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Digital PR in the AI Era: How to Earn Visibility in Search & LLMs
10 Plays19 hours ago
AI overviews and LLMs are changing what “visibility” looks like and digital PR is the bridge between your brand and what these systems surface.
In this episode of More Than You Can Chew, Dane chats with digital PR pro Alexandra about why earning coverage on trusted media still matters, how brand mentions can work like links, and practical ways to show up more often when people (and AI) look for answers.
We get into real examples, the role of expert quotes, and why consistent PR beats one-off stunts. If you’re confused about where PR fits in a world of ChatGPT and Google’s AI results, this convo makes it make sense.
👉 Links & Resources
- Learn more at: searchlabdigital.com
- Get help with your Local SEO & PPC: https://searchlabdigital.com/seo-demo-request/
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Transcript
Introduction to the Episode
00:00:00
Speaker
All right, everyone. I'm so glad that you're back for another episode of More Than You Can Chew. I hope you didn't fill up on any appetizer podcast because today's episode is certainly a full plate. That's because we're going to dive into another important aspect of thriving in this new era of not only Google's AI, but but the growing adoption of a whole suite of LLMs like ChatGPT, and that aspect is digital PR.
Guest Introduction: Alexandra Takalova
00:00:29
Speaker
And there is not one other person than today's guest who can help us understand the role that digital PR has, and that is Alexandra Takalova.
00:00:44
Speaker
Alexandra, welcome to More Than You Can Chew.
The Role of Digital PR in the AI Era
00:00:47
Speaker
Thank you very much for having me and thank you very much for such a kind and warm and drag action. It's just a pleasure being here today and also talking about, well, my favorite topic, right?
00:01:00
Speaker
Absolutely. Because it's something that I do on a daily basis, right? So something that is just always on my list. Absolutely. So let's dive into it. So there's a lot of flux, a lot of uncertainty about AI and LLMs. There's a lot of insights about how they work, assumptions about how to influence them, tests that are attempting to cur confirm those assumptions.
00:01:22
Speaker
There's a lot of new acronyms flying around to try to rename or rebrand different strategies or well sell snake oil, which is not uncommon in our industry. But this one aspect I'm really interested in and which you clearly have faith in since you found a company that does digital PR. So that begs the question.
00:01:40
Speaker
And I'm asking this to play devil's advocate, not that I at all doubt its value. So, alex Alexander, you're the best person to answer this. Why is digital PR vital in today's climate of uncertainty?
Future-Proofing Brands with Digital PR
00:01:53
Speaker
And what proof do you have that confirms this? Well, I think, well, first of all, I think digital PR is very important just because it it allows you to put your brand on the best websites on the web, right?
00:02:10
Speaker
Because that is the most visited websites. I mean, in the best case scenario for sure, right? And everyone has been trying to do it in different forms, right? In different ways, like, you know, from the very beginning of the internet, right? Because it's just obvious, right, that putting your brand on USA Today, on the Washington Post, on the Independent, on the Telegraph, telegraph and you can name any any others, right?
00:02:35
Speaker
um it's just kind of getting you the best out of your most probably digital PR and maybe even a combination of digital PR and marketing activity activities.
00:02:48
Speaker
Then i think if you think about LLM models, AI, about a little bit think about the future,
AI's Role in Real-Time Information
00:02:55
Speaker
right? Not the current state of things because we all know that like you use Chargipati, Gemini and any other AI agent, right?
00:03:03
Speaker
You know that What they do write right now, they kind of update the version of like, you know, and right now I think we have the new version of Charged GPT. And what does it mean? They've kind of recrowled all the data and in that way they updated version of Charged GPT by introducing the first one um to their audience.
00:03:26
Speaker
And it's not really happening, um it's not really up to date, right? So it's just happening when they they kind of write start their script and then, you know, they give the end result to users.
00:03:39
Speaker
And I think the future is just getting this data, just having it in the real time right scenario when the user goes somewhere like in charge gpt and asking charge gpt what's going on um in the world right and you get the answer straight away without like you know the sources if you need and and so on the same about i think google ai reviews right that is i think the future and what we kind of see is just let's say some elements right some kind of fragments of um
00:04:17
Speaker
Well, at least what I think, like the possible reality that we can take advantage of.
Prioritizing Media Outlets in AI Models
00:04:23
Speaker
Because, I mean, if you go back to write AI reviews, for instance, in Google,
00:04:30
Speaker
then I, as a user, um I find them very, very useful, right? They kind of answer some very generic questions very well. At what temperature should I need to cook a cake, right? And I put a carticular cake and I get the answer, right?
00:04:45
Speaker
Then I don't really need to go to long-form content written by a self-specialist, right? Where I kind of right try to find the answer to my question in the 10th paragraph, maybe, if I'm lucky enough or not, and so on. So it kind of serves some of users' problems very well. And the same about the news, right?
00:05:09
Speaker
ah Because if you think of that, um the real talent right now is missing out. And then the next question that comes to my mind, if we continue this logic, then obviously the media outlets, they should get a certain priority, right? Like Raid that we have right now, because it has a lot of...
