In today’s crowded media landscape, filled with AI-generated content, engaging with your audience requires more than just noise. It demands authenticity that can only come from a human voice. Because in a world driven by algorithms, audiences can instantly spot and will scroll past a manufactured story, but genuine storytelling will make them pause.
Public Relations isn’t about automation, it’s about stripping communication back to its core, through close collaboration with clients, interpreting their needs and layering communications with the nuances that can only come from personal interaction. This is what enables PR practitioners to craft a targeted, creative, and accurate narrative that cuts through the clutter and stops the scroll.
This is crucial for bridging the gap between what a company says and how it is perceived because public relations is about building a reputation that is earned, not generated or paid for.
While AI can generate content, it can’t generate the strategic insight that comes from real expertise and trusted media relationships. PR positions your brand in conversations that matter, among the right people whose opinions are respected and who can help amplify your message, providing third-party endorsement rather than just visibility in front of algorithms.
In this month’s blog, we delve into how AI can support PR agencies and why it is critical in PR that people remain an integral part of your business operations.
Where AI can add value in PR (and where it can’t)
PR is about ideas and strategy, and AI can help behind the scenes with time management, freeing up space to focus more on client relationships. However, it can’t replace the human qualities that define public relations, such as building trust and shaping narratives with clients, media and communities.
Building Your Brand’s AI Presence
Here’s the truth: if used correctly, AI can be a powerful tool to grow your business. For example, did you know ChatGPT reached 100 million users in just two months? The telephone took 75 years. Companies can use AI to respond to customer queries and to analyse trends, helping them reach new audiences. However, it can’t in isolation, proactively put your company in front of audiences and key stakeholders; it can only draw content from what already exists online.
Public Relations ensures your brand is ready to be discovered on AI-driven platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity by optimising your content for natural, conversational queries to ensure it reflects how real people ask questions and your brand becomes part of the AI conversation. It’s essentially SEO for AI, to ensure your brand is visible and cited within the AI-driven digital landscape.
Research, Insights, and Story Credibility
PR relies on both data and human insight. Quantitative and qualitative sources, such as industry reports, statistics and surveys to provide a foundation, but delving through them takes time. AI tools can quickly extract and summarise key findings, giving PR teams more time to shape those insights into engaging communication.
However, data alone does not create impact; people do. Relevant and accurate statistics are essential for credibility and confident messaging. AI can surface information, but it is the PR team that verifies the details and crafts them into a compelling narrative. PR experts take the insights AI uncovers and turn them into communication that connects, ensuring every story resonates with its target audience.
Monitoring and Reporting
From media coverage to competitor updates, staying informed is vital. AI can help gather and organise information, but it can’t build relationships. PR secures your brand coverage in both digital and print media through trusted connections with journalists and news outlets that no AI bot could replicate.
While AI can support reporting by presenting campaign results in a more streamlined, data-driven format, it doesn’t replace the strategic thinking behind those outcomes. PR experts interpret the data and uncover what’s truly driving success to guarantee the continual growth of your brand.
Common Misconceptions
“AI replaces PR professionals.” It doesn’t. AI can speed up tasks, but it can’t build the relationships that protect your company’s reputation.
“AI makes PR less authentic.” Not at all. Honesty and transparency are the heart of what public relations is all about.
“AI does all the thinking.” It’s software, it can’t think. AI can find information, but it’s people who give it purpose. Creativity, judgement, and strategy remain the backbone of PR.
NAKEDPR’s Approach
With 13 years of experience, working closely with clients to protect reputations and make sure every message reaches the right audience. NAKEDPR knows that in B2B PR, credibility and human expertise are what make communication effective. While AI can help with research and organise information, it can’t form the relationships and creativity that bring a brand’s story to life.
If you would like help developing your brand’s story, get in touch with NAKEDPR today.