Greentarget

Greentarget

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Executives can spot AI-generated thought leadership by the second paragraph, and they trust it less every time they see it. AI still has a place in the writing process. The difference between using it as a tool and leaning on it as a shortcut is where credible thought leadership starts.

Download the guide to see how Greentarget’s editorial team uses AI, and where we draw the line. We’ll also walk you through the stages of the writing process and show you exactly where AI adds value and where it can undercut your credibility.

You’ll get specific prompts you can use today: how to map the existing conversation before you write a word, how to build an outline that doesn’t wander, and how to strengthen a draft you’ve already written without losing your voice in the process.

If your team is producing more content than ever and still isn’t breaking through, the writing process is often the reason.

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by Rob Pereira, Associate

In Brief

  • In a tough labor market, PR grads must recognize the critical skills they can build outside of the classroom that will set them apart. 
  • Three important skills to work on are execution, industry fluency, and stakeholder prioritization.
  • Even now, PR is still a great place to start your communications career because of its transferrable skills and exposure to different industries.

It’s no secret that getting a job as a college graduate is tough right now. A 2025 study found that only 30% of recent grads found jobs in their target sector four months after finishing school. That’s down 11% from 2024.   

Why? Besides the tight labor market and AI’s threat to entry-level workers, over half of the graduates surveyed cited a lack of job-specific skills as the main reason. In other words, students don’t feel like their classes are teaching them the things they need to know.

That resonates with me. Even though I went to a great university (go Northeastern!), the one PR class I took didn’t teach me much about what I’m doing in the field right now. Those lessons are still locked away in entry-level roles.

But unlocking them is often a catch-22. To gain experience, you need an internship, and to get that internship, you need experience…

To help break that bind, I wanted to share three things that college classes won’t teach you about working in PR—and how to learn them yourself. 

1. Learn Execution First, Not Strategy

In my college PR class, we spent most of the semester learning about high-level theories like the SCCT framework or CSR pyramid. 

Those basics matter. They show you how everything works and why PR is an interesting career. But in an entry-level role, you aren’t creating the strategy—you’re executing it. 

Good execution means learning the “hard” skills of the discipline that PR classes usually gloss over. Fortunately, you can easily practice them on your own. Take B2B media relations, for instance: 

  • Monitoring for media opportunities. Pick a news topic you already follow (e.g. electric vehicles) and a company or organization that would have a useful source (maybe a rep from Rivian, or an automotive lawyer). Find ways to catch breaking news on the topic, such as social media notifications or official press releases. 
  • Building a media list. Read recent news stories about the topic, record the reporters’ names, and find their emails (try their bio page, or the masthead section if it’s not readily available; if you’re still coming up empty, know that if you find someone else’s email at the same organization it will likely follow the same conventions).
  • Pitching reporters. Try to imagine where your “source” might best add to the current media conversation (e.g., an automotive lawyer might be able to comment about EV parts recalls or the impact of new tariffs). Draft a mock pitch for your source that’s tied to a breaking piece of news. 

This exercise doesn’t have to be imaginary, either. You could run through those steps to generate publicity for a club or nonprofit you’re involved in to achieve various outcomes: raising money, spreading awareness, promoting an upcoming event, etc. That’s exactly the experience that agencies are looking for. 

2. Become Fluent in the Industries You Want to Work In 

One of the skills that gets overlooked in general PR classes is industry fluency: that is, even if you know how to pitch, you need to understand what it is you’re pitching. Consumer PR isn’t the same as legal PR isn’t the same as healthcare PR. 

To develop industry-specific fluency, you can use two methods: 

  • Learning fast: You need to get up to speed quickly. Technology and colleagues come in handy here. For instance, I have an AI tool that assesses whether new press releases are pitch-worthy. You can also ask your colleagues who have more experience in the industry to help you out. Don’t have colleagues quite yet? Ask your friends who have relevant majors or are passionate about the subject. It could even be an opportunity to network! Find a professor or alumni who knows the industry and reach out to them. 
  • Learning slow: This is just a corporate euphemism for going down a rabbit hole. On slower days or in gaps between tasks, take 30 minutes or more to just read and consume content on a topic you’re following. By just clicking around, you’ll start to see the bigger picture—and uncover trends that are rife with PR opportunities.

