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Global Risks 2025: What They Mean for Marketers

Writer's picture: CarolynCarolyn

As marketers and communications professionals, we’re often tasked with navigating not just the opportunities in front of us, but also the risks on the horizon. The Global Risks Report 2025, published last week to align with the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, highlights some crucial challenges for businesses. The world is becoming increasingly volatile, with geopolitical tensions, misinformation, and environmental crises at the forefront.


Understanding how these risks could impact marketing, brand reputation, and crisis communication strategies is essential. So, what can we take away from this report, and how do we adapt our marketing and communication strategies accordingly?


Protecting Your Brand Reputation


Blue typewriter with "fake news" paper, books on digital verification, and TV showing a reporter.

The misinformation minefield

The report flags misinformation and disinformation as the top global risk for the next two years. In an age of AI-generated content and viral falsehoods, your brand’s reputation could be targeted unfairly at any time.


The solution? Be proactive. Invest in tools to monitor public sentiment and social media mentions, and invest time in understanding what you gather. What are people saying about your business? How can you improve your communications to deal with any negativity, or to address any false information that is being shared?


Navigating polarisation

The report also points to growing societal polarisation. This means brands need to tread carefully in public discourse. In general, it's wise to avoid aligning with divisive narratives and focus on shared values that unite your audience.


What about if you want to align yourself with a cause? If you're a smaller business, you might have personal values that mean you want to align yourself with a particular movement or message which others could view as divisive. For example, there is strong support for LGBTQIA+ rights in some countries, whereas in others same-sex relationships are banned. Sometimes, it is as simple as the charity your organisation chooses to donate money from your recent bake sale to. There are a multitude of potential pitfalls to navigate.


My advice in this situation is to take time to understand the potential impact on your business of aligning yourself in this way. With this information you can then make an informed decision which balances your personal values with your professional goals. (And it's ok to decide that you feel so passionately about something that you want to be loud about it - with the right communications approach).


Crisis Communications


BB-8 toy on asphalt, sunny day, cars and a tall building in background. White with orange details, playful atmosphere.

Know when to act—and when to stay quiet

As the report makes clear, the interconnectedness of today’s risks—geopolitical, technological, environmental—means that the stakes for crisis communications have never been higher. Knowing how to craft an appropriate response in a crisis is a hard-won but essential skill. Mis- and disinformation make this landscape particularly challenging, because if your brand becomes a target of false allegations or online trolling, jumping into every conversation might amplify the issue (read my previous post on this: Crisis Communications: You say it best, when you say nothing at all...). This is where regularly reviewing risks is important, because it provides you with time to analyse the potential scenarios and get buy-in to a range of responses. Be as prepared as you can be, and manage the situation so that it doesn't manage you.


The role of AI in crises

AI is everywhere at the moment. From generative AI to autoresponders and auto-schedulers, there is HUGE potential for marketers to reduce the time spent on administrative tasks and free up capacity for the strategic (at least, that's the dream). These powerful tools also bring new risks, across the legal, social and reputational domains. AI-generated content, for instance, can both build and damage trust, depending on how it’s deployed.


Be mindful of how AI is used in your organisation, monitor potential vulnerabilities and add anything you find to your organizational risk register.


Building Resilience in a Fragmented World



Cardboard sign with "ECO NOT EGO" in green and orange. Illustrated nature on left, pollution on right. Set outdoors, promoting eco-awareness.

Sustainability is now non-negotiable

The report’s emphasis on environmental risks (extreme weather events, pollution, biodiversity loss) reflects growing pressure on brands to take sustainability seriously. Customers now expect businesses to act responsibly, and failing to do so is a fast track to reputational damage. If sustainability isn’t already part of your brand strategy, it’s time to make it one.


Data-driven decision-making

If you know me, you'll know that I'm nerdy about using data to inform campaigns. And with societal, environmental, and technological risks all on the rise, basing your strategy on evidence has never been more important.


Where to start? I'd find out what data your business collects first of all. There's a wealth of information and analysis you can do with whatever you have. You should at least be able to look at what brings prospective customers to your website, or how many products you've sold in which areas. You can add external research to benchmark against industry trends, and get to know your competitors better. Armed with this, you can adapt your messaging and campaigns to stay relevant and responsive in these times of change. If you don't have this data, you're guessing, and that adds a new vulnerability for your risk register. Note it down, so you can start taking mitigating action.


Looking Ahead

The Global Risks Report 2025 paints a picture of a world in flux, but with the right strategies in place, marketers can turn uncertainty into opportunity.


Would you like support in aligning your marketing and communications strategies with these emerging challenges? Let’s chat. I can help you understand the risks for your business, and how to use communications to mitigate them and position yourself for success.


Images: Jorge Franganillo, Kenny Eliason and Markus Spiske (Unsplash).

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© 2023 by Carolyn Bowick.

Home page image: Devon Janse van Rensburg.

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