What AI tools like ChatGPT mean for PR activities
17 Aug 2023, By Deya Bhattacharya
17 Aug 2023, By Deya Bhattacharya
While AI-powered tools have been around for a while, it’s the explosive popularity of ChatGPT that brought AI to the masses. Since then, new AI tools have been cropping up every day, with applications ranging from content writing to image creation to coding to website building. It’s being hailed as a boon to businesses that wish to automate processes and keep the flow of content going – at the same time, it’s left many PR professionals wondering: “How will ChatGPT impact PR and media?”
There’s certainly a lot to be said for the convenience of creating content through generative AI. As long as one enters the right prompt, it’s easy to create multiple pieces of content within seconds, including full-length blog posts. Practically, this means that PR professionals can use AI to create “skeleton” content that they can then refine with appropriate headlines and quotes – in effect, reducing the time they need to spend on content creation and thus meet media deadlines more effectively. Another core application of AI lies in data analytics. To be effective, PR strategies must be grounded in the data. AI tools can quickly evaluate media campaigns, conduct social media monitoring activities, detect patterns and offer actionable insights, thus allowing PR teams to quickly respond to trend shifts and stay on top of what the public wants.
Of course, AI is very far from being able to do all the work on its own. ChatGPT, for instance, still lacks knowledge of data and events post 2021, which means the content it generates may not always be up-to-date. Plus, most AI-generated content reads dully, and a human still needs to do the final edits in terms of tone and voice – which can be an extensive task of its own. On top of that, many publications have started using AI detector tools to keep their content “human” – relying too much on AI tools, therefore, could affect a PR agency’s ability to place media articles.
In the PR context specifically, there’s another cautionary note to be sounded. The media is already flooded with misinformation, and the public is more vigilant than ever about how brands portray themselves through their content. Unless AI is used with care, it could lead to outdated or even false information being published, which is likely to attract negative attention. In addition, if consumers sense that brand content is AI-generated, they might feel like the brand doesn’t care enough about them to engage personally. This again could lead to dips in public opinion that could be hard to recover from. AI is undoubtedly here to stay, and industries everywhere can benefit from the speed and efficiency that it offers. Going forward, tools like ChatGPT will become a valuable addition to the PR toolkit in terms of sparking ideas for content creation, conducting research and crunching numbers. Coupled with the ideation and executive prowess that only experienced PR professionals can bring, AI can certainly be a force for good in a rapidly changing, tech-first world.
At Star Squared PR, we pride ourselves on the creativity and efficiency we bring to every project. While AI tools play a role in that, nothing supersedes the personal contributions of the PR and marketing veterans on our team. When you work with us, you get an expert-led PR strategy that’s tailored to your needs and your growth priorities. Ultimately, we help you build an authentic, people-first brand that stays the course – AI or no AI.
