By Jonathan Scharff and Shafian Rahman
As communications practitioners, we know the importance of engaging your audience with the right message. But in order to do this well, we must be able to understand the conversation and audience motivations: What do your stakeholders frequently talk about? What do they care about? How often are they mentioning a certain topic? What’s the sentiment?
Understanding conversations and audience motivations are components in your formula that will make or break how well your campaign is received. One way we’ve done this is through our Live Social Media Dashboard, which was used recently at one of the most important energy conferences in the world, CERAWeek. The Dashboard tracks online conversations at major events and turns them into meaningful and impactful strategies for our clients.
The conversations at CERAWeek 2025 provided a wealth of insights that can be turned into informed communications strategies and targeted campaigns, strengthening your brand reputation. Below are the key findings that can help you break into, and be a key influencer to, the critical conversations happening across energy sectors and geographical jurisdictions.
- Conversation Surrounding the Global Energy Future is Entering a New Era of Practical and Dynamic Energy Policy.
- 🔍 Avoq Insight: An audience-first communications strategy will be required for your message to be heard in this crowded environment.
- 🚀 What You Need: Define specific key stakeholder audiences, create messaging that resonates and engage through traditional and innovative communications channels.
- CERAWeek Attracts a Global and Local Audience.
- 🔍 Avoq Insight: Separate sector and market-specific communications strategies are necessary in order to create pathways for project approvals and execution, M&A activity and investor confidence.
- 🚀What You Need: Understand landscape surrounding stakeholder, regulatory, investment and third-party challenges that emerging energy nations, innovative and experienced companies alike are facing.
- Online Engagement Came from Unexpected, Surprising or Notable Comments During the Conference.
- 🔍 Avoq Insight: High engagement can come when you least expect it. With an always-on messaging strategy, you’ll be prepared to capitalize – and respond – to those moments in real time.
- 🚀What You Need: Understand trending topics, viral reporters and audience readership to expand messaging to new and existing audiences.
- CERAWeek is an Incubator for New Ideas and a Launchpad for Critical Discussion in the Energy Industry over the Next Year.
- 🔍 Avoq Insight: CERAWeek may be over, but the opportunity to communicate and message key energy audiences should continue.
- 🚀What You Need: Understand how to motivate stakeholders, elected officials, regulators, investors, NGOs and the public about your brand, company, project or initiative.
Not only are these examples of understanding conversations and audience motivations, but they also emphasize the fact that a strong moment of engagement can come from anywhere and be continued in countless ways. Whether writing content around the most trending topics discovered for your industry to basing your entire media targeting strategy on the most engaged reporters at a conference – you can leverage any moment into a broader strategy to keep the conversation going and ultimately stay top of mind for your stakeholders and effectively engage them.
About Jonathan
Jonathan specializes in policy and data-driven public affairs, campaign development and geopolitical risk insights. He analyzes dynamics among the private sector, the regional economy, infrastructure and government policy to advise client strategy. Prior to joining Avoq, Jonathan worked at the New Jersey State Chamber of Commerce as an analyst supporting government affairs operations. Before that, he served as an intern in the policy division at the New York City Council, working on issues such as transportation and economic development.
Read Jonathan’s full bio.
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About Shafian
Shafian specializes in political and policy research, opposition research and news and social media analysis. He works with clients across industries and sectors, including energy and New York State politics. Shafian’s work entails developing in-depth research products such as background and political research memos, competitor analysis, geopolitical analysis and power mapping. Before joining Avoq, Shafian worked as a legislative and intergovernmental affairs intern for the New York City Fire Department. He also served as an intergovernmental affairs intern for the Office of the New York State Attorney General and as a constituent affairs intern for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.).
