Why PR is Critical to Your Business Success in a Time of AI

Public relations has always played a vital role in a business's marketing success.  Today, with the rise of AI, it is more critical than ever before.  

Why?  Because AI is now shaping the information our customers, target audiences and the public receive, whether it be through AI-generated search summaries, chatbots like ChatGPT and Claude or AI search engine platforms.  And quite simply, AI relies heavily on earned media (i.e., media coverage) to drive its responses.  

According to industry studies, AI uses unpaid media sources for a large portion of its citations - up to 95 percent of all citations in one study alone.  Things like articles in magazines and newspapers.  TV and radio coverage.  Stories on news sites and media blogs.  All the traditional output and results of PR.  It’s not just any coverage.  AI prioritizes the media it uses for citations, putting reputable, trustworthy news sites and publications at the top.  

Because AI takes information from multiple citations and creates a single response from those sources, it is no longer just a matter of your business trying to get a media placement.  It is a matter of your business trying to get included in the answer itself.  For startups and small businesses in particular, this can make or break their success.

All this has changed the role and importance of PR.  Generating media coverage now is more than just something “nice” to have for investors, customers or target audiences.  Media coverage now is something that is critical in order to be noticed, whether you’re an established business promoting your brand or a startup simply trying to get on the radar.

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