How B2B experts can beat the bots by stealing the themes, taking the high round, educating the market
AI-enabled applications are now commonplace in consumer life and day-to-day business and industrial operations. But while we’re starting to see some fabulous use cases – for example one of IBA’s clients is using AI to translate work instructions and give safety and training advice into digital format for workers on the manufacturing shop floor – we are starting to see the flip side of AI, although many people and businesses are glossing over growing issues around information governance and security.
But given its data-heavy models, AI is almost always associated with some of our most sensitive data – just think of all the personal or proprietary business data it processes!
When AI turns rogue
Forget fake AI bots on dating profiles – there are more sophisticated and nefarious AI issues on the horizon. Just this week, while addressing a Federal Reserve conference in Washington, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was quoted saying that has advanced to the point that it can impersonate someone’s voice to get around security protocols and move funds.
Meanwhile academics and security experts alike have been warning of the threat of malicious use of AI. The University of Cambridge has amplified a report by 26 experts sounding the alarm about the potential malicious use of artificial intelligence (AI) by rogue states, criminals, and terrorists.
Beware the AI Subject Matter Expert
Maybe not as critical to world security, but the world of PR, marketing, and journalism is not immune either. Just a few short months ago a Press Gazette investigation broke a story that showed a double-digit number of stories have been deleted and amended by leading publishers due to fake experts being quoted. The AI “experts” managed to infiltrate some well-read U.S. and UK news media, including the Mail Online, The Sun, Mirror, Express, HuffPost, Yahoo News, Metro and more.
In one instance a “Rebecca Leigh” had written for a number of outlets, including for DrBicuspid.com – a publication the IBA team has placed, legitimate, thought leadership content in before – where she was referred to as a content and marketing strategist who speaks at marketing events and conferences. So general, nothing to check!
It led to Tom Ritchie, president of Pulsar Group which owns ResponseSource, one of the top platforms that connects journalists with sources for stories, to suggest sources could be downranked if they behave in untrustworthy ways and could have “credibility scores” based on factors such as whether they have authenticated their education, for example. Similar to how Google ranks website authority.
We’ve already noticed more individual provenance required by top media for pictures, detailed educational background and qualifications, of our SMEs. We’ve seen journalist across multiple geographies, from North America to Europe, looking asking more questions about contributing experts.
In crisis comes opportunity
Transparency, accuracy, and human oversight remain essential to maintain source credibility. It’s clear that hard-pressed journalists need reliable and credible sources more than ever. The good news is that B2B marketers and PR professionals are well-placed to offer them exactly that.
Combatting fake news was one of the top challenges identified by journalists in the latest Cision State of the Media report. AI isn’t a substitute for real human expertise, instead, it’s an opportunity for B2B organizations to shine. They can add immense value by connecting journalists and the with credible subject matter experts who can speak authoritatively on specific topics – be that emerging technologies or key pain points in their industry – all while backing up their insights with verified research and data.
The power of executive profiling
Executive profiling is a smart way to build a strong bench of genuine experts within a company. It’s about identifying individuals with deep knowledge in specific industries or tech areas and crafting a compelling “media hook” for them that taps into media hot topics. In turn this allows you to produce thought-provoking, relevant, and fresh content that directly addresses your prospects’ pain points, offering real solutions. By boosting the profiles of your executives, you significantly enhance your overall corporate reputation with journalists and prospects alike!
Once this valuable content is ready, it’s PR’s job to strategically “Pitch&Place” it. This means carefully deciding where and with whom to share it, ensuring it reaches the right journalists, with access to audience who will genuinely be interested in what your trusted industry expert has to say. Ultimately, executive profiling is about leveraging internal expertise to build credibility and drive positive perception for the entire organization.
Reclaiming credibility in the AI age
In the AI age there’s an opportunity to solidify a positive reputation and become an indispensable source of truth in an increasingly complex digital landscape.
By focusing on transparency, accuracy, and human oversight, and by strategically leveraging genuine subject matter experts through executive profiling, we can provide the reliable, verified insights that journalists and their audiences desperately need.
Our thought leaders and SMEs should own the themes, steal the high ground, The role of a field leader is to educate the market, not to follow that bot, and certainly not to talk like one!
Jamie Kightley is Head of Client Services at IBA International
