Study: AI Driving Greater Emphasis on Owned Channels
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New research from global stakeholder solutions firm Penta Group suggests communicators should be flipping the script when it comes to strategically prioritizing their communications channels.
Since the dawn of the Internet, companies have worked to crack the code on maximizing online visibility for their brands. Most experts suggested that, prior to AI, earned media coverage and its amplification in online forums and social media held tremendous sway with the algorithms that drive search engine visibility, yielding premium positions for brands on Google, Bing and the like.
Penta’s study suggests that AI values authenticity at a much higher level than third-party credibility. A recent Penta AI audit found that approximately 60% of cited material came from corporate sources vs. 25% from earned media, with the rest split among user-generated platforms and other third parties. Translation: as more users turn to Claude and ChatGPT to get questions answered, communicators need to optimize organic content to ensure they’re part of the conversation.
But visibility isn’t the only thing in play. How organizations are defined by various AI platforms can also be strongly influenced by the content found within their owned channels. As Penta points out: “When companies do not publish clearly on a topic, whether it is a point of differentiation, a competitive comparison, or a contentious issue, AI systems do not leave the question unresolved. They answer it using whatever sources are available.”
Smart companies are responding by employing a new strategy called GEO, or Generative Engine Optimization, to guide their online presence alongside traditional SEO efforts. And they’re thinking not only about what content to include on their owned channels but how to format that content, since AI’s Large Language Models favor structured lists and FAQs over backlinks and keywords.
The takeaway for communicators is to center their entire strategy around owned channels rather than viewing them as a megaphone for amplifying earned coverage. Think of corporate websites and social channels as the primary vehicles for defining your brand and everything it stands for, or AI will look to other sources – including your detractors – to fill in the gaps.
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Truth Advisors LLC provides strategic communications and reputation management counsel to companies facing seismic change. For a free, no-obligation assessment of how we can level up your organization’s strategic communications efforts, contact us at info@startwithtruth.com.