WELCOME
Welcome to our final newsletter of the year, and what a year it has been! Authenticity. Disruption. AI. Data. 2025 kept all of us in the digital space on our toes. As we wrap up the year, our team is sharing the moments, trends, and takeaways that truly moved the needle. Here’s to the ideas that made this year one for the books, and the insights that will carry us forward.
Let’s dive in.
The Best of 2025: Strategic Elements Digital Team Faves
Welcome to our final newsletter of the year, and what a year it has been! Authenticity. Disruption. AI. Data. 2025 kept all of us in the digital space on our toes. As we wrap up the year, our team is sharing the moments, trends, and takeaways that truly moved the needle. Here’s to the ideas that made this year one for the books, and the insights that will carry us forward.
Let’s dive in.
Lynn Leclerc, Sr. Vice President
Missing those Summer vibes? Let’s rewind to our June Strategic Shifts Edition, when we dove into the power of human-centered branding. It’s not just about breaking through the noise, but it’s about breaking into hearts and minds. Authenticity isn’t optional, it’s the headline act for unmatched outcomes. It starts with knowing your audience, really knowing them, so you can align with their values, aspirations, and needs. It requires organizations to show up in a way that feels personal, real, and worth connecting with. From there, it’s telling your story in a way that sparks genuine emotion.
In 2025, we doubled down on this approach with our clients, putting real voices and real stories front and center to inspire action. Video became our MVP, creating a bridge straight to the heart. Because when you tell true, heartfelt stories, people don’t just listen, they join the cause. Across energy, healthcare, and technology campaigns, our team leveraged actionable insights and embraced unique storytelling to uplift issues and get the targeted attention needed for impact.
Ryan Sheldon, Sr. Director
Is “playing it safe” no longer… safe? 2025 proved that predictability is the fastest way to get scrolled past. This was the year of “Creative Disruption” — where success came not from following trends, but from flipping them, adapting them, and downright ignoring them. Sure, trends can be a fun sprint, but mind-changing results are born out of consistency.
Across campaigns, we leaned into bold experimentation — mixing formats, testing tones, and letting authenticity drive design. In advocacy, that meant moving beyond talking points and instead giving the spotlight to those living the stories we’re telling: veterans turned wind technicians, an NFL star raising support for their hometown, and community members shaping the energy future. Those stories didn’t need polish — they needed presence.
Audiences leaned in. Ads felt like conversations, not commercials. Social posts read like moments, not messages. It’s proof that disruption doesn’t have to mean chaos — it means courage. The courage to test, to pivot, and to show up as human first, something we all crave as AI grows.
As we head into 2026, Creative Disruption is more than a tactic — it’s a mindset. The best campaigns won’t just blend into feeds; they’ll break through them, one honest, imperfect, unforgettable story at a time.
Andrea Hatcher, Sr. Manager
In the fast-moving world of public affairs and media, do you ever feel like the online conversation shifts the moment you catch up? One day you’re leading it, and the next, you’re responding to it. In a year when narratives moved faster than ever, 2025 was the year for online monitoring.
Online monitoring provided us with a clear, real-time view of the discussions shaping our clients’ industries and stakeholders. It allowed our team to anticipate emerging narratives, focus its energy where it mattered most, and keep our strategies proactive. Most importantly, it helped us meet our audience where they are, guiding conversations in ways that are both strategic and meaningful.
As we look toward 2026, we’re building on what worked and asking ourselves how we can use the insights we uncover to further focus our strategies and anticipate what’s next. How can data-driven understanding help us craft stories that hit home with our audience? Stories that connect creativity with relevance and resonance. And how can we keep ensuring every digital move is purposeful?
Along with many other questions we’ll continue to explore, we know one learning experience to be true. When every move is guided by insight and driven by intention, we begin to lead the conversation.
That’s how we turned monitoring into momentum, and momentum into measurable impact for our clients and their stakeholders.
Meta’s Latest Update Is Giving Its Ads an AI Boost
The tech giant is pushing for more permanency for its AI tools in the ad campaign process, so instead of its AI, also known as Advantage+, being an optional addition to our campaigns, it’s now automatically on unless it’s turned off. But don’t fret. According to Meta, Advantage+ is now four times more effective at enhancing ad performance.
