Your Mid-Year Communications Plan Check

By this time of year, most organizations are deep into executing their marketing and communications plans, or, if you’re a fast mover, you’re already sketching out ideas for 2026. Either way, May is the perfect moment to pause, evaluate, and recalibrate based on how the landscape is evolving.

As you know, generative AI has changed the way we work faster than anything else before it. We’re also in a position where owned and earned media have undergone significant changes. 

What was true when you built your communications plan late last year might look a little different now.

Audience behaviors continue to shift, too. People consume content differently, expecting more authenticity from brands and demanding faster, more personalized experiences. 

Meanwhile, the channels we once relied on—such as traditional media or even some social platforms—are no longer delivering the same results without a more strategic, integrated approach.

That’s why it’s crucial to step back and pressure-test your current communications plan: Are you putting your time, energy, and budget where they’ll have the greatest results? Are you adapting fast enough to stay relevant?

Whether you’re fine-tuning your current strategy or beginning to map the road ahead, they will help you stay ahead of the curve—and ensure your work delivers real business results.

The World Is on Fire

As we move into mid-2025, the broader economic environment has become increasingly unstable. Early-year optimism has given way to rising uncertainty, driven by trade tensions, market volatility, and the looming threat of a recession. Stock markets are reacting sharply to new—and often quickly reversed—tariff threats, while supply chain disruptions, particularly with China, are putting new pressure on U.S. businesses.

This instability is already trickling into our world. Axios recently reported that tariffs are casting a shadow over the ad market, slowing spend and making executives even more cautious with marketing investments. As always, watching what happens in the ad world helps define where we will be in a few months. 

This means organizations will be even more selective about where they invest time, energy, and dollars in the second half of the year. So if you cannot prove that your work is positively affecting revenue growth, customer loyalty, or crisis resilience, you will lose support. “Do more with less” is once again becoming the expectation, but this time with even less margin for error—and with greater executive scrutiny.

The smartest approach right now is to sharpen your focus: double down on high-ROI activities, such as owned media programs, building reputation through earned media, and fostering direct audience relationships. 

Efforts that demonstrate brand durability and operational flexibility will be the ones leadership prioritizes—and rewards—as economic uncertainty continues to deepen.

Your communications plan isn’t just about being efficient—it’s about being essential.

Expand Your Use of AI 

Of course, sharpening your focus doesn’t mean doing everything manually.

If the past year has taught us anything, it’s that strategic use of AI and emerging technologies is no longer optional—it’s essential for those of us who want to stay competitive and efficient.

AI has now moved beyond experimentation into full operational integration for many organizations. Generative AI is being used not just for content creation but for media monitoring, audience segmentation, trend analysis, customer service support, and campaign optimization. 

At the same time, new tools driven by machine learning and predictive analytics are giving communicators deeper insights into how audiences behave—and how to meet them with the right message at the right time.

That said, technology is only as good as the strategy behind it. The goal isn’t to use AI just because it’s trendy; it’s to free up human time for higher-level thinking, creative storytelling, and relationship-building—the parts of communications that robots still can’t replicate—and the things most of us would rather spend our time doing anyway.

As you evaluate the second half of your year, ask yourself:

• Where can AI or automation save time without sacrificing quality?
• Are we using data analytics to refine our messaging and targeting in real-time?
• Have we experimented with new technologies, such as AI-enhanced owned media hubs, video personalization, or predictive earned media planning?
  

Done right, integrating AI thoughtfully into your workflows can help you weather economic uncertainty, increase your efficiency, and sharpen the value that communications brings to the business.

Navigating Media Fragmentation 

Even as technology gives us new ways to reach audiences, it’s also made it harder to earn and keep their attention.

Last year, Axios (I seem to love them today!) reported that there are at least 12 distinct media bubbles where people are getting their information. To boot, traditional outlets continue to consolidate or shut down, while new niche platforms, newsletters, podcasts, and independent creators rise to fill the gaps. 

Social media, once a reliable amplifier, has become less predictable due to shifting algorithms, platform fatigue, and growing user skepticism.

At the same time, trust in media and institutions continues to decline. According to the latest Edelman Trust Barometer, people are becoming increasingly skeptical of the information they receive, regardless of the source. They’re looking for credible, transparent, values-driven communication—and they’re quick to tune out anything that feels inauthentic or self-serving.

This means the days of blanket pitching and mass content distribution are officially over. Success now depends on building intentional, trust-based relationships with journalists, with influencers, and most importantly, directly with your audiences.

Ask yourself:

• Are we tailoring our messages for the fragmented environments where our audiences actually spend their time?
• Are we investing enough in our owned media channels, where we can control the narrative and build long-term trust?
• Are we showing up consistently and transparently, even when it’s uncomfortable or complicated?

In a fragmented, low-trust media world, your greatest advantage will be your credibility. Protect it fiercely.

Prioritize Internal Comms and Employee Engagement

We all know that employees are the most important audience—and often the most credible advocates, yet they are often overlooked.

Employees today expect more than basic updates and top-down messaging. They want transparency, two-way dialogue, and communication that reflects the realities they’re facing, both inside and outside of work. 

According to a Gartner survey, companies that prioritize internal comms during times of uncertainty outperform their peers in employee retention, productivity, and even external brand perception.

