By Dan Stainsby, Managing Director
Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming how people discover and evaluate brands. Increasingly, we’re asking AI tools questions such as “who’s the best at X?” and “which company should I use for Y?” and the answers we receive are shaped far less by advertising than by credible, third-party media sources. In fact, we received at least one brief this summer after someone asked a Large Language Model (LLM) “who is the best company to speak to for broadcast PR support”. Showcasing that broadcast PR is not just influencing human perception but also shaping the AI-driven responses that guide human decisions.
The Shift in Search Engine Discovery
Search engines once served as the first stop for brand discovery. Today, people turn to conversational AI platforms like ChatGPT and Gemini. These systems rely heavily on trusted editorial content to determine which brands deserve attention. Research conducted earlier this year by the good folk at Hard Numbers revealed 61% of the signals informing AI’s understanding of brand reputation originate from editorial media sources – not ads. This means that what’s said in a broadcast interview or news segment could carry far more weight in tomorrow’s AI-powered answers than an ad campaign ever could.
How Broadcast PR Wins in the AI Era
Broadcast PR delivers unique advantages in this evolving landscape:
- Expansive reach – A single broadcast appearance often sparks further coverage in clips, online articles, and social media posts (we’re increasingly working with broadcasters to ensure the stories we work on are included in their feeds), multiplying your story’s digital footprint.
- Independent validation – Editorial broadcast success provides third-party credibility (“borrowing the trust of the trusted”), strengthening both public trust and AI models’ perception of your brand.
- Longevity of impact – While ads fade (ok, not always – see my recent “70 years of TV ads” post where I celebrate Scotch Tapes “re-record not fade away” spot), earned media becomes part of the enduring knowledge base that AI tools draw from, shaping responses long after campaigns conclude.
In short, earned broadcast coverage is not just a short-term visibility win. It’s a long-term investment that influences both audiences and algorithms. If you want your brand to appear in AI generated search responses, this is your way in.
The Strategic Advantage
Brands that prioritise broadcast PR gain a dual payoff:
- Short-term: Audiences see and hear your brand endorsed through trusted editorial voices.
- Long-term: AI embeds that validation into its decision-making processes, ensuring your brand surfaces when it matters most.
The bottom line? Earned broadcast PR doesn’t just shape headlines. It shapes the very answers AI provides, and, by extension, the decisions people make. As AI continues to define the discovery journey, broadcast PR offers a rare opportunity to position your brand as the trusted, authoritative answer.
If you would like to speak to us about capturing the public’s attention through earned media, or maximising the impact of your next PR or marketing campaign in the AI era, please get in touch.