When I started pitching sources in the financial sector, I wasn’t familiar with the acronymed regulators that kept popping up: the OCC, the Fed, the SEC, the CFTC. So, I asked AI to provide an overview of each agency’s function and what parts of the industry they regulated. That summary was enough to get me up to speed on the news of the week and tie in my sources’ expertise in pitches. 

But it was only later, when I took the time to read Bloomberg article after Bloomberg article, that I was able to understand the political dynamics at play among each of the regulators. For instance, the question of whether the SEC or the CFTC is the primary crypto regulator—and the uncertainty surrounding it—was a key dynamic that underpinned a lot of news and helped me connect new developments to a broader pattern. That knowledge took my pitches up a notch.

Underneath this skill of industry fluency is something simpler: curiosity. Getting excited to learn about new topics will take you far!

3. Some Stakeholders Are More Important Than Others

PR classes teach students about the various stakeholders that all organizations have: customers, investors, employees, the broader public, and so on. But what they don’t tell you is that within PR, individual jobs (and sometimes entire agencies) will focus on just one of those groups. 

Knowing which group you need to prioritize at work is key, because building good relationships with them will make you more successful. In media relations, for example, reporters are the most important: influencing how they perceive your clients and how they broadcast that perception to their audience is the core mandate. 

Finding ways to keep your key stakeholders at the forefront makes a difference. Here’s how to get started:

  • Make sure you know what’s going on in their world. In media relations, we closely track the industry by hosting Q&As with reporters and reading newsletters on the state of journalism.
  • Be nice to these people and consider their perspective (especially when they aren’t nice to you). Don’t take it personally when they are mean or annoyed!
  • Keep a list of contacts that you’ve worked with multiple times, so you can visualize where you’ve made inroads and focus your energy on growing those relationships.
  • Take those key relationships to the next level! Move your next message from email to a phone call, or a text. Go from video meetings to in-person coffee chats. 

It might not be a surprise that in a field called public relations, relationships with priority stakeholders are the most important asset you can create for yourself: they’re valuable, unique, and hard to imitate. 

Why a Job in PR is a Great Place to Start Your Career 

As a young professional a year into my career, I can confidently say that PR is a great sector for communications students to start in. The variety of industries to work with and different flavors of PR to choose from—social media, events, executive comms, media relations, and more—means you can play to your strengths and discover new paths. 

The gap between the classroom and the workplace is real, but it’s smaller than it seems. A little initiative, a lot of curiosity, and consistent practice can bridge it long before your first job offer.

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Greentarget developed a targeted media relations strategy to secure meetings with top business and financial reporters, strengthening the client’s visibility and long-term media relationships

Challenge

A partner and leader of a global law firm’s Government Relations and Public Affairs practice was scheduled to attend the 2026 Milken Institute Global Conference, one of the world’s leading gatherings of business, finance and policy leaders. As a former senior House leadership staffer and experienced congressional lobbyist, he was well positioned to provide insights on the rapidly evolving policy landscape in Washington in the runup to the 2026 midterm elections. But with several high-profile sources competing for reporters’ attention at the conference, the law firm needed a targeted strategy to stand out. 

Approach

Greentarget developed a proactive media engagement strategy in the weeks before the conference, identifying priority reporters who were expected to attend and positioning the partner as an authoritative source on the intersection of politics, public policy and business. To maximize the impact of each meeting, Greentarget prepared tailored briefing materials, including reporter biographies, recent coverage, interview tips and key discussion topics. The team also worked closely with the partner to refine timely messaging that aligned with reporters’ interests.

Results

Greentarget secured six meetings with reporters from leading national outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Politico and Bloomberg News, along with a live interview on Bloomberg TV. The interview was featured on Bloomberg’s website and aired during the Bloomberg politics show Balance of Power, extending the law firm’s visibility to a national audience, including a client who reached out to schedule lunch after seeing the interview.

The effort resulted in the partner’s highest number of reporter meetings in 12 years of attending the conference, strengthened relationships with influential journalists and created opportunities for future commentary. The partner noted that the connections Greentarget helped build are going to be “very beneficial to the firm, not just me and the GRPA team.” When the same partner visited New York two months later, Greentarget set up in-person follow-up interviews with many of the reporters he had connected with at Milken, further cementing these relationships.

