1、STATE OF AI IN PR JANUARY 2024MethodologyWe surveyed 1,001 PR professionals from Nov.2 to Dec.14,2023.This report is an update and expansion of Muck Racks State of AI in PR 2023 survey released in May 2023.The goal of this survey is to to deliver insights to the PR industry to help improve the workf

2、low of public relations professionals,particularly around the rapidly expanding field of generative artificial intelligence.Muck Rack distributed the survey primarily through email.Muck Rack cleaned the data in a variety of ways.First,we only counted complete responses.We also removed low effort res

3、ponses.Finally,we removed any duplicate entries,responses that were generated by spam accounts and checked the data for major outliers.The conservative margin of error for the survey is about 3%.Executive summary AI use has exploded this year.The number of PR pros who said they use generative AI mor

4、e than doubled from 28%in March to 64%in November.Brands and agencies dont match up on expectations to disclose AI use.21%of agency PR pros say they never disclose their AI use to the clients.Only 6%of pros at brands think thats the right move.74%of PR pros report an increase in the quality of their

5、 work using AI and 89%say they complete projects more quickly with AI.While unscrutinized AI output was deemed a major risk by 63%of PR pros using AI,95%say theyre editing their AI output.Writing copy for social media is the most popular use for AI,according to 64%of PR pros.1.An overview of PR pros

6、 using AIDo you plan to explore generative AI,like ChatGPT or DALL-E,in your workflow?64%23%8%5%28%33%24%15%0%20%40%60%80%100%I already use generative AII plan to explore generative AIIm not sureLate 2023 resultsEarly 2023 resultsNo,I do not plan to explore themMore than twice as many PR pros report

7、 using AI now compared to March 2023When polled by Muck Rack in March,28%of PR pros said they already use generative AI in their workflow.That number has more than doubled to 64%saying they use the new technology.The number of people who were either not sure they wanted to use AI or had no plans of

8、using it,both decreased substantially from 24%to 8%and 15%to 5%respectively.Does your company have an AI use case policy?40%80%60%20%100%YesNoNo,but we plan to have oneDont know21%50%22%7%0%Most companies dont have an AI policy in placeWhile 22%of PR pros say their workplaces have an AI policy in th

9、e works,50%,the majority,dont have one.Larger companies are more likely to say they have one.Does your company have an AI use case policy?40%80%60%20%100%I strictly follow the policyI mostly follow the policyI sometimes follow the policyI never follow the policy58%35%5%1%0%PR pros that have an AI po

10、licy tend to stick to itOf the workplaces with a policy in place,58%of employees say they strictly follow the policy,35%say they mostly follow it,5%say they sometimes follow it and only 1%say they never follow it.Does your company offer any AI training?40%80%60%20%100%YesNoNo,but we plan to in the f

11、utureI dont know21%50%25%5%0%Most employees say their company does not offer AI trainingOnly about one in five companies actually train their employees in the proper usage of AI.If you work at a brand,do you expect your agency to disclose their use of AI?40%80%60%20%100%All the timeSome of the timeN

12、everIt depends35%19%6%39%0%Brands want to know when their agencies use AIWhile a large portion of brands are willing to treat it on a case-by-case basis,more than one third of PR pros at brands think AI use should be disclosed by agencies all of the time.If you work at an agency,do you disclose AI u

13、se to your clients?40%80%60%20%100%All the timeSome of the timeNeverIt depends19%23%21%36%0%Meanwhile,agencies arent always disclosing their AI useFar fewer PR pros at agencies think AI use always needs to be reported to the client,19%versus 35%.And while only 6%of pros at brands think AI use never

14、needs to be disclosed,21%at agencies say the same.2.How PR pros use AI todayDo you feel AI has made the quality of your work better or worse?Do you feel AI helps you complete projects more quickly?Most PR pros using AI say it helps with quality and efficiency22%Much better25%Neither better or worse1

15、%Somewhat worse1%No,AI slows me down somewhat0%Much worse0%No,AI slows me down dramatically52%Somewhat better37%Yes,much more quickly52%Yes,somewhat more quickly8%Projects take the same amount of timeHow do you use generative AI in your workflow?64%58%58%54%43%20%16%15%0%20%40%60%80%100%Write social

