Will the new GST mandate boost growth for India's PR firms in the upcoming festive quarter

"Consumers will feel they have more money in their pockets, and brands will spend more todrive this demand. However, the immediate gains from this upswing will be more visible in paid media and marketing spends where timely, high-impact promotions directly translate into sales.", declares Jaideep Shergill, founding partner at Pitchfork Partners Strategic Consulting, LLP.

PR remains a longer-term brand and reputation-building effort rather than an instant driver for consumer demand generation. Consequently, Jaideep predicts, " PR firms are likely to see client acquisitionand retainer growth unfold at a slower, steadier pace over the coming year."

Vivek Pradeep Rana, managing partner, Gnothi Seauton, says, "PR firms are expecting an 8–10% topline growth for the festive quarter. This is being driven by strategic project mandates with the potential to convert into longer-term contracts. Growth is highly sector-specific. What I’m seeing is a bifurcation: expectedly, aggressive campaign pushes in select sectors (FMCG, auto, D2C beauty, consumer tech) and measured, ROI-focused communications in others (edtech, fintech, BFSI)."

Vivek explains, "What’s different this time is the way clients are allocating. Budget increases aren’t being evenly split across the marketing mix. PR is being judged not by visibility, but by its ability to influence buying intent, shape public narrative, and mitigate noise. The pressure is to prove precision.

The tailwinds are strongest in FMCG, auto, and consumer tech. These sectors are using this window to reinforce messaging around accessibility, value, and community impact. E-commerce and quick commerce players remain active, but their briefs are leaning performance-first. This is not across the board. Financial services, healthcare, and B2B remain cautious, prioritising continuity over campaign spikes."

What are the PR clients' briefs like?

Vivek believes, "The real change is psychological. Brand managers, flush with a bit of fiscal space, are more willing to back bold narratives, especially those that reframe affordability not as discounting but as value-driven access. That’s where PR firms come in. We’re being asked to frame pricing shifts, clarify positioning, and defend trust.

The briefs coming in are sharper:

• How do we talk about reduced prices without sounding cheap?

• Can we frame this as aspirational inclusion, not value erosion?

• Can earned media reduce repeat ad dependency by strengthening baseline trust?

The opportunity isn’t just in visibility. It’s in shaping how affordability is perceived. That’s a reputational play, and it’s precisely where public relations can lead.

Rishi Seth, founder and CEO at Evoc, shares optimism with a rider saying, "The GST reduction will no doubt lift consumer sentiments higher during the imminent festival quarter, already the biggest quarter for most sectors, but we should recognise that this growth will come after several quarters of muted sales. 

Also, whether the growth momentum continues after the initial rush is a moot question, and I believe that companies will be cautious for at least six months when considering revising their retainers. On the flip side, many clients will naturally want to go all out in capturing the demand by increasing their PR and marketing budgets for the upcoming quarter."

Rishi explains, "We anticipate a healthy double-digit growth in project mandates to ride on the festival demand, particularly for categories like automobiles, consumer durables, electronics, e-commerce, and even digital bullion and fintech. 

However, we believe a corresponding rise in long-term retainers will take at least six months, provided the consumer demand sustains. Retainer growth is expected to remain in the single digits for the upcoming quarter, while the overall growth will come from new client acquisitions."

Girish Balachandran, founder and managing director, ON PURPOSE, shares, "For most agencies, the festive quarter is the Super Bowl of client acquisition, whether FMCG, e-commerce, auto and consumer tech are obvious drivers. For us in the social impact space, the outlook is a little different. 

We don’t see the same seasonal spikes as consumer categories, but we do see more organisations using the festive period as a platform to push social campaigns around themes including health, nutrition, gender, or climate action. 

Our growth is steadier, less project-heavy, and more aligned with long-term programmatic work. So while consumer PR firms might see an immediate surge in campaign briefs, in our world it translates into a steadier increase in multi-stakeholder campaigns, ecosystem convenings, and advocacy pushes that tie purpose with prosperity."