Jeff Beer

The crisis comms playbook is transforming before our eyes. The CEO of ŌURA just posted a video on Reddit refuting rumors that the platform shares personal data with the U.S. Government. Why this is a big deal: 1) Oura is showing other brands how it's done: they're reaching their most active, committed, community-driven audiences first on the platform where they come to obsess over the product. 2) Strategic communications is Super Power Number One in a world driven by LLM and AI search. Oura knows what the entire communications industry has been buzzing about for months: With LLMs scrubbing platforms like Reddit and other top-tier resources for search queries and responses to questions within Chat GPT conversations, a brilliantly placed video and written statement on a high-trust platform like Reddit will ensure that current and potential customers searching for information about these rumors will be served Oura's preferred response, not rumors. Grade-A brilliant work.

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AI isn’t killing communications professionals. It’s separating the strategic from the tactical. My July post about traditional PR being broken sparked some interesting commentary, especially around how AI will change the trajectory of PR. I like to think of AI as gaining five new staff members overnight. They're incredibly efficient, never complain, and work around the clock. But like any new hire, they need management by someone who actually knows what they're doing. The best results happen when you blend AI capabilities with human expertise. AI delivers the vanilla version: technically correct, perfectly formatted, utterly forgettable. A skilled communications professional adds the strategic seasoning that turns generic content into persuasive messaging that moves audiences. This nuance is easy to miss. Many companies are using AI as a replacement rather than an amplifier. You end up with content that sounds like it was written by a committee of robots - which, technically, it was. Instead, smart leaders should approach AI integration in three ways: 1️⃣ First, get everyone trained on AI tools, not just the communications team. 2️⃣ Second, use AI for message alignment across internal organizations, so that you stay consistent (and strategic) in your talking points. 3️⃣ Third, treat AI as an additive capability, not a cost-cutting crutch. The companies that will thrive are those that recognize AI's limitations alongside its strengths. It excels at research, drafts, and consistency but struggles with nuance, timing, and audience psychology, precisely the areas where human expertise becomes most valuable. Your competitors who think AI can replace strategic communications thinking will produce increasingly generic, tone-deaf messaging. Meanwhile, organizations that use AI to enhance human strategy will dominate the conversation. See AI as multiplication rather than substitution, and remember that the human touch is your competitive advantage.

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🚨 Today, Muck Rack released a major new report: What Is AI Reading? This is a big win for PR and Comms pros. Why? Because we finally have data showing that earned media doesn’t just inform—it fuels discovery, shapes perception, and drives business outcomes. You’ll see how the sources we pitch and place in are directly influencing AI outputs, and by extension, the flow of information online. 📌 Link in comments. We worked with Eleanor Hawkins for the exclusive story—and I’m so glad we did. If there’s one takeaway for communicators, it’s this: trust your gut and work with journalists who get it. Eleanor has covered our industry with care and depth for years. She didn’t just report the findings—she translated their meaning. Not just for PR folks, but for leaders navigating AI’s growing role in business. Could we have gone with someone who covers tech, business, or marketing more broadly? Sure. But this story needed someone who understands PR + media—and Eleanor nailed it. It's meta: strategic PR about a report on strategic PR through a tech platform built for strategic PR pros with a journalist who covers strategic PR. This is why I choose to do this every day. https://lnkd.in/eTk4v3Nr

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It’s no longer just about who sees the article—it’s about whether AI can see it. Today ChatGPT has more than 500 million users, with over 28% of employed adults in the U.S. using it as part of their daily workflow. This explosive growth in LLM usage has brought major change for communication professionals—introducing a new battleground that brand and comms leaders must learn to navigate and win: Artificial Intelligence Optimization (AIO). At their core, LLMs are trained on massive layers of data—social content from platforms like Reddit and Instagram, owned content like blogs and press releases, and of course, earned media from national, trade, and local outlets. So how exactly do platforms like ChatGPT gather and present information about your brand? New research from Muck Rack points to earned media as a major piece of that puzzle, with 85% of AI-generated citations originating from earned placements. That means strategic earned coverage is directly shaping how AI platforms construct brand narratives. But are all media placements treated equally by LLMs? Not quite. We are seeing outlets like Axios, People Magazine, and Forbes offer a strategic advantage. These publications carry both editorial authority and cultural weight—yet much of their content is accessible to AI systems because it is lightly gated compared to sights such as the Wall Street Journal and thus are used more frequently by LLMs. In addition, depending on the platform a user chooses and whether that system has licensing deals in place with media publishers (like ChatGPT’s agreement with The Washington Post), the value of a media mention in an LLM environment can vary. For brands and executives, earned media has always been a tool to build trust, shape perception, and foster connection with target audiences. Now it also plays a critical role in how AI platforms learn, respond, and represent your brand across AIO environments. What To Do? Start with doing an audit. To understand what comprises the answers AI delivers, PreBunk™, a state-of-the-art solution within PRISMA, measures not only which LLMs over-index with your key stakeholders, but also digs deeper into those systems and explores which media outlets are actually driving the LLM’s viewpoint. The stories you and your team secure are already influencing how tomorrow’s AI will talk about you. #pr #ai #mikeworldwide Resources: https://lnkd.in/e2-Nh-bP https://lnkd.in/ecHZJrjX

