By Ferdinand L. Bondoy
THE recent CommuniTalks webinar of the International Association of Public Relations (IPRA) Philippines featured Ms. Etsuko Tsugihara, the global president of Ipra and the Founder and President of Sunny Side Up Goup, Inc. of Japan. In her speech, Ms. Tsugihara reiterated that the Covid-19 pandemic has brought many changes to our lives. People have started to change their views on humanity, sustainability, and the issue of inequality.
For her, one group that we should pay attention to is the Generation Z or those born between 1996 and 2010. As digital natives, Gen Zs were raised by and grew up with mobile phones, tablets and computers. As the population distribution of the younger generation is increasing year by year, Gen Zs are expected to have a big influence in the future.
Ms. Tsugihara noted that the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have gained more attention among Gen Zs throughout the pandemic. SDGs are a collection of 17 interconnected global goals designed to be a “blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.”
“They [Gen Z] are more interested in SDGs right now. Known as digital natives, they tend to search and research everything on their own and seek out what they really value and need. They consider environmental issues, discrimination issues, gender equality, what is right what is good for someone, and what is sustainable for the future rather than their own material wealth,” said Ms. Tsugihara.
To better communicate with the generation that will lead the world’s consumption and business in the future, Etsuko claimed that we need to develop consistent communication that starts with “good story-making.” Stance, Story, and Speed are three points that we need to be aware of when creating a PR story. Stance is how the company and the brand deal with social issues, Story is how the company has evolved, and Speed is about providing information in the soonest and most appropriate time.
For me, indeed, the pandemic has caught everyone by surprise, our PR industry included. At first, I heard stories from colleagues about their companies cutting budget for communications, and even letting go of people. Agencies, in the Philippines and across the Southeast Asian region, also had clients shelving if not postponing projects and accounts.
Back in 2020, at the onset of the pandemic, everyone was in fear of the unknown, in a panic on what to do. This pandemic, and its scale, is quite new to the world, or to this generation. The last that the planet experienced was way back in 1918, the Spanish flu.
But after a while, we were able to rationalize the value of PR at this most pressing time. PR is also a critical component of a company’s business operations. This is the time where organizations need to talk to and manage different stakeholders that affect their growth, existence and even survival, and as what Ipra stands for this year, it’s also the time to CONNECT. Public Relations or Communications is also essential.
Hence, companies called on their communication teams and agencies, to go back to the table, check on what’s happening, carefully prepare strategic plans to help the company to survive and win in this new challenge, in the navigation of the big shift, and in the continuity of business and life in general
Aside from PR, during the pre-pandemic era, the use of digital is an advantage for every brand, for every agency. It makes you ahead of the game. But when the quarantine economy was set in place, it became a means of survival. It became the next normal of doing business—online events, immersive and augmented reality, video news release, e-commerce integration, website and mobile applications, social media, and emerging platforms, among many others. Before, we saw virtual reality as something too futuristic, something “alien” to us, but now, virtual is our new reality.
And if your organization was not digitally ready then, unfortunately, the impact of Covid-19 was more unforgiving, hence the downsizing, the retrenchment, and worst, the closure.
The challenge brought out the best in us and exposed the worst in us, among individuals, in companies and organizations, and even governments. If technology, infrastructure, and systems were not in place at the onset of the pandemic, what could have cushioned the impact of the crisis? It is great company culture, servant leadership and compassionate team. So, while it was a big challenge, some survived when as what globally renowned author and speaker Simon Sinek states, leaders choose to eat last and be the leaders they are expected to be.
So as PR practitioners, innovation should always be part of our staple. As communicators who are up to knowing trends ahead of everyone, we should also be the first to know on how to adapt to any changes.
But what has been consistent is the PR’s role in social change—may it be on health, environment, education and youth, among others. And our expertise on doing such has been largely sought even amid the pandemic. For companies, doing social good should not be a nice to have anymore as well. It should be a way of life because for a company to thrive, you must have consumers, stakeholders, who are equally healthy, happy, living in a sustainable environment and in a flourishing economy. We live in an interactive ecosystem where each one should do his or her part in the preservation and improvement of lives.
And with that, I also agree that the Generation Z comes in with so much potential. It is fortunate that the boomers, the Gen X and millennials, have undergone this painful yet fulfilling journey and the learnings are there for them to grasp, take to heart and bring to the next level. Whatever we have learned in the pandemic, and even before this era, is something that will equip Gen Zs in moving forward. And, I hope, that we could also count on our GEN Z PR practitioners to carry on what IPRA and the rest of the PR practitioners across the globe have been doing for the industry and the society.
So in whatever form, traditional, digital, and whatever new platform may come, let’s continue to CONNECT and make a difference.
PR Matters is a roundtable column by members of the local chapter of the Unite Kingdom-based International Public Relations Association (Ipra), the world’s premiere association for senior communications professionals around the world. Ferdinand L. Bondoy is the regional integration and chief executive director, partner and co-founder of COMCO Southeast Asia Inc.
PR Matters is devoting a special column each month to answer our readers’ questions about public relations. Please send your questions or comments to askipraphil@gmail.com.