PR Is not publicity: Why modern PR Is a growth strategy, not a comms function

Introduction: The Boardroom misunderstanding that’s costing brands millions

For too long, PR has been misunderstood. In many boardrooms, it’s still seen as the team that gets coverage, handles crises, or writes statements when something goes wrong. Useful? Yes. Strategic? Not always. Growth-driving? Rarely - at least in how it’s traditionally deployed.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: brands that treat PR as publicity are leaving serious growth on the table.

Modern PR is not about chasing headlines. It’s about shaping perception, accelerating trust, influencing demand, and creating commercial momentum across every channel where your brand shows up; from search engines and social feeds to investor decks and sales conversations.

PR isn’t a comms function anymore. It’s a growth strategy.

1. Publicity is tactical. Growth is strategic.

Let’s draw a clear line.

Publicity is output-focused:

• Press coverage

• Mentions

• Share of voice

• Reactive storytelling

Modern PR is outcome-focused:

• Market positioning

• Trust creation

• Category leadership

• Demand influence

• Revenue enablement

Publicity asks: “Where did we appear?” Strategic PR asks: “What behaviour did this change?”

When PR is treated as a distribution channel rather than a strategic lens, it becomes disconnected from commercial reality. The board doesn’t need more noise. It needs clarity, credibility, and compounding advantage.

That’s where modern PR earns its seat at the table.

2. PR shapes perception, and perception drives growth

Every buying decision is influenced by perception long before it’s influenced by price.

• Do I trust this brand?

• Do they understand my world?

• Are they credible at this scale?

• Are others like me choosing them?

PR answers those questions before marketing campaigns convert and before sales teams engage.

The strongest brands don’t just sell, they are pre-validated in the market.

That validation comes from:

• Consistent narrative

• Third-party credibility

• Thought leadership that reframes the category

• Authority that shows up everywhere buyers look

This is not accidental. It’s engineered.

Strategic PR builds a reputation moat - one that advertising alone cannot replicate.

3. PR as a demand engine, not a support function

In high-growth brands, PR doesn’t sit downstream of marketing. It sits upstream of demand.

Done properly, PR:

• Defines the category language buyers adopt

• Influences how problems are framed

• Sets the criteria by which solutions are judged

If you control the narrative, you influence the buying journey before prospects hit your website.

This is why PR now intersects with:

• SEO and Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO)

• Social proof and authority signals

• Investor and stakeholder confidence

• Sales enablement and deal velocity

PR is no longer about visibility. It’s about market shaping.

4. Why the old PR model breaks at scale

Traditional PR models were built for a different era:

• Linear media cycles

• Clear gatekeepers

• Slow reputational drift

That world is gone. Today, brands operate in:

• Always-on digital ecosystems

• AI-driven discovery environments

• Fragmented trust landscapes

• High-velocity reputational feedback loops

In this environment, press coverage without strategic intent is noise.

The brands winning now are those using PR to:

• Inform algorithms as much as journalists

• Influence AI answers, not just headlines

• Build authority assets that compound over time

• Align narrative across earned, owned, shared, and sold channels

This is PR as infrastructure, not activity.

5. From press office to boardroom: The strategic shift

The most important shift modern PR leaders must make is where the conversation starts.

Not with:

• “What story can we pitch?”

• “Which journalist should we target?”

But with:

• “What perception do we need to own to grow?”

• “What belief must change in the market?”

• “What authority gap is holding us back?”

This reframes PR from execution to strategy.

In the boardroom, PR should be discussed alongside:

• Market entry

• Brand architecture

• M&A narratives

• Product launches

• Investor confidence

• Risk and resilience

When PR is aligned to these levers, it becomes commercially indispensable.

6. Modern PR Is built for AI, search, and trust

We’ve entered a world where:

• Buyers search less and ask more

• AI summarises brand reputation instantly

• Trust signals are aggregated, not discovered

This changes everything.

PR now feeds:

• Search engines

• Large language models

• Decision-making shortcuts

• Reputation algorithms

If your brand narrative isn’t structured, consistent, and authoritative, AI will fill the gaps for you, often inaccurately.

Strategic PR ensures:

• Your positioning is machine-readable

• Your authority is repeatedly reinforced

• Your brand appears credible in zero-click environments

This is where GEO and PR converge, not as tactics, but as strategic growth infrastructure.

7. What growth-led PR actually looks like

So what does this look like in practice?

Growth-led PR focuses on:

• Fewer, stronger narratives, not endless stories

• Long-term authority over short-term coverage

• Owned thought leadership that earns amplification

• Measurement tied to commercial outcomes

Success is measured by:

• Increased deal confidence

• Shorter sales cycles

• Improved inbound quality

• Stronger valuation narratives

• Category leadership recognition

This is not “PR plus”. This is PR redefined.

8. The commercial case for PR as strategy

Boards don’t invest in activity. They invest in advantage.

Modern PR delivers:

• Trust at scale

• Differentiation without discounting

• Reputation resilience in volatile markets

• Growth that compounds over time

In a world of interchangeable products and rising acquisition costs, reputation becomes the most defensible asset a brand owns.

PR is how that asset is built, protected, and leveraged.

Conclusion: Stop asking what PR gets you. Start asking what it builds.

If your organisation still sees PR as publicity, the question isn’t whether PR works, it’s whether you’re using it properly.

Modern PR is not a function.It’s not a department.It’s not a line on the org chart.

It’s a growth strategy.

And the brands that understand that are already pulling ahead - quietly, credibly, and commercially.

About the author

Michael O’Connor is a partner at Grey Sergeant, specialising in PR, communications, and engagement across the healthcare and non-profit sectors. Through his consultancy Grey Sergeant, he helps healthcare organisations define their brand, strengthen their reputation, and communicate with clarity. For more information, contact michael.oconnor@greysergeant.com