Rapid execution has become a new baseline for PR practitioners. AI has made it possible for teams of any size and budget to draft press releases, generate pitches, and synthesize information in seconds. The result is a flood of competent but interchangeable output. As AI equalizes access to speed and execution, the thinking behind those outputs is increasingly serving as the primary point of differentiation. Human insight, rooted in perspective, originality, and cultural awareness, can help brands to create distinct, compelling narratives that resonate with audiences and drive impact.

Differentiating With Deep Insight

Deep insight reflects an ability to interpret what’s happening beneath the surface and translate that understanding into meaningful action. It connects signals across culture, audience behavior, and industry dynamics to answer two critical questions: why does this matter, and what should we do about it?

Insight-driven differentiation requires discipline. It depends on continuous analysis, critical thinking, and a willingness to challenge default approaches. In practice, that means leaning into a set of insight-first methods.

Deepen Audience Understanding

Insight-driven approaches focus on behavior, intent and tension over demographics and broad audience personas. Analyze what audiences are struggling with, what motivates them to engage and what language resonates. Messaging should reflect those realities to drive higher relevance and stronger responses.

Expand Narrative Intelligence

Analyze how narratives evolve over time, who is shaping them and where they are heading next. Map storylines across outlets, identify inflection points and understand what is driving shifts. Teams that detect repositioning early can adjust messaging before the narrative becomes saturated.

Identify Whitespace

AI tends to reinforce existing patterns because it is trained on historical data. Review what angles dominate a topic and look for gaps in coverage and perspective. A brand that utilizes an underrepresented angle faces less competition for attention and can deliver more value to journalists.

Synthesize Insights Across Datasets

Approaches for answering specific questions are often confined to a single dataset or channel. Deeper insights come from connecting signals across sources. For example, link shifts in search behavior with media coverage and social discussion to identify emerging priorities. Cross-platform synthesis reveals patterns that isolated analyses miss and supports more confident decision making.

Connect to a Larger Story

Many announcements default to product features or company milestones. Reframe these events through broader themes that matter to external audiences, such as changing consumer behaviors or economic pressures. This shift increases relevance and expands the potential for coverage.

Personalize Outreach

Generic outreach fails because it ignores the specific interests of each journalist or creator. Analyze recent work, identify gaps or unanswered questions and tailor pitches accordingly. This approach positions your brand as a contributor versus an interruption.

Evolve Measurement Beyond Outputs

Track how different narratives influence perception and behavior. Check messaging for alignment with emerging themes and evaluate how coverage contributes to longer-term positioning goals. This approach creates connective tissue between PR activity and business outcomes.

AI can support this process by accelerating data collection and summarization, but without deeper thinking, it offers uniformity. Teams that invest in analytical capability and building domain expertise will outperform those that rely on AI-generated suggestions. Strong thinking shapes stronger stories, and stronger stories earn attention.

Are We in Our Grandma Era? The Cozy Consumer Trends Taking Over In 2026
Vivid illustration of a person knitting while seated, accompanied by a resting dog. Surrounded by yarn, modern shelves, and a calming interior, portraying relaxation, creativity, and comfort in a domestic setting.

By Ana Cahuas

We’re knitting. We’re staying in and doing puzzles at the kitchen table. We’re putting on records and ditching iPhones for flip phones. 

Are we in our grandma era?

Call it grandma core, cozy coded, or just plain digital fatigue. Whatever you label it, there’s a real shift in culture and consumer behavior toward experiences that feel real, calming, and grounding. 

At its core, the “grandma era” is a Digital Era self defense: a response to constant stimulation, endless feeds, and the pressure of being perpetually reachable. According to a survey from The Harris Poll, 81% of Gen Z (14 to 29 years old) and 78% of millennials (29 to 44 years old) wish they could disconnect from digital devices more easily. That’s why younger generations are seeking ways to disconnect and protect their peace. 

3 Cultural Trends Signaling the Grandma Era

Trend 1: Analog hobbies are back 

Interest in analog activities has spiked: Google searches for “analog hobbies” jumped 160% in the last month and crafts like needlepoint have seen a surge in popularity online. Trends like “analog bags” on TikTok (the irony abounds) (filling totes with non-digital activities) are inspiring people to replace screen time with hands-on experiences. 

Trend 2: Retro tech is the new boundary-setting

Flip phones, film cameras, vinyl – it’s all part of a broader desire for intentional engagement and nostalgia. Whether or not people ditch their smartphones entirely, these devices represent control over attention and an effort to not be pulled into endless feeds. Analog rooms designed for screen-free relaxation are on the rise, and homeowners are intentionally creating space to disconnect and unplug.