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Most firms know their marketing and business development functions are under pressure. Fewer know exactly where the pressure is coming from, or how their peers are handling it.

In late 2025, Greentarget spoke with chief marketing and business development officers from the legal, consulting, and accounting industries to find out. The conversations surfaced four recurring pain points that cut across sectors: talent development, sustainable growth amid economic uncertainty, keeping pace with AI, and the persistent struggle to measure marketing’s real impact.

The resulting report goes deeper than survey averages. You’ll see how priorities differ by industry, what leaders are actually worried about versus what they say publicly, and which AI tools are in active use (and for what).

You’ll also find:

  • What the pressure from leadership, clients, and investors looks like right now
  • How firms are thinking about AI in both operations and client-facing work
  • What marketing and BD leaders say they’re prioritizing in 2026

If you lead marketing or business development at a professional services firm, this report offers a clear view into what your counterparts are working through and where they’re focused next.

Fill out the form to access the full key findings.

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When Lathrop GPM discovered that none of its competitors were actively marketing to closely held businesses, they enlisted Greentarget to help mine this untapped client segment

Challenge

In 2024, the Business Development team at national law firm Lathrop GPM discovered that nearly one-third of the firm’s top 250 clients were closely held businesses (CHBs)—and none of its competitors seemed to have a focused marketing strategy directed at this audience.

Unfortunately, neither did Lathrop GPM. Despite key practices areas serving this clientele—including Business Transactions, Litigation and Private Client Services—the firm lacked targeted thought leadership materials to support outreach. Word-of-mouth and general marketing efforts, then, remained the primary channel through which CHB owners discovered Lathrop GPM.

To increase both internal and external visibility of the firm’s strong track record with CHBs, the firm turned to Greentarget for help.

Approach

Lathrop GPM kicked off the initiative by revamping the firm’s CHB-focused webpage and creating a “Closely Held Business Institute” logo to unify branding across thought leadership, products and outreach. They also developed a tailored email list representing 80% of the firm’s largest CHB clients, prospects and referral sources.

From there, the firm partnered with Greentarget’s Content & Editorial team to launch the CHB Institute newsletter in August 2024, with three subsequent editions released in 2025. Each newsletter features a thought leadership article by Lathrop GPM attorneys, a “success spotlight” showcasing a firm win on behalf of CHBs, a curated list of relevant news stories from the firm’s client alerts and published thought leadership and upcoming events/milestones. Core messaging emphasized the firm’s ongoing work with CHBs across multiple practice areas, reinforcing its capability and commitment to this client segment.

Greentarget helped create the newsletter’s template/structure, content and design, which uses clear visual breaks to distinguish content types and improve readability; high-res attorney headshots; and modern iconography to add visual interest and a contemporary feel.

Once each newsletter was sent, a link was shared via the firm’s LinkedIn account and it was made available for individual attorneys to share with their contacts, with paid spend placed behind the most recent issue.

Results

Initial results from the first three newsletters demonstrate an impressive return on investment:

– The average open rate across all three newsletters was over 50%, far surpassing the industry average of 32%. Similarly, the average click-through rate was ~7%, more than twice the industry average.

– The initial distribution list nearly doubled from 471 to 909, indicating a steep rise in interest.

– Paid LinkedIn engagement for the July 2025 issue led to 25,863 impressions, 744 clicks and the re-engagement of two highly qualified referral sources.

– The CHB newsletter campaign was recognized with a Gold 2025 PRISM award from the Greater Kansas City chapter of the Public Relations Society of America, which celebrates outstanding PR campaigns and professionals in the KC area.

The firm plans to continue releasing and improving the newsletter in 2026, further cementing Lathrop GPM’s reputation as a leading provider of legal services to closely held businesses.

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Inside the pressures facing marketing and business development leadership—and how professional services firms are adapting

The CMO and CBDO roles at professional services firms are being fundamentally rewritten. Growth expectations are rising, technology is accelerating, and accountability has never been more critical—yet many leaders are navigating these pressures without a clear playbook.

In late 2025, Greentarget launched a research initiative to understand how senior marketing and business development leaders across the legal, accounting, consulting and professional services organizations are responding to this moment and how they are preparing for what comes next. We termed this the Chief Marketing & Business Development Officer Outlook.

