Why PR is in no danger from AI

I read a post yesterday on LinkedIn about AI - yes, another one. The network is saturated with them. If a post isn't about AI, it's written by AI. At least, that's how it feels. But this one grabbed my attention as it was written by a fellow PR professional, one I have recently connected with, and it was about whether AI is coming for PR jobs.

AI has, of course, affected almost every aspect of our lives already. If you use a smartphone or a search engine you're using AI - so that pretty much includes every single one of us. And the technology is quickly being integrated into our workplaces because, honestly, it is a really useful tool. And this is a point I have come back to repeatedly on this blog - AI chatbots like ChatGPT and its ilk are really useful tools but no more than tools. Just like a hammer can't replace a builder or a stethoscope can't replace a doctor, AI can't replace skilled professionals. But it can make them better and more efficient at their jobs.

AI as a tool for PR professionals

Hand that hammer to an apprentice and you're likely to get a different result to the seasoned professional - and the same is true of AI. Unfortunately, due to the novelty perhaps, there has been a slew of AI generated "slop", as it's quickly becoming known, that has proliferated across networks like LinkedIn and the wider internet. Content that is "good enough" maybe, but really it's just filling a void no one asked or needed to be filled.

"How do we create enough content to post on LinkedIn every day?" asks the director. "AI?" responds the junior marketing executive. "Good - let's do it," comes the reply, and suddenly once professional business pages are flooded with generic, wishy-washy posts that are largely devoid of substance. And the result of this? Engagement rates crashing through the floor, a loss of audience trust, potentially being penalised by the all-knowing algorithms, and for what? Everyone knows it's AI written and no one wants to read AI "slop". So what is the point?

And this brings me back to something that came up in the PR's post, which clearly wasn't written by AI but was, as mentioned, about AI. The one section that struck a chord:

"If your value is based on execution alone, yes AI will eventually take chunks of it. But if your edge is strategy, creative thinking and human context, AI becomes a multiplier, not a threat."

I do not fully agree (hence why I wanted to write this blog) in "if your value is based on execution alone, yes AI will eventually take chunks of it". Execution in PR, Marketing, Content Planning, Sales, all those areas that involve dealing with the public, cannot be automated effectively with AI. Try writing a press release or selling it in to a journalist using AI - I've seen numerous posts from journalists abhorring this practice, saying they immediately hit delete (if that email even make it past spam filters). What happens when that journalist calls for further information?

Not only is the quality poor (unusable, if we're honest) but, as a business owner, I would be terrified entrusting my external comms to an AI chatbot. Where's the expertise? Where's the experience? Where's the human context, as the above LinkedIn post said in the second section. However, this second section raised questions as well, as I was immediately wondering "what is PR without strategy, creative thinking, and human context"?

PR and Marketing are practically useless without these aspects - so how can they be separated? AI is a tool that is as useful for execution as it is for strategising and creative thinking, but I once again want to stress the word "tool". It is a multiplier, I agree with that part, and I have found many uses for it as a PR consultant and copywriter. But am I worried about it being a replacement? Absolutely not.

As a copywriter I could save myself hours by asking ChatGPT to write client content, giving me time to focus on winning more work and growing my business, but the content it produces by itself is largely junk. Instead of growing my business, relying on AI to write for me would end my business, of that I am sure. Just like it will damage any business that relies too heavily on it.

Those professionals who have always performed well for your business will perform even better given the best tools and the right training. From creative content planning and strategy right through to execution. AI shouldn't be taking jobs but benefitting them. If you don't believe me, open ChatGPT and ask it to come up with a marketing strategy and execute it, and see how far that takes you.

The future isn't AI replacing humans, it's AI with humans.