Trends for Communicators to Anticipate in 2022

When you embrace a futures mindset, you’re always scanning the horizon for hints of what’s to come. Some signals are clearly there, right from the start. Others begin as faint indications but then become major trends. 

Here are some trends and events for PR professionals to watch and plan for in 2022.

Be resilient.

As we struggle out of the coronavirus pandemic and start to face climate change, “resilient” will join words such as “smart,” “green” and “sustainable” in the lexicon of governments, corporations, the military and other institutions to describe how to meet the challenges of a changing world.

A CNBC survey of CEOs across various markets found that they expect volatility to remain a primary business challenge in the year ahead. “As we go into 2022, I think it’s this theme of just volatility, and it’s not one particular type of volatility. It’s enormous volatility in our supply chain,” said Shane Grant, CEO of Danone North America. “It’s everything from input availability, capacity, transportation, labor, it’s COVID adaptations by ways of working adaptation. It’s this accordion economy of sort of stop-and-go and the adaptations required.”

Action Step: Review what your organization is doing to bounce back from turmoil in its operations, including communications. Consider decentralizing to multiple locations and enhancing arrangements for employees to work from home (or from anywhere).

Combat burnout.

In an August 2021 Ipsos survey, more than 50 percent of Americans said they felt burned out. This trend will likely continue throughout the coming year, as American workers wrestle with transitioning back to their workplaces and coronavirus variants create new uncertainty. 

Action Step: Help your employees find energy and a renewed sense of purpose in their jobs. It’s difficult for managers to help employees recover from burnout when they’re burned-out themselves. Create a healthier work life for yourself and your team.

Manage the ongoing pandemic.

New variants and public weariness mean the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to continue wreaking havoc throughout 2022, potentially disrupting business travel and return-to-office plans. 

Action Step: Just as organizations were thinking that a return to normal would occur by January, the Omicron variant of the coronavirus now threatens to derail those plans. Many Americans will be expected to receive vaccine booster shots.

Avoid the Great Resignation.

Reflecting on their futures and what matters most in their lives, millions of Americans have resigned from their jobs since the pandemic began in early 2020, often to become entrepreneurs. As The New York Times reported in August 2021, more than 4.4 million Americans have started their own businesses during the pandemic. 

Action Step: Make your organization a better place to work. As HR Dive reported, job benefits, flexibility and compensation are key factors that help retain employees. 

Prepare for another polarized election season.

During 2022 elections, 36 gubernatorial seats, 34 U.S. Senate seats and all 435 seats in the House of Representatives will be in play. Based on previous midterm-election patterns, control of the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate will likely return to the Republicans. But amid intense political polarization, this election cycle will be brutal, regardless of its results. 

Action Step: Communicators should know which candidates their organization and its leaders support through campaign donations. Anticipate worst-case scenarios should a candidate make controversial statements or behave in ways that conflict with your organization’s values.

Create more video content.

According to the trade site StreamingMedia.com, video viewing will account for 82 percent of all internet traffic in 2022. Video stands to become the predominant form of communication for consumers and businesses in 2022 and beyond.

Action Step: Hire professional video editors and people who excel at communicating through the medium of video.

Read more newsletters.

As readers look for curated content that caters to their own interests, The New York Times now offers more than 70 newsletters on a variety of topics, from breaking news to cookie recipes. Readers reportedly opened more than 3.6 billion newsletter emails from the publisher in 2020, a 150 percent increase over 2019. Meanwhile, Substack, an online service that lets journalists and other writers sell subscription newsletters directly to readers, recently announced it had reached more than 1 million paid subscribers. 

Other media are discovering the power of newsletters to reach specific audiences and boost the influence of their writers, resulting in a flurry of newsletters being launched. The newsletter trend promises to continue in 2022.

Action Step: If your organization doesn’t offer a newsletter for stakeholders, consider creating one. The communications future is owned media, which requires consistently developing and distributing high-quality content.

Plan for the metaverse.

Facebook recently rebranded itself as “Meta” in anticipation of building a “metaverse” as the next iteration of the internet. According to Merriam-Webster, “metaverse generally refers to the concept of a highly immersive virtual world where people gather to socialize, play and work” online. But Meta isn’t the only company hoping to create a metaverse. Microsoft, Nvidia and others are also developing virtual reality platforms. 

As The Wall Street Journal reported on Dec. 3, companies such as Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., Verizon Communications Inc., and streetwear brand Vans are dabbling in metaverse-like platforms in an attempt to improve brand recognition and get existing customers more engaged.

Action Step: It’s time to start learning about the metaverse and your organization’s presence within it.

As these trends loom on the horizon, now is the time to weigh them carefully and consider what actions we will need to take should they eventually materialize. 

Get Real About Climate Change

The latest report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, released in August, sounded the alarms. The U.N. Secretary-General called the report a “code red for humanity.” The report offered five climate scenarios based on estimates of CO2 emissions. The intermediate scenario’s “best estimate” is a 1.5 degree Celsius increase by 2040 and a range of 2.1 to 3.5 by 2100. This could lead to rising sea levels and dangerous superstorms and create conditions in some locations that are too hot for human habitation (wet-bulb effect).

Action Step: What is your organization doing to limit carbon and methane emissions, which accelerate global warming? It’s time to take stock, make changes, and communicate your organization’s commitment to doing its part, regardless of what other companies or the government do about it. Taking tangible action is about walking the talk about your organization’s values.

On Feb. 10 from 3-4 p.m. ET, Stephen DuPont, APR, Fellow PRSA, leads a webinar titled “Seeing Around Corners: Trends and Events That Public Relations Professionals Should Keep Their Eyes on in 2022.” PRSA members have free access to this session, available on-demand starting on Feb. 17. Visit this link for details.