Why traditional gifting PR is making a comeback  

Journalists’ inboxes are fuller than ever, and with similar pitches arriving daily, it’s becoming harder for brands to stand out through digital outreach alone.

That’s why tactile, experience-led PR is making a comeback in 2026. From curated gifting to immersive brand moments, brands are recognising that a strong traditional PR layer still matters alongside influencer campaigns, SEO and wider digital activity.

How traditional PR powers AI discovery

At Connective3, we see traditional PR as more important than ever in an AI-driven search landscape. As platforms like ChatGPT increasingly rely on trusted editorial content to share recommendations, credible third-party coverage has become a key driver of product discovery and brand visibility. That’s why our approach goes beyond blanket outreach. We carefully tailor product gifting to the most relevant journalists, build genuine long-term relationships and focus on securing placements that carry real authority and trust.

In many ways, GEO and AIO visibility is becoming closer to PR than traditional SEO, it’s about becoming a citable source, not just ranking in search. This thinking has also contributed to the development of our new Brand Citation Score tool, which helps brands understand how visible and recommendable they are across AI-powered search experiences heading into 2026.

The importance of planning ahead

The brands that consistently land in gift guides are usually the ones planning early. By the time journalists are compiling Christmas or Valentine’s Day roundups, they already want products, imagery and story angles ready to go. We do this with our client Bloom & Wild, always planning ahead for key seasonal moments to ensure campaigns, product selections and media materials are ready well in advance. Involving PR early in launch planning and campaign activity gives brands a stronger chance of spotting reactive opportunities on platforms like Response Source and securing coverage ahead of competitors.

Why physical beats digital

A well-thought-out gift box will also leave a stronger impression than another follow-up email. Curated mailers allow journalists to properly experience a product rather than skim another pitch in a crowded inbox. Elevated packaging, styling inspiration and creative concepts make products more memorable and easier to feature editorially.

By linking topical products with ingestible wellness experiences, brands create a cohesive “inside-out” narrative that feels holistic, shareable, and immersive giving consumers multiple touchpoints to engage with the brand in a meaningful way. 

Brands with physical spaces are leaning into this too. For our client Suit Direct, we invited a key journalist from the Liverpool Echo into his local store for a personal styling session, resulting in a first-person article that brought the experience and products to life in a much more authentic way. Experiences like these help build stronger editorial relationships and create more meaningful long-term coverage opportunities than email outreach alone.

How to stand out in a crowded inbox

Journalists are overloaded during peak gifting periods, so brands need to remove as much friction as possible. We’ve done this for our beauty client Avon during key seasonal moments, including the peak Christmas period when we outreached Avon’s beauty calendar. We supplied journalists with everything they needed upfront, including high-resolution imagery, pricing, retailer links and tailored information relevant to each title and audience. This approach helped secure product links and coverage across outlets including Tyla, Living Etc and the Express.

Top tip: Products with a clear hook, whether innovation, practicality, sustainability or a trend-led angle, are far more likely to stand out.

The niche advantage

While national placements are valuable, some of the strongest gifting results come from niche roundups and specialist editors with highly engaged audiences. Understanding what journalists cover, how they work and the deadlines they face makes outreach feel more tailored and increases repeat inclusion across seasonal guides and product roundups.