Artificial intelligence is taking the world by storm, highlighted a few months ago by one of our blog posts, AI in public relations. Since this was posted, there has been even more growth in the AI world. In particular, voice cloning is one new trend that could impact PR professionals. While it was originally created to help people with no voice or those losing the ability to speak, voice cloning has now taken social media by storm.
Lyrebird, one of the big players in this up-and-coming space, is working to produce realistic voice clones to help those who truly need a voice. This will provide a way for these individuals to communicate with their own voice, before losing the ability to speak themselves. This program takes sample recordings from the individual, and then re-purposes the samples into completely new sentences and phrases. Lyrebird itself may not have an enormous impact on the PR industry, but it is an example of advanced technology that PR professionals should monitor closely. 
Whether it’s this or some new social media platform, PR pros must make sure they stay ahead of breaking trends. Here are three steps you should take when something first appears on the horizon:
Step one: Do some background research on it. The best way to get ahead is to be the first to become an expert in a new trend or program. PR pros love to research, and learning all we can about these programs can only benefit us and our clients. Through your research, you should look to uncover everything from the potential growth of the technology to how publicly available it is. The more we stay on top of trends, the better chance we have at preparing our clients for success.
Step two: Check how others are leveraging the trend. Whether they’re in fact-finding mode like you or are already using the programs in their clients’ PR programs, it’s important to see how others are taking advantage of the latest technology. Watching how your competitors are doing things will spark ideas for you. Applying new technologies in your own industry, as well as in those of your clients, is a great way to figure out if the latest trend is a good fit and how to incorporate it into your PR plans.
Step three: Show your clients how they can capitalize on the trend, if it’s a fit. Making clients aware of the potential impact new technology can have on their business will encourage them to embrace it. Finding creative ways to utilize new technologies will position your clients as innovative, while helping them appeal to new audiences in unique ways. Taking advantage of these trends is one surefire way to keep clients’ content interesting and new.
As PR pros, it’s our responsibility now to learn, understand and inform, so that we can be prepared and best advise our clients.