A client recently thought we should turn around a press release on a new topic in one hour, expecting us to use AI to do so. Fair play.

By that point, we’d written over 130 press releases for this company. We’re completely familiar with its brand, key messages and tone. And we know the commercial strategy, the intended audience and the necessary media publications inside out. We’ve got established relationships with the relevant journalists.

And we’re becoming increasingly expert at the art of prompting AI engines.

This blog is about the role of communications professionals in the age of AI.

TL;DR Our message is simple. If you’re 100% clear on all of the above and you’re a seasoned, smart writer with the necessary knowledge of what stories work with the media and who’s willing to learn AI prompting, then using AI will help you work faster. 

Good. You’ll be more efficient and have more time and headspace for all the other important work. Because, let’s be honest, setting the strategic direction of your marketing never stops.

When can you use AI in climate tech communications

Let’s list the necessary ingredients for clarity. Here’s what you need to be able to use AI effectively in climate tech communications, e.g. for writing a press release:

• Complete knowledge of the brand and tone of voice
• Deep understanding of, and ability to express, the company and product key messages
• Strong familiarity with the commercial objectives
• Comprehensive knowledge of the intended audience and media landscape (publications and journalists)
• Seasoned, smart writer who can spot pitfalls and knows how to structure a press release and tell a story
• Adept at AI prompting
• Critical thinker who excels at questioning and refining

The list is almost identical for LinkedIn posts and any other formats used in communicating your company to your customers, investors and other stakeholders.

What happens if you don’t have all of the above?

I won’t labour the point, but if you don’t have all of the above, you’re likely to produce subpar work. 

Why is it so important not to settle for less than the best? Because your brand and communications need to stand out in a crowded marketplace, be clear and very easy to understand by a conservative, risk-averse audience and be incredibly compelling so that they lead to action. 

The investment landscape, policy making and hunger for adoption are currently at a low point. So, not doing the best we can with communicating your value proposition is a risk not worth taking.

When not to use AI in climate tech communications 

Let’s now look at the strategic and foundational side of communications. Here, our position is that you must not work with AI.

AI engines provide their output based on their analysis of the existing internet. They can provide you with a consolidated view of the status quo. A brand and key messages based on what has existed for decades just won’t deliver on expressing the entirely novel approaches climate tech founders are pursuing. 

AI also can’t work with you, humanly, as the people that you are. It can’t understand and challenge you, and distil and express your opinions and what matters to you. Only truly creative and strategic minds with the relevant industry experience can and should.

You can read more about how we use AI at Life Size and why you’ll never be the victim of AI workslop with us here.

Ghastly instances of “AI workslop” are making the news. And we also see it on our LinkedIn feeds and in creative output within the ecosystem. Climate tech is facing enough other challenges; it can’t afford the ineffectiveness of generalised, standardised, average output. 

I’ll finish as I started – with a client anecdote. 

Earlier this year a client came to us with a press release already written by ChatGPT – it was full of flashy marketing language. We rewrote it from scratch based on our knowledge of the company’s key audiences and commercial objectives. We also knew that journalists would have been appalled at the overly advertorial tone of the previous version, while they welcomed the neutral, clear tone suitable for European tech and business publications. 

It’s ok our client didn’t know how to write a press release that lands coverage, it wasn’t their job to know. But for their company’s sake, and the journalists’ receiving it, I’m glad they came to us to deliver their milestone news.

When AI is used poorly in climate tech communications, it doesn’t just look silly; it damages your go-to-market strategy and negatively impacts your ability to scale. We don’t want that for the climate tech community. 

We’re here to learn together, to inform what best practice looks like and, most importantly, to continue to guide climate tech companies to success through strategic communications. If you’d like to explore what that would look like for your company, get in touch.