00:05:29
Speaker
first-hand user information, right? And also bit kind of like, it's also connecting the LLM models, right? Or you can call you know them AI with the reality.
00:05:40
Speaker
And the newspaper, they're also kind of bridging, right? kind of making this connection, right? Making a bridge between the web and the reality.
00:05:52
Speaker
The other question that we have, that obviously newspaper, they don't really wanna help LLM models take and grabbing their data for free of charge for nothing. And they kind of most probably like with Reddit, they have some conversations, they need to come to a certain agreement.
Blending PR and Marketing in AI Systems
00:06:07
Speaker
But if you circle back to the main question, right, then being on newspapers and knowing how to get there it seems to be one of the biggest priorities because if you want to be considered for the new AI reality where users are asking questions and getting the answer straight away in in in the real-time world, then, you know, it's essential.
00:06:34
Speaker
I think that is more like a concept, right? Most probably have more specific questions because I'm sorry for putting this so big. I think it's really like, you know, ah whenever you have a high level understanding without saying like, you know, you need to put this anchor text under this link or, you know, this link should be no follow ah or do follow or why the brand mentions i also, you know, play a role or whatever it is, right?
00:06:57
Speaker
it's It's really like looking at the
Case Study: Travel Client and Digital PR
00:07:00
Speaker
bigger picture is very important. Absolutely. No, I love all that. And, ah you know... For you, in the work that you're doing, since you're doing, yeah where this is the work that you do, right?
00:07:12
Speaker
So like how do you see, like what is the role that digital PR plays in these systems? How do you feel that you're seeing it truly influence the outputs that ChatGPT has around questions around not just even brands, but even on products or services the brand offers?
00:07:31
Speaker
How does digital PR fit in this whole ecosystem of visibility? Yeah, it's a very good question. I've been recently, actually, it's kind of right now, what you see in AI agents and in Google ah AI overviews is kind of summing up what you've done so far and how well you've been marketing your product.
00:07:55
Speaker
Not only on the digital PR side, but on the on ah on ah on a bigger level, right? Because, for instance, we have a client, and just a random example. ah They are from the travel niche. They are very good brands, well-known brands, and they do...
00:08:10
Speaker
Gosh, I would die if I tried to do this, ah just being honest, because whenever I think about climbing Kilimanjaro, this makes me sick straight away.
00:08:22
Speaker
Because, you know, I live in a very flat country. Like, you know, the last time someone told me that they climbed something in the Netherlands, I was like, sorry? I was like, there was a hill. I was like, sorry. Well, not really a hill. I was like, okay, fine.
00:08:38
Speaker
Because these reliance is just flat, really. like you know ah The hills, they kind of exist somewhere close ah to Germany, but they kind of exist, I would say.
00:08:52
Speaker
So yeah, I mean like climbing something is not really what I'm looking forward or excited about, but that's what they do, right? So they do two things. They are based in Tanzania.
00:09:05
Speaker
They kind of help people climb Kilimanjaro and they do safari. Safari seems to be better, sounds better to me. And what we know is this, right, even though they do kind of write on a brand level, on ah on ah on a kind of on a higher
Strategies for Digital PR Success
00:09:22
Speaker
level, they market both services, right, equally well.
00:09:28
Speaker
On a treatment advisor, they have um equally good coverage in terms of, you know, reviews on, you know, everywhere, literally. But when we kind of looked at the presence of AI reviews that are kind of mentioning their brand,
00:09:47
Speaker
and their services. We noted that climbing Kilimanjaro is really killing while Tanzania, ah while their, sorry, Safari product is just a little bit off, right? what What can be done here, right? In kind of, right, in these circumstances that you can do more of digital PR activities, right? Well, first of all, you need to set up it as a as ah as a goal on a company level, right? To talk more about Tanzania, to produce more content and so on. But also, right, on a digital power side, that's where we can help too, right? Trying to basically create some campaigns that will be tightened up with Safari, right?
00:10:33
Speaker
Or something like that.
00:10:36
Speaker
So, you know, LLM models, they they are quite good when it comes to eliminating some problems, some gaps that you've done unintentionally while you were marketing your product.
00:10:48
Speaker
And well, for sure, a digital PR can help a lot because Obviously, right, whenever you get, it doesn't matter, a link, a brand mention, right, on a very good um newspaper, then you get, like, plus one score, right? So you you get, you know, not a score, but you kind of improving your situation, right?
00:11:14
Speaker
um And then eventually, you know, you you you can get there. so So that's what I see. For sure, there are way more things that we can talk about, right? But that is more like was a practical example that I think, um you know, listeners might find quite useful.
00:11:31
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. So, yeah, and i think I think for listeners, kind of to your point of of hearing a practical example is it's important because I think a lot of people are confused on or maybe don't really know what is sort of digital PR worthy.
00:11:45
Speaker
Do you have other, even if it's not a precise example, but other insights around what can what but what can count as digital PR? What are things that people can leverage what they're doing as digital PR?
00:12:00
Speaker
Yeah, I think obviously it gives more priority to your brand when it comes to LLM models, right? Because LLM models, they crawl media outlets, right? And if you appear there regularly, it doesn't matter whether we are talking about um dedicated stories, right? Where you kind of create the story and then distribute it.
