Listen, it’s easy to fall into the trap of phoning things in once December rolls around and riding the lazy wave into the New Year. We’ve all been guilty of it. Q4 budgets are dwindling, clients are on vacation, and the enthusiasm and excitement (and, let’s be honest, chaos) of Black Friday and holiday shopping is fading like the slightly sparkling embers that remain from a once fervent holiday fire. 

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You could just wait it out and coast through the last month of the year, but if you do, don’t be surprised if it comes back to bite you in the ass come January. Instead of sitting around and doing fuck all, why not take the downtime to do something productive? 

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While there is a time and place for being naughty,  there are some useful tactics you can implement to ensure that, while your campaigns can get down and dirty, your brand ends up on the nice list. 

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Below, we’ll list some tips for auditing your PR strategy before the year ends, as well as adjustable fixes, to reposition your start to the New Year from potentially slow and shitty to successful. 

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Let’s get into it! 
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Review Media Coverage: What’s the Storyline?

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Let’s face it—if your pitches aren’t landing, you’re just another forgettable blip on a journalist’s radar. Audit your media coverage from the year. Were your mentions actually meaningful, or just participation trophies? If there are gaps, stop whining and start winning—Build a hit list of dream outlets and go after them like they’ve got front-row tickets at the Eras tour.
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Analyze Key Metrics

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Unfortunately, the relevance of math and numbers isn’t something we could leave behind in high school. Unlike your ex, numbers don’t lie, but they can be equally as brutal. 

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Dive into your KPIs: Did your media campaigns bring in traffic or just crickets? If something’s underperforming, fix it fast—like swapping a bad Hinge profile photo (nobody wants to see the generic fishing shot, Josh). Prioritize what works, ditch what doesn’t, and set some killer goals for Q1.
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Check Message Alignment

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If your brand messaging hasn’t evolved, you might as well be sending pitches by carrier pigeon. Audit your pitches and campaigns—are they on-brand or just off-key? Are they fun, engaging, and different, or do they just melt into the tsunami of generic, boring pitches flooding reporters’ inboxes? 

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Update your messaging playbook to reflect where your brand is headed, not where it’s been. Fresh messaging equals fresh buzz.
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Evaluate Relationships

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Ghosted by journalists this year? That’s on you. Relationships are everything in PR, so check who’s hot and who’s not on your media list. Rekindle the love with personalized holiday shoutouts and manual outreach—We’re not asking you to send them a personalized love letter, but making them feel like the prettiest girl in the room (so to speak) could pay off handsomely. 
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Assess Crisis Management

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Had a PR dumpster fire this year? Good. Now learn from it. Did you handle it like crisis management queen Olivia Pope or a deer in headlights? 

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Tighten up your response plan so you’re not fumbling if (when) it happens again. 
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Content Health Check

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Boring content is a crime against PR. Audit your blogs, press releases, and social posts—are they scroll-stoppers or snooze-fests? Revamp the good stuff into evergreen gems, and ditch anything that reads like it was written during the MySpace era.
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Tick the Timing Boxes 

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If you aren’t riding seasonal trends, you’re basically asking to be irrelevant. Audit how well you tied campaigns to timely topics. If you missed the boat, make up for it by hopping on Q1 trends early—“New Year, New You” pitches practically write themselves. 

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Don’t be late to the party this time.
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Evaluate ROI on PR Tools

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Are your PR tools getting results, or just draining your budget like a bad (aka unused) gym membership? 

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Audit your platforms and subscriptions. If they’re not pulling their weight, kick them to the curb and upgrade to ones that deliver. Efficiency is sexy—so is saving money. 
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Create a Q1 Game Plan

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Like the beautiful marketing matrimony that is the coordinated PR efforts to cross-promote Travis Kelsey and Taylor Swift, the significance of an organized game plan cannot be understated. 

If you don’t have a PR game plan for Q1, what are you even doing? Build a roadmap that slays—key announcements, campaigns, and juicy pitches that will have journalists drooling. Think of it as your New Year PR glow-up. Start strong, stay strong, and dominate the New Year.

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By the time the ball drops, your PR strategy should be glowing like Times Square at midnight. Wrap up the year by ditching what didn’t work, doubling down on what did, and giving your brand the refresh it deserves. Remember, PR isn’t just about getting noticed—it’s about being unforgettable and creating a lasting impact. So, get out there, shake things up, and make the New Year the year your brand becomes everyone’s headline obsession. 
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If you're ready to explore how these insights can elevate your brand, connect with us at Don't Be A Little Pitch, and let's start a conversation!