Simply put: if your employees don’t believe in the company’s vision, values, and leadership, no one else will either.

As you review your mid-year communications plan, ask yourself:

• Are we communicating with employees early and often about organizational changes, challenges, and successes?
• Are we providing meaningful ways for employees to share feedback, and are we acting on it?
• Are we empowering managers and team leads with the tools and messaging they need to reinforce company goals and values?
• Are we celebrating wins, recognizing contributions, and reinforcing a sense of belonging and shared purpose?

Internal communications isn’t just HR’s responsibility; it’s a critical business function that directly affects trust, loyalty, and performance, which will wholeheartedly affect your external comms, too.

How to Review Your Communications Plan 

If you’re feeling a little overwhelmed right now, don’t worry—you’re not alone.

And if you’re anything like me, your original 2025 communications plan already has a few scribbles, cross-outs, and “what were we thinking?” moments. That’s normal. In fact, it’s healthy.

The good news is, you don’t need to scrap everything and start over. A mid-year refresh is about being smart, strategic, and surgical: doubling down where you’re gaining traction and adjusting where you’re falling short.

When we work with marketing and communications teams during mid-year audits, the biggest opportunities usually aren’t what they expect.

Here’s how to approach your review:

• Start with your original goals. Revisit the objectives you set for 2025. Are they still aligned with the current business environment and leadership priorities? If not, where do you need to adjust?
• Audit your results so far. Look at what’s working—and be honest about what’s not. Which channels deliver measurable results? Where are you seeing momentum, and where are you spinning your wheels?
• Reassess your audiences. Has your target audience shifted? Are their needs, behaviors, or expectations different from what they were six months ago? Update your personas if necessary.
• Pressure-test your messaging. In a volatile market, tone matters more than ever. I talked to a friend the other night who told me his CEO wants to use some very direct and specific language during their earnings call. While it was a message many of us feel right now, he and I both felt the tone was not right for the situation.
  
  Review your key messages to ensure they still resonate and accurately reflect the current reality your audience is experiencing, while remaining appropriate for the situation. It’s a good reminder that when emotions run high, our communications need even more care, not less.
• Prioritize ruthlessly. You likely can’t do everything you dreamed of at the start of the year. Focus your resources on the activities that directly support revenue, reputation, customer loyalty, and employee engagement.
• Rebuild flexibility into your communications plan. If the first half of 2025 has taught us anything, it’s that conditions can change fast. Structure your next few months to leave room for quick pivots, if and when new challenges or opportunities arise.

A mid-year review isn’t about finding fault. It’s about setting yourself up for a stronger, smarter finish to the year—and building resilience for whatever comes next.

The PESO Model© Will Help Your Communications Plan

Once you’ve reviewed and updated your communications plan, the next step is making sure everything you do works together, instead of in silos. And that’s where the PESO Model becomes your best strategic tool.

We developed the PESO Model more than a decade ago to help marketers and communicators stay strategic when everything else around them is shifting. Times like these are exactly when it should be used in its full glory. 

The PESO Model—paid, earned, shared, and owned media—is designed to help build fully integrated programs that deliver more results with less waste. Especially in a fragmented, volatile environment like the one we’re in now, integration isn’t just a best practice—it’s a competitive advantage.

Here’s how to apply the PESO Model to your mid-year refresh:

• Paid Media: Use your paid dollars to amplify your best-performing owned and earned content, not to chase impressions for their own sake. Think targeted boosts, native advertising, and strategic retargeting that support your broader story.
• Earned Media: Focus your media relations efforts where you have the highest trust and credibility. Build deep relationships with the outlets, newsletters, podcasters, influencers, and niche platforms your audiences already trust—and pitch stories that genuinely serve them.
• Shared Media: Strengthen your social presence by focusing less on chasing virality and more on authentic engagement. Use polls, conversations, and behind-the-scenes content to deepen relationships and make your brand more relatable and human.
• Owned Media: This is your insurance policy. Invest in your blog, your podcast, your email newsletter—anywhere you control the narrative. Especially when media and social channels are unpredictable, owned media gives you stability and long-term value.

As you go through the second half of the year, use the PESO Model as a checkpoint.

When you launch a campaign, ask yourself: Are we leveraging all four media types? Are they working together to reinforce a single, clear message? Where are the gaps?

Integrated communications will always outperform fragmented tactics. And in a year like this one, integration could be the difference between surviving and leading.

Communicators Who Adapt Will Win

There’s no question—this year is shaping up to be more challenging than most of us expected when we built our plans back in November or December. Economic uncertainty, rapidly shifting technology, fragmented audiences, and growing skepticism mean our work is more complex than ever.

But complexity isn’t a roadblock. It’s an opportunity.

It’s an opportunity for the best marketers and communicators to step forward and lead.

Marketers and communicators who are willing to be proactive—to pressure-test their strategies, embrace integration, sharpen their focus, and lead with authenticity—will not only survive the turbulence; they’ll emerge stronger, more trusted, and more essential to their organizations than ever before.

So take this moment seriously.

Review your communications plan. Rethink where needed. Tighten up your programs. Integrate across PESO Model channels. Build the kind of marketers and communicators who earn attention, trust, and loyalty—especially when it’s hardest.

This isn’t easy work.

But it’s the work that will make you—and your programs—absolutely indispensable.

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