AI – creating disruption in our industry to see around the corner

PR professionals are in the eye of the storm – of the AI disruption. But that is not to be feared. We need to evolve and diversify to remain relevant.

We need to create disruption in our own PR and communication industry to maximise the constant motion. That means knowing and looking to adopt Artificial Intelligence (AI) tech, tools and machine learning in our own processes and also within the brands, organisations and clients we work for.

Staying ahead

As PR and communication professionals, it is our obligation to stay one step ahead – we need to see around the corner to be able to advise.

We need to think about higher levels of value creation and growth through improved engagement with customers and audiences – building profiles, profits and purpose.

AI is a primer for innovation, for leaders to unlock the promise of AI and machine learning to achieve long-term sustained growth, built on the foundation of improved customer/client/audience engagement.

Speed is a weapon in PR and communication. AI and machine learning, although not yet being used widely in our industry and big data not yet being used widely in business/organisations, will enable us to work faster and smarter.

Risk vs opportunity

Big data will become very powerful to us as we may say see some crisis averted or dealt with quicker because of AI tools and products. But it will also land in our laps when AI and data potentially cause reputational risks.

Excitingly, AI is already enabling hyper-personalisation, better engagement, and unprecedented audience insights, with major implications for both how users consume content and the development of the content itself.

AI for PR arms us and leaders with the information we need for applying AI and machine learning to win in today’s and tomorrow’s digital era. Brands and organisations can think like their customers and stakeholders versus just thinking about the.

AI helping PR lead the change

AI will help us make those decisions quicker, crunching heaps of data in seconds, providing high quality insights – helping us institutionalise information into the companies/businesses who make decisions.

If we are to be the ones to lead the change – then we are the ones who are the residents of the skills and access needed to drive change in our industry.

We have to change how we think about insights and data and information and analytics. We need to become the masters of big data.

This is the moment in our industry to move from being the people who report to business leaders to the people who help drive business forward.

Your call to action

It is no good thinking ‘What is the implication for my role and my function’ – we don’t have a choice. But, we do have the abilities, the data and AI tools and products, which are getting better all the time to diversify and upskill. AI and machine learning really does present an incredible opportunity for us.

Change is nothing to be feared but really embraced, after all as communication and PR professionals we are used to constant change and leading from the front on transformation and implementation. AI is no different.

As Satya Nadella, CEO Microsoft, said:

If you don’t jump on the new, you don’t survive.”

Come along to PRFest, where we will be talking all things AIinPR….. Book your tickets here.

Guest blog by PRFest speaker @PRKezza #AIinPR