In addition to Advantage+, Meta is also introducing an “opportunity score,” a 0-100 rating that shows how well our campaign is set up for success.
What’s fueling this leap in intelligence, though? Data. Lots of it. Meta’s AI taps into insights from over three billion of its users to predict what they’re most likely to engage with, spotting patterns in their behavior based on their previous activity, providing advertisers with powerful signals to build on.
For advertisers like us, it’s a leveraged step in the right direction, but let’s be real, AI can help us optimize ad campaigns, yes, but it can’t capture emotion, nuance, or purpose; that magic lies in human touch and understanding.
The future of ads? Smarter, yes, but always human at heart. Machine precision paired with human creativity is the new formula for great advertising. And the best part? We’re just getting started.
Did Someone Order More AI?
LinkedIn is doubling down on AI to improve user experiences. This time: search tools with conversational queries to find increasingly relevant member matches. Forget restrictive filters and instead leverage plain language prompts into the search field to find exactly who you need, faster. Think conversational queries that feel natural and deliver hyper-relevant matches. Looking for digital pros in public affairs? Just type: “digital communications professionals with experience in issue advocacy” to find us.
Event Ads: Bigger Reach, Better Results
No surprise here: events are a powerhouse for impact. Bringing people together to learn, engage, and influence outcomes is a cornerstone of public affairs strategy. Now, LinkedIn Event Ads are raising the bar: already delivering double the attendance compared to standard promotion.
LinkedIn is adding more enhancements to make event management even simpler and outcomes stronger, including:
- Maximizing visibility so more people see your event
- Securing registrants as permanent leads by routing event sign-ups into lead generation opportunities
- Targeting with precision for high-quality event attendees and leads
Ready to boost event engagement? Engage your ticket to packed events and long-term organization advocates.
Usage‑Based API Pricing: A Handoff to Developers — with a Catch
In November, X introduced a new usage-based pricing model for its API, departing from the previous flat-rate structure. The shift offers scaled pricing based on actual data consumption, fewer rate limits, a redesigned developer console, and even a $500 API build credit for select beta participants.
That said — for standard workloads (e.g., typical branded content tracking, basic analytics) — the new model may not be any cheaper than prior plans. Here are the top takeaways to keep in mind:
- Renewed access to data and tools. For brands and agencies that rely on API-driven analytics (sentiment tracking, hashtag monitoring, competitive analysis, etc.), this could re-open the door to more robust insights.
- Need for smarter budgeting. Because pricing now depends on usage, marketers must carefully model and forecast data consumption — especially for large campaigns or social listening programs.
- Opportunities for research and creative tools. This move could support more ambitious use cases (e.g., real-time crisis monitoring, advanced trend detection, dynamic content triggers).
Don’t Forget the Basics: Optimizing X Visuals in 2025
Also, this month, Hootsuite updated its evergreen — but essential — resource: a comprehensive guide to image sizes across all major social platforms, including X. That may sound mundane, until you consider how many brands still get burned by improperly formatted visuals (cropped graphics, cut-off text, awkward mobile previews, etc.).
Designer, marketer, or PR pro? Here’s the “why”:
- Visual consistency matters again. With feed clutter, algorithmic deprioritization, and an increasingly competitive environment on X, visuals need to immediately grab attention. Poorly formatted images can undercut your efforts.
- Align across platforms. As brands increasingly maintain multi-platform campaigns (Instagram + X + LinkedIn + TikTok), having a standardized image-size checklist helps streamline creative ops.
- Simple “low-hanging fruit” wins. Revisiting image specs is one of the easiest near-term improvements for agencies and in-house teams — and can significantly lift engagement, especially with visual-first content (events, product shots, infographics, video thumbnails).
GET CHATTING!
Would you opt for one daring campaign that gets everyone talking, or ten polished ones that build steady followers but zero buzz?
Strategic Elements is a full-service public affairs, marketing, and media consulting firm based in Iowa. Our team of political operatives, marketing experts, and media strategists helps businesses, organizations, and causes shape public opinion, influence policy, and drive meaningful change.
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