00:12:22
Speaker
Or you just come as an expert, right? Because we do also a lot of um expert quoting, right? whenever, well, for sure, like, you know, for our, like, you know, Tanzania climate, for instance, right?
00:12:35
Speaker
So they the kind of, right, whenever we see an opportunity of pitching them as an expert to a relevant topic and journalists looking for expert quotes, we always go after this.
00:12:46
Speaker
And what what we notice, and I'm kind of, I'm always trying to be a bit not kind of, bit more natural than optimistic because, know,
00:12:58
Speaker
I also understand, and that is very important, right? We do digital PR, but our clients, they they also do a lot, right? They also have a marketing team. They are not really sitting in the corner and waiting for us, right?
00:13:13
Speaker
So that is the reason I try not to be too over optimistic when I talk about that the performance, the results of our activities, is because, okay, The obvious result is that they are featured on USA Today on the Washington, you know what I mean, right? That is the that is something that we've really done, right?
00:13:30
Speaker
And then there are something that is more like coming like a combination of forces, I would say. They've done their part well, we've done the our part well, and we see it.
00:13:40
Speaker
Because I think a few months ago, whenever you were looking for the best tour operators to climb Kilimanjaro, their brand, it wasn't there now right at least what i see right they are there in google so you know um but one more time i try not to be over optimistic about that right but for sure we kind of obviously influence the answer result not talking about organic traffic right because it's also ah signal right that you do things right and for sure
00:14:19
Speaker
digital PR links, right?
Challenges in Digital PR and Collaboration
00:14:21
Speaker
Including brand mentions, because they play the same role as links nowadays, LLM models, right? And the new reality of how Google also looks at things, it's kind of, it doesn't matter whether you have a link or a brand mention, it works well.
00:14:38
Speaker
So yeah, um I think you can do quite a lot with digital PR, but the only thing that's really hard to get there, I think. But if you do it consistently on a regular basis and not being afraid of failing, because you will fail a lot of times, Trust me. Just because it's not, you know, journalists, they want to want to think, you think that is the bad, then you get there, then they just kind of, you know, ignore you.
00:15:07
Speaker
So that is kind of the part of of the whole journey. And it's okay, right? So, yeah, i think that will be um the answer to your question, hopefully. But if you have any follow-ups or I made it a little bit and not so straightforward, just let me know.
00:15:24
Speaker
No, that was very helpful. and that's one thing I'm glad you mentioned that I didn't you know i didn't think about that as is reaching out and being an expert, right? Just even getting a quote in an article for journalists seeking the insights of someone who has a specialty. Yeah, we did.
00:15:40
Speaker
Yeah. And thatte because you I think typically people think of PR as, well, I did something big, right? Like I i made a big donation or I sponsored this or it doesn't have to be something
Conclusion and Restaurant Recommendation
00:15:52
Speaker
monumental. It could even just be a little excerpt of some snippet of insight that you provide to help an article be a little more informative, a little more accurate.
00:16:01
Speaker
authoritative So I think that is that was a great point. Alexander, I love the time you spent with us, and i thank you for your insights. Like I said, I am an advocate of digital PR, so I ask my questions from a position of I want people to really understand how influential this can be, and I think you've you've helped prove that point. But before I let you go, i have probably the toughest question any anyone will ever ask you on any podcast you'll ever do.
00:16:30
Speaker
And that is this, because I know you travel and you speak. So there's lots of probably places you've been, but of all the places you've been, or even if it's in your home to hometown, if someone is in that city, what is one place, one restaurant and you'd recommend that you, the food is so good. You have to go check it out.
00:16:54
Speaker
Okay, um i I don't live in Amsterdam, right? I live in Anghove, which is ah a little bit, well, not so far, far away from Amsterdam, but you know, if at any point, right, you will be there, then I would recommend you go into a restaurant, it's called Deck Nine.
00:17:13
Speaker
It's a small restaurant, they have, I don't really remember whether it's, they ever got a Michelin or something, they might, right? But I'm not, I don't really wanna lie. um And they have a quite small menu and not a lot of tables, so you'd you'd better book it in advance.
00:17:32
Speaker
But other than that, it's a lovely restaurant with lovely food, like, you know, like French, Dutch, I would say. And, yeah, i think you get a nice experience there.
00:17:44
Speaker
Fantastic. Well, if I ever get the chance to go there... I will definitely check out that restaurant. That sounds great. I love small menus, little, you know, a few tables.
00:17:54
Speaker
I love places like that because you know what? They specialize in whatever they're doing, just like you specialize in digital PR. So, oh you know, i wasra any I trust anyone that just kind of keeps their focus narrow and really just tries to be the best at what they
Episode Wrap-Up
00:18:09
Speaker
do. Alexandra, thank you so much for your insights, for your time, and for the restaurant recommendation. I really appreciate it.
00:18:17
Speaker
Thank you very much for having me It has been a pleasure. Absolutely. All right, everyone, I'll see you on the next More Than You Can Chew.