytics Trends Report, that the year ahead will see social commerce come of age. This idea was partly based on accelerated demand for e-commerce and social media content born out of coronavirus lockdowns around the world. But, it also recognizes the increasing prevalence […]

by Jon Stone and Nashanta Williams| December 16, 2020

One bright spot of 2020 has been the rise of gaming as a way to connect and unwind during these massively trying times. This year’s activations and events brought in some of the highest recorded ad revenue and set records for viewership, cementing gaming’s status at the pinnacle of the entertainment industry. Ketchum’s own research […]

by Tamara Norman and Lauren Butler| December 15, 2020

No one can deny that 2020 has felt like a lifetime, especially for employees. Whether they’re frontline workers who have been risking their health to provide essential services, office workers who have had to navigate the blurred lines, burnout and familial challenges of working from home, or among the many people who have struggled in […]