At Idea Hall, we believe that good work begins with strong leadership, meaningful growth, and a commitment to showing up with intention. Every new year offers a chance to reflect, reset, and recommit to the values that guide our work.
The Goodness Report highlights the stories, milestones, and moments shaping our agency, our industry, and our community. January marked a powerful start to 2026, a month filled with leadership milestones, new energy, creative exploration, and exciting recognition that reminds us why purpose-driven work matters.
Sara Sloan Promoted to Chief Operating Officer
We’re proud to share that Sara Sloan was promoted to Chief Operating Officer, a milestone that reflects her leadership, strategic vision, and lasting impact on Idea Hall. Since joining the agency nine years ago, Sara has played a critical role in strengthening operations, supporting team growth, and helping guide the organization forward with clarity and care. Her ability to balance big-picture strategy with day-to-day excellence has made her an invaluable leader.
Rebecca Hall, Founder & CEO, shared,
“As Idea Hall continues to grow and evolve, strong leadership is essential. Sara guides the team with integrity, intention, and a deep understanding of our people and our purpose. Her promotion to COO is a natural next step and an exciting moment for our agency.”
From Sara:
“I’m honored to step into this position and grateful for the trust placed in me. Idea Hall is built on purpose-driven work and incredible people, and I’m excited to continue supporting our team, our clients, and our community as we move forward and grow together.”
We’re proud to begin the year with Sara in this leadership role and look forward to the impact ahead!
Idea Hall Named One of the OCBJ’s Companies That Care
Each year, Companies That Care recognizes 50 Orange County organizations demonstrating that corporate success and social responsibility go hand in hand. Idea Hall is honored to be included among this year’s honorees.
This recognition reflects our belief that goodness and purpose-driven work belong at the center of how business is done, and how meaningful, lasting impact is created.
We’re proud to stand alongside organizations making a meaningful difference across Orange County.
Explore the full list of 2025 Companies That Care honorees.
ICYMI, our most recent Goodness Report Special Feature launched earlier this month with our 2026 Trend Report: Social Media & PR Signals Defining Brand Credibility in 2026.
The report explores a clear shift shaping the year ahead: audiences are no longer persuaded by what brands say, but by what they consistently demonstrate. Drawing from our vantage point in brand strategy, social performance, and reputation management, the feature outlines how credibility is built through sustained signals, not momentary visibility.
Key themes include:
- Why social engagement is now proof of authenticity, not an optional add-on
- How sustained credibility outperforms short-term virality
- The growing role of executive visibility and thought leadership
- Why earned media acts as a trust multiplier
- How social media and PR now function as one connected ecosystem
The report offers practical guidance for brands navigating 2026, focusing on relevance, resilience, and competitive advantage in a rapidly evolving media landscape.
If you haven’t explored the full feature yet, now’s the perfect time to catch up and see what’s defining brand credibility this year
Hootsuite’s 2026 Social Media Trends report makes one thing clear: social isn’t evolving in one direction — it’s splintering, accelerating, and demanding more intelligence from brands at every level. Here’s what matters most.
Algorithms Are Getting Smarter
Platforms are now optimizing their algorithms for micro-behaviors like hover time, rewatches, and pauses – not just likes or follows. Reach is driven by relevance, not loyalty. Follower count is officially a vanity metric. Content is being distributed based on what signals of interest, not who audiences follow.
Brands need deeper audience insight and more experimentation. Success is measured by reach quality, repeat exposure, and resonance — not growth for growth’s sake.
Human Creativity Wins, but AI Is Non-Negotiable
AI is now table stakes for content creation, but audiences are actively rejecting low-effort, obviously automated content (“AI slop”). Efficiency without judgment erodes trust. Audiences want to see human taste, perspective, and imperfection.
Use AI as infrastructure, not strategy. Speed matters – but craft, originality, and human oversight are the differentiators.
Social Joins the Search Engine
Social search is multi-modal – utilizing text, visual, and voice – with platforms like Instagram are now indexed by Google. Social content directly influences discovery, evaluation, and decision-making well beyond the feed.
Treat social as a discovery engine. Build “answerable” content that clearly responds to real questions, and align social, SEO, and content teams around shared visibility goals.
Creator Partnerships Are Shifting from Centering Reach to ROI
Brands are prioritizing audience alignment and storytelling quality over follower size. Long-term partnerships outperform one-off posts. Engagement without impact doesn’t move the business. Brands want measurable signals – saves, shares, intent, conversions.
Define what ROI means for your brand and partner with creators who deliver trust and relevance, not just scale.
Social Is a First-Party Data Engine
Brands are using social channels to collect consent-based first-party data and real-time consumer intelligence. Traditional research is too slow for culture that shifts daily. Social listening now informs everything from product development to PR.
Tip: Move from reactive reporting to proactive insight. Use social intelligence to spot micro-shifts early and guide strategy across teams.
One Brand Voice Isn’t Enough
Audiences maintain different identities across platforms and are expecting brands to do the same. A rigid, one-size-fits-all brand voice underperforms in fragmented social ecosystems.
Tip: Build flexible brand identities anchored in core truths. Adapt tone, format, and personality to platform-specific intent.
Experimentation Is Now the Operating System
Creative pattern analytics and rapid testing are replacing slow, campaign-led execution. Platforms, features, and behaviors change too quickly for perfectionism.
Tip: Create a culture of experimentation. Test fast, learn faster, and iterate based on why content works, not just what performs.
Brands Are Creators
On-camera, personality-driven content from brand teams and leaders is outperforming traditional brand posts. People trust people, even when they work for brands.
Invest in creator fluency, empower internal voices, and remove approval bottlenecks that kill momentum.
Linked In Enters Its Creative Era
Video, visuals, and expressive content are driving more engagement and measurable business impact on LinkedIn. LinkedIn is no longer just a professional bulletin board — it’s a competitive attention economy.
Show up visually, consistently, and human. Authority paired with creativity wins.
Hootsuite’s data reinforces a central truth for 2026: belief is built through relevance, not volume. The brands that win won’t just move faster – they’ll move smarter, grounded in audience insight, human creativity, and systems built for constant change.