Smart in Public Stop Counting Impressions and Start Proving Impact with Linda Zebian, VP of Communications at Muck Rack
Ever wonder why everyone in PR talks about measurement but nobody seems to have cracked it? Linda Zebian, VP of Communications at Muck Rack, just said the quiet part out loud—and it's exactly what you need to hear right now.
In this episode of Smart In Public, the Katies sit down with someone who's uniquely positioned to call out the industry's blind spots: a comms leader who works at the company that literally builds the tools we're all supposed to be using to prove our worth. Linda's journey from traditional media to the tech side of communications gives her a perspective nobody else has—and she's not holding back.
Why this episode hits different:
📊 The measurement confession - Why PR's universal measurement challenge isn't getting solved by better dashboards (and what actually matters instead)
🤖 AI reality without the hype - How AI is actually changing PR measurement and strategy, not just automating press releases like everyone assumes
💰 The budget conversation nobody wants to have - Real talk about what it takes to convince leadership to invest in PR technology when "you can't measure PR anyway"
📰 Owned media vindication - Why building your own channels isn't just a nice-to-have anymore—it's your insurance policy against platform chaos
🎯 Stakeholder education secrets - How to explain PR's value to executives who think communications is just "getting our name out there"
The conversations worth stealing:
- On centralized data: Linda breaks down why scattered analytics across seventeen different platforms is killing your ability to prove impact—and what to do about it
- On AI agents: Forget AI writing your pitches. Linda's looking ahead to AI agents that actually change how PR professionals do strategic work (and why that's not as scary as it sounds)
- On traditional metrics: Why impressions and AVE are worse than useless—they're actively misleading your stakeholders about what communications actually delivers
- On the paywall problem: What happens when all quality journalism goes behind paywalls and your citations become invisible? Linda's thinking through this before the rest of us
- On authenticity: In a world where AI can generate infinite content, Linda argues that genuine trust and brand authenticity become your only real competitive advantages
Chapters
- 02:57 - Linda's Journey to Muck Rack
- 05:38 - The Evolution of Measurement in Comms
- 08:51 - AI's Impact on PR and Measurement
- 11:38 - The Future of Paywalls and Media Citations
- 14:43 - Preparing for 2026: Strategic Planning in Comms
- 17:54 - Budgeting for AI Tools in PR
- 20:42 - The Role of AI Agents in PR
- 23:37 - Embracing AI and Continuous Learning
- 29:34 - The Evolving Landscape of AI and PR
- 31:28 - Essential Tools for Effective Measurement
- 34:30 - Educating Stakeholders on Measurement Challenges
- 37:31 - The Importance of Technology in Measurement
- 38:44 - Telling Your Own Story in PR
- 40:24 - Maximizing Resources in a Tight Budget
- 42:22 - The Role of Owned Media in Brand Authority
- 44:30 - Shifting Budgets Towards Authenticity
- 48:30 - The Future of PR Measurement and Strategy
Connect with us on:
Have a topic or a guest idea? Email us at hello@smartinpublicpod.com