Drawing on in-depth conversations with C-suite executives, CMOs, CBDOs, and industry consultants, our research examines the concerns and priorities shaping their agendas, as well as the strategies peers are using to address them. Among the most pressing issues:

  • Growth and competitive differentiation 
  • Talent and resource constraints 
  • AI and technology adoption  
  • Cross-functional collaboration 
  • Accountability and measurement 

Our goal was to surface practical guidance that reflects how senior marketing and business development roles are evolving inside complex, high-stakes organizations.

What follows is the first in a series of short insights drawn from this work and from internal working sessions with Greentarget senior leadership. Each piece focuses on a single pain point or opportunity emerging from the research, and the guidance we suggest for firms moving forward.

Measurement Is Valued, But Rarely Trusted

If one theme consistently surfaced across our Chief Marketing & Business Development Officer Outlook conversations, it was frustration with measurement.

That’s not because leaders doubt its importance. Quite the opposite—measurement is widely viewed as essential as marketing and business development leaders face growing pressure to demonstrate impact, justify investment, and connect their efforts to firm growth.

The challenge is that in professional services, measurement rarely behaves the way leaders want it to.

Influence builds over time. Yet firm leaders, boards, and finance and operational teams increasingly expect clear proof of ROI and business impact quickly.

A core tension emerged in our discussions: measurement isn’t failing because firms lack data. It’s failing because of the widening gap between what leaders are asked to prove and what measurement can realistically show.

The Competitive Set Is Often the First Thing That Breaks

One of the clearest pressure points is how firms define who they are measuring against.

Competitive sets are frequently too broad to be meaningful. Teams attempt to measure against “everyone”—which makes comparison and insight nearly impossible. Even when competitors are defined, there is often little clarity around what firms are trying to measure—visibility, authority, relevance, or business influence.

Effective measurement starts with disciplined choices:

  • Narrowing the competitive field to a small, relevant peer set 
  • Aligning competitors by practice, industry, or buyer type 
  • Acknowledging the difference between aspirational and actual competitors 

Without this clarity, measurement struggles to answer even the most basic strategic questions.

Qualitative Impact Still Carries Disproportionate Weight

Another recurring theme was the imbalance between quantitative and qualitative insight. Many of the most meaningful outcomes such as partner conversations, inbound interest, or credibility in a pitch never show up cleanly in dashboards or reports.

These signals often live with partners and business development teams, yet firms often lack structured ways to capture or value them. Elevating qualitative insight from anecdote to intentional input remains one of the biggest opportunities to improve how firms approach measurement.

Data Exists, But Insight Doesn’t Travel

Silos further compound the problem. Another recurring theme was the disconnect between the different teams responsible for generating, interpreting, and acting on data.

Marketing, business development, and digital teams often measure different things, in different ways, and for different reasons. What insights exist are rarely shared or translated into collective decision-making.

Measurement breaks down not because firms lack sophistication, but because data is siloed, teams don’t share a common definition of success, and insight isn’t consistently used to inform strategy.

In this environment, measurement becomes a reporting exercise rather than a strategic tool.

Vanity Metrics Persist Because They’re Easy

Volume continues to dominate many measurement conversations. Our research indicates that’s because metrics like impressions or follower totals are familiar and easy to count—not because they meaningfully informs decision-making.

Several leaders emphasized that metrics only become meaningful when placed in context against a baseline, a peer set, or a clearly defined business objective. Without that framing, activity can look impressive without actually informing decisions.

What this suggests is not a need for more measurement, but for better framing. Clearer choices about what matters. Greater alignment across teams. And a willingness to let go of metrics that don’t serve a strategic purpose.

What This Signals for Firms Moving Forward

Measurement in professional services will never be perfect. But when approached intentionally, it can still be one of the most powerful tools firms have to guide strategy, align teams, and support growth.

The firms making progress aren’t chasing more data. They are making clearer choices about what matters, aligning teams around shared priorities, and using measurement to inform strategy rather than justify activity.

As the CMO and CMBDO roles continue to evolve, measurement will remain a point of tension—but also a powerful lever for firms willing to rethink how and why they use it.

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