PR Professionals urged to embrace AI tools for enhanced efficiency
At the forefront of the National Public Relations and Communication Summit in Kwahu Nkwatia, Eastern Region, was a resounding call for industry professionals to seize the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools.
Mawuko Afadzinu, departing President of the Institute of Public Relations (IPR), Ghana, delivered a compelling address, asserting that AI stands as the linchpin reshaping the very fabric of modern communication dynamics.
In the wake of a pervasive environment characterized by misinformation, disinformation, and information overload, the Summit provided a timely forum to dissect strategies for achieving PR excellence amid such challenges.
Central to these deliberations was the urgent need to integrate AI seamlessly into PR practices, affording practitioners invaluable insights, real-time analytics, and crisis management solutions.
Mr Afadzinu’s impassioned discourse illuminated how AI empowers practitioners to infuse a deeply personal touch into their messaging. By leveraging sophisticated data analytics, PR professionals can tailor their communications with surgical precision, ensuring messages resonate profoundly with target audiences.
“It is no longer how good you are in creativity and how good you are in relationships and how good you are in delivering the value of old. What matters today is your ability to tap into the current enhancers we have. In our world today, the biggest enhancer today is AI. AI has impacted and changed the nature of communications and Public Relations,” he stated.
“Everybody gets up every morning to a barrage of content. You open your phone and it is opening left, right, centre and you are forced to select. If you could do that on the back of technology based on understanding of data, you are able to personalise your messages, know that every message you send using data is customised, and it speaks directly to the needs, desires and areas that people are looking for,” Mr Afadzinu explained.
Moreover, Mr Afadzinu articulated how AI’s pervasive influence extends beyond mere message dissemination, catalyzing expansive and meaningful interactions with stakeholders.
By harnessing AI-driven platforms, practitioners can orchestrate comprehensive dialogues, enriching engagement and fostering enduring relationships.
Yet, amidst the fervor for AI adoption, Mr Afadzinu sounded a cautionary note, emphasizing the imperative for ongoing professional development. In a landscape where obsolescence looms large for those resistant to change, he stressed the urgency of upskilling and embracing AI as a conduit to future-proofing PR practices.
“This is a bridge into the future and and opportunity to move into the current dispensation or you stay behind and become a dinosaur. Old skill set without upscaling will leave you behind. AI presents a lot of efficiencies, it allows you to do so much with so little,” he noted.
In conclusion, the Summit served as a clarion call for PR practitioners to pivot decisively towards an AI-driven future. As the industry navigates an era defined by rapid technological advancement, the onus falls squarely on professionals to harness AI’s transformative potential, ensuring their continued efficacy in an ever-evolving media landscape.