Trend 3: Romantasy is the new comfort ritual

In 2025, romantasy (the blend of romance and fantasy) exploded across social platforms and bestseller lists. The subgenre boosted the market share by a whopping 41.3%. People are craving escapism with immersive, tactile stories that pull you out of digital noise and into worlds you can feel. Book communities across social platforms (like BookTok or #Bookstagram with millions of posts on Instagram) are fueling the boom by turning reading into a shared experience. 

The grandma era is about reclaiming control and choosing presence over constant notifications that compete for our attention. 

For brands, this presents a huge opportunity to meet people where they are: create calmer, more human experiences; build community around doing (not just consuming); and lean into storytelling that feels comforting, immersive, and worth slowing down for. 

PR in 2026: The Key Predictions Set to Lead the Industry

By: Doug Cipriani

Much like 2025, the year ahead is expected to bring significant changes, shifts, and developments to the PR world. From evolving newsroom dynamics that affect media relations workflows to new technology and AI-driven efficiencies, and even changes in how we communicate the value of PR itself, 2026 will introduce new rules and best practices that further push the industry forward.

LLMs, GEO, and All the AI Acronyms

According to Muck Rack’s 2025 State of PR report, AI topped the list of PR priorities for the next five years, with 59% of PR professionals expecting AI and automation to grow in importance. While we’ve all heard how AI is “changing everything,” its impact on PR is particularly significant because of how information is discovered, processed, and trusted.

As generative AI search continues to expand and platforms including ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot all gain traction, the role of news coverage is becoming even more critical. We spoke about this in Double Forte’s own POV from 2025 on AI & The New Rules of Communications – these tools prioritize credible, authoritative sources, meaning earned media in top-tier publications will increasingly fuel AI-driven search results. In turn, this helps drive visibility, credibility, and traction for brands and clients.

This is where large language models (LLMs) come into play. LLMs continuously learn from the information that is inputted, making it essential for PR teams to prioritize coverage in outlets that are frequently sourced and cited. For example, Business Insider is one of the most commonly referenced publications by LLMs. Securing coverage in an outlet of this caliber not only reaches a large audience but also amplifies impact through increased visibility in generative AI search results.

Before leaning into this strategy, however, brands must understand their current visibility within LLMs. The start of the year is an ideal time to conduct an initial analysis and establish a baseline. By searching the types of questions an ideal customer might ask, you can determine whether and where a brand appears in AI-generated responses. This provides both a benchmark for measurement and clear insight into areas for improvement in the year ahead.

Translating PR Results Into C-Suite Language

Traditionally, PR success has been measured by volume of coverage and impressions. While these metrics remain valuable for marketing and communications teams, they’re often less meaningful to executive leadership. In 2026, clearly articulating PR’s business value will be essential to maintaining and growing C-suite support and budgets.

This requires reframing results in a way that aligns with broader business goals. In addition to coverage counts and impressions, consider which metrics truly matter to the organization. Where does the business see value and how can PR performance connect to it?

For example, did a piece of coverage that included a product link correlate with a spike in sales? Did a media placement contribute to increased visibility within LLMs or AI search results? By focusing on business outcomes rather than communications-only metrics, PR leaders can make their impact more tangible without requiring executives to connect the dots themselves.

Media Relations That Lands

The media landscape continues to evolve and 2026 will be no exception. Staying ahead of these changes will be critical to securing coverage that truly matters. One major shift is the growing trend of journalists self-publishing their work. While reporters once wrote exclusively for traditional outlets, nearly one-third now publish independently on platforms like Substack.

This move toward independence is creating new opportunities for PR professionals. Self-published content is often distributed to highly targeted subscriber lists made up of engaged readers who have opted in. While these platforms may appear “lower tier” on the surface, their audiences can be more influential and attentive than those of larger publications. As a result, success in media relations is becoming less about the URL and more about the audience that’s truly being reached.

Alongside this shift, micro-communities are expected to grow in importance in 2026. These focused spaces, where people seek advice, recommendations, and discussion, are increasingly where influence happens. Reddit threads, Discord servers and even YouTube comment sections are emerging as valuable channels to consider, particularly when influence and engagement are key objectives.

Finally, the human element will play a central role in storytelling in the year ahead. Stories that show how a brand or product impacts real people are more relatable and more compelling to reporters. This might come from employee experiences, customer testimonials or real-world use cases. Wherever it originates, human-centered storytelling will be a crucial consideration as journalists sift through pitches in 2026.

By taking time at the start of the year to reflect on how the industry is evolving, PR professionals can position themselves for success by adapting to change rather than resisting it. Interested in applying these trends to your own business? Reach out to Double Forte to learn more.