Top UK PR Agencies for AI-Search:

Why Brands Can’t Rely on Old-School PR & SEO Anymore

AI hasn’t just changed search - it has changed how people decide who to trust. For tech companies, this shift is profound. The way buyers, journalists, and investors discover and evaluate brands is no longer linear. It used to be simple:

Google it → check the website → skim reviews → click a press article

Today, someone might type a question into ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Google Gemini and get a neatly summarised answer complete with references in seconds. If your brand, or your founder, isn’t being surfaced in those AI-driven recommendations, you’re invisible - not just in search results, but in credibility. Here’s the uncomfortable truth most PR and SEO teams aren’t talking about:

Brands aren’t competing for page one anymore. They’re competing for the algorithm’s recommendation.

The “search” game has shifted. PR needs to shift with it.

Traditional PR vs AI-Search Reality

Classic PR has always followed a predictable logic: Coverage → backlinks → awareness → SEO → trust.

That model is still useful, but it’s no longer sufficient. AI-powered assistants don’t evaluate brands based on press releases or domain authority alone. They assess:

• Entities - is your brand or founder recognised as a unique, verifiable entity?

• Expert credibility - are you a recognised voice in your industry?

• Verified knowledge - is the information about your brand accurate and consistent across platforms?

• Reputation signals - does your online footprint reflect authority and trustworthiness?

• Cross-referenced data - do multiple sources corroborate your expertise?

• Consistency across the web - do your profiles, content, and mentions align?

  
  

Some founders with fewer press hits are now appearing more frequently in AI-generated answers than brands with extensive media coverage, simply because their digital footprint is clean, consistent, and structured in a way AI trusts.

PR today is no longer just a media play; it’s a structured reputation play.

Why This Matters (And Why Most Brands Are Missing It)

AI systems learn about your brand from multiple inputs:

• Media coverage

• LinkedIn and public bios

• Podcasts and transcripts

• Thought-leadership content

• Panel appearances

• Industry mentions

• Partnerships and associations

• Knowledge graph data

• Consistency of your story everywhere

  
  

If your brand is invisible or inconsistent, AI systems can’t “trust” you - and if AI can’t trust you, it won’t recommend you.

This is where PR intersects with data hygiene, structured storytelling, and measurable authority. It’s no longer just about clipping press; it’s about building a reputation that humans and AI systems alike recognize as credible.

How Banjo Communications Helps Tech Clients Master AI Search

At Banjo Communications, we work with founders and tech companies building the future, and help them make sure the outside world, increasingly AI-driven, can recognise that.

Our approach blends three disciplines:

1. PR Thinking - story, relevance, and timing remain central. We craft narratives that capture attention while feeding structured data signals.

2. Brand Positioning - we ensure your brand and founders answer the fundamental question: “Who are you and why should anyone care?”

3. AI-Search Visibility - we assess whether your digital footprint allows AI systems to surface your brand and expertise reliably.

In practice, this means:

• Auditing your AI-search footprint - identifying where your brand appears, where it doesn’t, and why.

• Creating “clean” entity signals - structured, verifiable information about your company and founders that AI systems can recognise.

• Developing thought-leadership content - content designed to travel across platforms, reinforce authority, and appear in AI references.

• Strategic media deployment - selecting the right placements and partnerships to maximise signals of credibility.

• Ensuring consistent digital alignment - profiles, content, bios, and citations all reinforce a single, coherent story.

• Tracking AI visibility - monitoring how, where, and how often AI systems reference your brand.

It’s PR, but with AI-search literacy built in, not bolted on.

The Real Impact

Being surfaced in AI-generated search results has tangible benefits beyond clicks:

• Journalists treat your brand as credible before they even pick up the phone.

• Investors already feel familiar with your brand and leadership.

• Prospects arrive warmed up, not skeptical.

• Your brand becomes the default reference in your category.

• You stop needing to shout to be heard.

This isn’t about chasing algorithms. It’s about becoming the reference point that AI systems cannot ignore.

Where Does This Leave PR Leaders & Founders?

If you’re still thinking in press clips and keyword spreadsheets alone, you’re operating on a 2018 PR model in a 2025 world.

The questions modern tech leaders should be asking:

• Does AI know who we are?

• Would an assistant recommend us?

• Are our founders recognised as experts?

• Do we have a point of view worth indexing?

• Is our story consistent and verifiable across the web?

If the answer is no, that’s the gap. The brands who close it first gain a compound advantage - becoming the default reference for AI and human audiences alike.

Final Thought

PR has always been about shaping perception. The shift today is who or what is perceiving.

Humans still matter. So do journalists. But AI sits alongside them, influencing:

• Which companies gain visibility

• Which founders are seen as credible

• Which ideas travel fastest

• Who enters the conversation first

Brands that embrace this evolution grow faster and position themselves as authorities in a world increasingly guided by AI-generated recommendations.

If you’re serious about being the name people and AI systems surface in your category, intentional reputation design is no longer optional. For further information about PR for SEO and AI Search contact lisa@thisisbanjo.com