Why PR Remains Irreplaceable in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

21. 8. 2025

 

"Come up with something ChatGPT can't give us." That's exactly what was said at one of the last briefings, and it wasn't meant as an ironic remark. Clients are beginning to distinguish between what they can do themselves using artificial intelligence and what still makes sense to pay professionals for. On the one hand, this reduces the cost of simple and routine outputs, but on the other hand, there is growing pressure for added value that AI cannot yet deliver.

AI can easily create a clear text, prepare a press release, or quickly summarize key messages. But it cannot replace human contact, intuition, or the ability to read between the lines. It won't call a journalist. It won't go to lunch with them. It won't find out what they're working on, what their editorial team is focusing on, or what type of story would interest them. It won't build the trust that takes years to develop and often determines whether a company gets media coverage or gets lost in an inbox.

This is where the role of a PR agency comes in. We're not here just for ideas, we're here for relationships. Strategic work with media, reputation building, and above all, relationships with journalists, because this is an area where the human factor plays a crucial role. AI can't replace that yet. Nor will it in the foreseeable future.

 

Photo by Freepic.

 

Editorial content is more important than advertising

An experienced PR team invests up to a quarter of its time in media relations - developing personal contacts with journalists (Redline Digital, 2024). These relationships are key to getting a brand featured in editorial content, which has a significantly higher value for the public than advertising messages.

Whether we are addressing the general public or a B2B target group, the perception of trustworthiness plays a crucial role. Research shows that 92 % of consumers perceive editorial content as more trustworthy than advertising (Flair.hr, 2024). Why is this the case? Because information published by an independent journalist acts as a third-party recommendation. You don't pay for space, but for the trust that the editor lends you with their name.

This does not mean, of course, that advertising is losing its meaning. It still has its place in the marketing mix, but it works differently. Editorial output is not controlled by the brand, it is not paid for, and that is precisely why it is more authentic in the eyes of the audience. From the perspective of decision-making processes – whether for customers, business partners or investors – such output is a strategic investment in brand reputation.

The future is a combination of technology and a human approach

We commonly use artificial intelligence for research, finding inspiration, or sentiment analysis. It helps us be faster, more accurate, and more efficient. As Michael Frohoffnoted, AI is not a threat, but rather a tool that, when combined with human creativity, expands the possibilities of current practice and enables more thoughtful and strategically targeted communication. But its possibilities end where empathy, experience, and the aforementioned ability to build relationships begin.

 

Michael Frohoff during PR in Cannes conference

This balance between technology and the human approach was also highlighted at the June PR in Cannes conference, which we organized. The presentations by Worldcom representatives conveyed the message that the role of PR in the age of AI is not just about creating outputs. PR must be a strategic partner that helps clients navigate an increasingly complex media environment and build trust where no tool can generate it.

Patrik Schober expresses a similar view of the future of the industry in his book The Art of Leadership Through Public Relations, in which he devotes a separate chapter to the relationship between AI and PR. He also emphasizes that technology will never replace the ability to understand people and build relationships on which trustworthy communication is based.

"It is still us, humans, who must teach AI journalistic methods. And that is likely to remain the case. As humans, we will continue to monopolize creative, intuitive, and authentic activities and social contact. The principle of communication will be 'human as a service.' After all, it is not in our interest for anything to change in this regard," he explains.

 

SEO under threat, AI takes control of search

With the advent of generative AI, the way people search for information is also changing fundamentally. It is no longer just a matter of typing into Google. Users are increasingly asking intelligent assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, or Gemini directly. This change opens up new opportunities, but also poses a challenge for PR professionals: how to maintain control over how the brand is presented in the responses generated by these large language models (LLMs)?

GEO (generative engine optimization) is an area that focuses on optimizing content for AI search engines. It is no longer just about classic SEO targeting Google and other search engines, but about how to be visible in the results generated by LLMs. When responding, they draw exclusively from publicly available content such as media articles, blogs, websites and case studies.

This is where PR plays a key role, because we are the ones who create these sources and influence their quality and availability. Quality earned media is the most important source for AI today, as more than 95 % of the links used by generative AI come from unpaid sources, 89 % of which is earned media (MuckRack, 2025).

 

How PR can influence what AI says about your brand

1. Focus on earned media - Make sure your brand is mentioned in trusted media that LLM reads and evaluates positively.

2. Create structured and comprehensive content - Blog posts, expert articles, and case studies should be informative, quotable, and well contextualized. Use techniques such as schema markup to help AI better understand the structure of your page.

3. Optimize both on-site and off-site content - Don't forget your own website, which can be a major source for AI. Actively monitor what others are saying about you and respond to inaccuracies or negative mentions.

Interestingly, while classic SEO is highly competitive in many areas, GEO is still new and offers brands the advantage of being among the first. In addition, up to 60% of queries in ChatGPT and similar tools start with questions such as "what is the best," "what do you recommend," or "how to choose" — queries that directly influence customer decisions.

That's why we've added wikipedia articles to our portfolio of services, as they are one of the most important sources that LLM draws on when generating answers. If you want to influence what users asking AI learn about you, it's time to start thinking.

Because even artificial intelligence does not invent things out of thin air; it is based on what we give it and in what quantity.

 

Picture by Freepic.