Golin - GOLIN ADDRESSES NEW ERA OF EARNED

Not only does editorial credibility determine algorithmic presence, making earned media a priority for AI-driven discovery, but 41% of breakthrough brand narratives originate within community conversations.

In the age of algorithmic curation, the analysis also identified that 80% of breaking stories peak within 36 hours, with earned visibility requiring a new approach that sustains an ongoing narrative ecosystem rather than one-off campaigns.

The agency analysed 3.1+ million articles and social posts, 5,000+ AI responses, 14 demographics and 27 senior journalists over 18 months to create one of the most comprehensives views of modern communications effectiveness.

The research shows how AI-driven search, communities, and creator culture have reshaped how information spreads and gains influence. With brands being systematically filtered out of culture and conversation by traditional earned approaches.

In response to these findings, the agency is calling for brands reposition modern earned media thinking from supporting tactic to strategic marketing imperative and adopt a new approach to earned that engages audiences in the way they discover, form opinions and make decisions about brands in the age of AI.

To support this, Golin has developed the CORE IMPACT framework, outlining the four critical sources now directing the majority of attention, trust, and action (news, influencer, community and search).

“We need to rethink the term ‘always-on’ to being ‘always present in peoples lives’ and how we are creating a consistent and joined up conversation, moving to communications ecosystems instead of campaigns or bursts,” said Kat Arnull Golin Chief Strategy Officer and author of the report.

The CORE IMPACT framework is designed to grow and nurture ecosystems by thinking in terms of Conversation – engaging communities and involving them in a two-way dialogue, Opinion – being decisive and bold about what you are saying in order to stand out and be meaningful, Relatability – ensuring that you are being part of culture and what truly matters to your audience and Educating – providing your audience (and AI) with the problem/ solution information that gets to heart of their lives.

“This isn’t just a tactical adjustment, it’s a strategic transformation that positions communications as a critical business driver. Through analysis of real-world cases, we found 68% of long-tail stories travel through at least three CORE sources; with 41% originating within community conversations.

“Communications leaders who create narrative ecosystems at the intersection of cultural intelligence, community engagement and algorithmic visibility see 2.8× higher conversion rates and 3.1× stronger brand association with category leadership attributes,” said Arnull.

To continue this work, Golin is developing a bespoke measurement model to begin tracking the ecosystem, to better understand how earned impacts the business bottom line and overall objectives. Golin would love to invite those within the industry (and outside) to get involved and collectively help navigate this exciting new future.

The CORE IMPACT framework is based on the most comprehensive analysis of AI-era communications effectiveness to date, including 3.1 million articles and social posts analyzed via via TalkWalker, Quid & NewsWhip (Jan 2023 – Mar 2025); 5,000+ AI-answer citations scraped across GPT-4, Google SGE, and Perplexity; and qualitative interviews with 27 senior journalists across global markets. Cross-referenced with reports from Bain & Company, Reuters Institute, and Pew Research.