16、 copyResearchWrite press releasesCraft pitchesStrategy and planningOtherGenerate images to accompany contentFind journalistsPR pros are mainly using AI for writing tasksPR pros are using AI for a variety of writing tasks,but 64%say they use it to write social copy.58%say research and writing press r

17、eleases and 54%use it to craft pitches.The“other”category was filled with a variety of uses,but many of them revolved around brainstorming new ideas or firming up already written content.After using AI to generate text,how often do you edit the output?After using AI to generate text,how extensively

18、do you have to edit the output before using the text?Almost all PR pros are editing the AI output,and most do it extensively0%Never5%Sometimes9%I have to make edits to a few sentences95%Always61%I have to make edits to most of the text30%I have to make edits to a few paragraphsWhich of the following

19、 do you think are risks generative AI tools pose to the PR profession,if any?67%58%62%60%61%56%41%33%13%3%0%20%40%60%80%100%Younger/newer PR pros dont learn the principles of the profession and reply too heavily on toolsPR people use unscrutinized AI output and lower the quality of conversationsClie

20、nts/firms think they dont need content creators anymoreAudiences get overwhelmed with so much content its harder to reach them or stand outNone of the aboveOtherLate 2023 resultsEarly 2023 resultsAI fears are largely unchanged Compared to our survey in March,there is very little difference in people

21、s main concerns about AI.Despite 95%of PR pros saying they edit their AI outputs,more than half of PR pros think unscrutinized AI output is a risk.Meanwhile,68%are worried about the next generation of PR pros not learning the basics.3.How PR pros want to explore AI in the futureIn the future,if you

22、choose to use AI as a tool,which area(s)might it be the most impactful?68%64%47%45%37%36%6%0%20%40%60%80%100%Research and list buildingWritingMonitoring and measuringReportingPitchingStrategy and planningOtherPR pros who are interested in using AI want to use it for research,list building and writin

23、g These categories mostly align with where PR pros currently using AI are applying the new technology.Do you feel AI would make the quality of your work better or worse?Do you feel AI would help you complete projects more or less quickly?The AI-curious are less confident in AIs impact on work speed

24、and quality compared to current usersMuch worse 2%Much better 2%42%Somewhat better32%Neither better or worse14%Im not sure8%Somewhat worse67%Somewhat more quickly13%Neither more or less quickly2%Somewhat less quickly0%Much less quickly9%Im not sure9%Much more quicklyWhich of the following do you thi

25、nk are risks generative AI tools pose to the PR profession,if any?74%70%67%43%12%0%0%20%40%60%80%100%Younger/newer PR pros dont learn the principles of the profession and reply too heavily on toolsPR people use unscrutinized AI output and lower the quality of conversationsClients/firms think they do

26、nt need content creators anymoreAudiences get overwhelmed with so much content its harder to reach them or stand outNone of the aboveOtherAI curious PR pros see similar risks with the new technology The biggest fears are for the new generation of PR pros,clients and firms thinking they dont need con

27、tent creators and unscrutinized AI output.What are your top reasons for not exploring generative AI?51%45%39%39%12%10%4%2%0%0%20%40%60%80%100%OtherThe output is too unpredictableI dont think it will help with my jobIm concerned about privacyGenerative AI is a fadI dont have time to explore AINone of

28、 the aboveI dont know how to get started with AIThe tools are too expensiveAnti-AI PR pros have a variety of reasons behind their oppositionWhile 43%say the output is too unpredictable and 40%have concerns about privacy,about one in three dont think AI will help with their job.The responses to the“o

29、ther”category cover a wide range of reasons.Some say theres an ethical reason to avoid AI,others cite security concerns.One PR pro pointed out“why should anyone be bothered to read something I couldnt be bothered to write?”Muck Racks Public Relations Management(PRM)platform enables PR teams to find the right journalists for their stories,send customized pitches,build meaningful relationships with the media,monitor news and quantify their impact.Thank you!https:/ more