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The September issue of Strategies & Tactics is here: Building Trust in the Age of Doubt. In this issue, we explore: 🔹 How leaders build trust in times of uncertainty 🔹 The real challenge of putting AI policies into practice 🔹 A snapshot of public relations today 🔹 Why strategic comms is an urgent imperative for nonprofits 🔹 Inside Red Lobster’s comeback story Start reading today 👉 https://bit.ly/3VoD5R2 #PRSA #StrategiesAndTactics #PublicRelations

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Everyone talks about book launch day in publishing, when we really should spend more time talking about what happens in 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓. You see, even though launch day gets all the attention (and Instagram Stories, LinkedIn Live celebrations, and launch parties ), the long game is what turns a one-time promo into a long-term platform. Because that first year post-launch… That’s where staying power is built. That’s when your book: ✅ Stops being a “new release” and becomes a trusted resource ✅ Starts showing up in your speaking pitches, media mentions, and client calls ✅ Moves from front-and-center to background credibility—supporting your business, not overwhelming it Most importantly, that’s when authors decide whether they’re done… or just getting started. If you want to build visibility that lasts, here’s what matters: → Refresh your messaging: shift from “preorder now” to “available now,” and promote new formats (audiobook, paperback, etc.) → Keep your website working quietly in your favor. Don’t shout, but don’t go silent → Blend your book into your brand: into bios, intros, workshops, and lead magnets → Post with intention, not just nostalgia. New wins, timely insights, relevant media → Let it evolve. After 6–12 months, you can ease off promotion while still staying discoverable Have you thought about how you’re showing up after your launch window closes? Let me know in the comments below! I’m here to help if you have questions.   #Publishing #Author #Marketing #ThoughtLeadership #Leadership

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Daily media coverage and intelligence reports aren’t optional in PR—they’re non-negotiable. The challenge is the time commitment. Early in my career at PR agencies (Burson, Weber Shandwick) and in-house at eBay, I spent hours every day compiling reports and even weekends sifting through Google Alerts to prep for the week ahead. Later, as a manager PayPal and Under Armour, it was tough to watch my team invest more time than necessary in reporting when they could be focusing on projects with greater learning opportunities. Regular media intelligence reporting is essential for managing up to your C-suite and board. It not only shows which external media coverage advances the company narrative but also surfaces strategic moves—like removing a mention from a story or shaping competitor narratives—that build reputation capital. I was excited to get a sneak peek of Clipbook (thanks Grant Manley, Parth Badhwar)—an AI-first research and analysis platform built for the modern comms era. It makes creating custom daily reports seamless and saves communications teams countless hours by visualizing mentions and analytics across social and emerging media. Congrats to Adam Joseph on the launch. For more info and to see a demo visit https://lnkd.in/eMstgRWm

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Communications teams have to respond quickly — and be set up to do so — especially with social media and the 24/7 news cycle. The Coldplay/Astronomer situation only reinforced that. While executives and Legal are wordsmithing a statement to death, fake posts are spreading like wildfire across the Internet. Instead of reacting to official statements, people are reposting and talking about AI-generated or satire responses, further damaging the brand and forcing the company (and its Comms team) to do more containment and repair work instead of just cleaning up the mess of the original situation. Nature abhors a vacuum, and so do people, who will fill it with whatever will get them Likes and comments. Empower your Comms team to use their expertise and respond quickly before the narrative gets out of control and they’re closing the barn door after the horses have already bolted.

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In 2026, boring PR is going to win. ✅ Press releases written in Q+A format instead of narrative style ✅ News articles on straightforward topics like "how do I do X" or "how much does X cost" instead of in-depth, compelling features ✅ Tips, how-to articles, and headlines written as questions This is how you optimize PR for LLMs. It may not be sexy, but it works.

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Everyone's worried AI will replace communicators. Meanwhile, the smartest comms teams are building their own AI. Eleanor Hawkins recently highlighted how comms teams at Cognizant, Instacart, Workday, Google, and others are creating their own AI solutions to streamline workflows, pressure-test messages, and unlock more time for strategy. I love this because it proves that marketers and communicators are uniquely positioned to lead in AI. Why? Because we already think in patterns, nuance, and audience perception. AI isn’t just about coding. It’s about asking better questions, spotting signals in the noise, and testing narratives at scale. The key takeaways: 1️⃣ AI isn't replacing comms teams. It's making them faster and more strategic. 2️⃣ The biggest wins come from eliminating busy work so humans can focus on what actually matters: storytelling and impact. 3️⃣ Smart teams are questioning the old "bill by the hour" model. Value isn't time. It's results. If you’re in comms or marketing, this isn’t a “someday” conversation. It’s already happening. The question is: will you wait for a tool to be handed to you, or will you design one that reflects how you actually work? Oh, and you don't need to be a developer to do this. Sometimes it's as simple as a custom GPT, a no-code tool like Lovable, or just better prompts that match how you think.

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