GenAI and the Human Component: Four Methods for Enhancing B2B Tech PR, Part 5

On-Demand Teacher for Message Development

When working with C-level executives in fields like cloud infrastructure or cybersecurity, communications pros must learn the lexicon of their client’s specific market to understand how their client’s messaging maps to that market and the company’s business goals. This deep understanding once required wading through pages of Google searches to elucidate industry-specific terminology. In this case, GenAI tools are helpful for message development by validating or correcting technical phrasing, and then mapping that phrasing to current industry trends and customer challenges. Through this consensus approach, culled from vast swaths of Internet data, GenAI provides simple, accessible answers to complex industry questions, helping PR pros understand the goals behind an executive’s preferred messaging.  

However, this is a two-way street, as C-level executives must work with PR pros to provide them with the best input possible to achieve optimal results when leveraging GenAI for message development. As a result, executives should invest time into their PR program to provide this input and maximize communications pros’ efforts. This can include participating in message development sourcing calls. During these message development sourcing calls, C-level executives can think about current media trends relevant to their company, the current industry landscape, what differentiates their offering from similar products and how those differentiators and benefits help real people. By considering these aspects, C-level executives can form a solid foundation that can then be strengthened through GenAI to create messaging that tells their company’s story in a way that resonates emotionally with customers.

When implementing this method in PR, GenAI can also provide detailed reasonings behind ideal word choices to align messaging with an industry’s enigmatic, layered vernacular. This can save immense amounts of time previously spent combing through competitors’ press releases and second-guessing a pesky preposition. Additionally, by internalizing this editing approach, PR pros and C-level executives can adopt a more critical eye to their writing and messaging in the context of industry norms. For example, look how deeply ChatGPT-4 drilled into the meaning of certain phrasing within the networking industry:

Prompt: Would you phrase it upgrading single fiber pair “on” or “in” a route for the networking industry?

Answer: In the context of the networking industry, when referring to upgrading a single fiber pair, you would typically use "on" a route. The sentence could look something like this: "We are upgrading a single fiber pair on this particular route to increase bandwidth." The term "on" is used here to convey the idea that the upgrade is happening along a specific path or route within a network. If you were referring to something physically inside a cable or other physical component, you might use "in," but in the context of a route within a network, "on" is the more appropriate preposition.

Thorough answers on seemingly minor phrasing discrepancies can make a substantial difference in creating authoritative content that maps to a client's industry vernacular and messaging. By using verbiage common to a client’s industry, PR pros can ensure their messaging resonates with their audience, establishing C-level executives and their company as a credible voice in their crowded market.

Don’t Fret, PR Pros – It's A Tool, Not a Threat

PR is a vast field encompassing media relations, content creation, message development, trend and thought leadership, social media and more. GenAI is a valuable tool to augment these multifaceted efforts. But it cannot replace the vital human component required to tailor these PR functions to business goals while imbuing these functions with creativity and emotional resonance. For C-level executives to maximize their PR investment, they must be actively involved in their PR strategies through collaboration with their agency. They cannot simply hand the reigns to GenAI and expect emotionally resonant PR strategies that tell their company’s story and captivate customers at the beginning of their buyer's journey. But an adept PR agency can lend that human touch to GenAI’s improved efficiency, strengthening and streamlining a company’s overall PR and marketing efforts. After all, AI and PR should be allies, not opponents. Amid today’s economic turbulence, PR pros must leverage every tool at their disposal to optimize client programs and deliver value.  

In the face of these advances, we’ve seen one fact remain - customers still want to feel understood on a human level. They still crave the human exchange that is vital to effective communications and PR. PR pros and clients should remember that critical thinking and emotional resonance differentiate artificial intelligence from human intelligence. While PR agencies and clients will only benefit from leveraging GenAI long-term, they must also balance these tools with the human component to maximize GenAI's potential.