Not many of us are willing to admit it, but PR and advertising are going through a mid-life crisis.

We’re failing to keep up to speed with how society is changing and are therefore finding it increasingly hard to build a cost effective bridge between brands and consumers.

15 years ago people were reliant on traditional media to stay connected to the world and therefore couldn’t ignore it, so it made sense for PR to ‘earn’ media advertising to ‘pay’ for it.

But people now only pay attention to what they want to. And because today, a Gen Z teenager can create more shareable content than many brands with massive marketing budgets, brands can no longer force themselves to be seen and heard.

Presenting at Mumbrella CommsCon yesterday

News print circulation revenues have declined, with print’s share of the news audience shrinking to just 18% by 2025. Trust in Australian media has fallen significantly, with a 67% decline in confidence reported in 2025. 80% of ads fail to reach the attention threshold that means people don’t actually register as having seen them.

Peer-to-peer media continues to grow in size and influence. Tapping into it can mean exponential reach and attention, however, you can’t pay for that. You have to earn it by being relevant to people’s interests, what’s happening in culture, and showing up at exactly the right time.

This is not an advertising skillset. And, despite our inclination to think in an earned way, it’s not necessarily a traditional PR skillset either. In my opinion it’s actually a new creative skillset which combines both PR and advertising thinking, as well as emerging disciplines around culture, community and creator.

Hence the birth of the ‘Earned Creative’ a currently rare breed of creative mind that understands the nuances of earning attention, as well as how to communicate brand messages creatively through the line.

What is ‘earned creative’?

‘Earned creative’ is work that........

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