In the corridors of power, fear is a poor advisor. As geopolitical tectonic plates shift and economic indicators flicker like a dying candle, a familiar, “unenlightened” pattern emerges in the C-suite. CEOs, gripped by a siege mentality, reach for the scalpel to excise what they perceive as “discretionary” costs. Public relations and marketing are almost always the first on the altar.
History Punishes the Timid
This is not just a mistake; it is strategic self-destruction.
History has a blunt way of punishing the timid. During downturns, those who retreat into a shell of silence do not “save” their way to success. They simply vanish from the collective consciousness. For the wise leader, a tough market is not a signal to hide—it is a signal to strike. It is the moment to out-spend, out-think, and out-maneuver the competition. The weapon of choice in the 21st century is no longer the blunt instrument of advertising but the surgical precision of earned media (aka “editorial coverage”).
73% of B2B Buyers Ask AI Engines First
The traditional “sales funnel,” which served the “mantras” of sales trainers as well as seasoned salespeople, has been largely vaporized by AI and their Large Language Models (LLMs). According to March 2026 data from Averi, a staggering 73% of B2B buyers now initiate their purchase research through AI-powered search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. By the time a prospect ever reaches your website or picks up a phone, 61% of their journey is already complete.
They aren’t asking Google for “best enterprise security.” They are asking Claude to “compare the architectural resilience of the top three APAC security providers.” If your brand is not part of that synthesized answer, you don’t exist. You have been filtered out before the race even began.
YouTube: The New Bedrock of AI Truth
For years, the “digital gurus” claimed Reddit was the gold standard for “authentic” AI training data. I too once thought so and tried to be part of that ecosystem. It turned out those pundits were wrong.
YouTube has surged ahead of Reddit as the primary social source for AI-generated answers that users want. Independent research confirms that YouTube now appears in 16% of AI-generated citations, while Reddit has slid to 10%.
Why? Because LLMs prize structured, expert-led narrative proof. A video transcript with timestamps and a high-fidelity demonstration offers a “semantic density” that a pseudonymous Reddit thread cannot match. When an AI summarizes “real-world experience” for a buyer, it is pulling from the earned authority of your video content. If your PR strategy doesn’t include a heavy, authoritative presence on YouTube, you are effectively mute in the ears of the world’s most powerful recommendation engines.
The 82% Rule: AI Does Not Buy Ads
Here is the hard truth that should keep every “Pay-to-play” CMO awake at night: The majority of every AI answer is earned, not paid. Recent analysis by Muck Rack shows that 82% of links cited by LLMs come directly from earned media—journalism, white papers, case studies, and credible third-party reporting.
AI models are designed to find the truth, not the highest bidder. They ignore the “Sponsored” tags that plague traditional search engines. To be visible in an AI-centric world, you must earn your way in through the rigors of public relations. You need the third-party validation that only a “red team” PR approach can provide. You need the authority that comes from being cited by reputable journalists and industry analysts. Without earned media, your “pipeline” is just a dry pipe.
Capturing the Vacuum Globally
While your less enlightened competitors are shrinking their footprints and hiding in their home markets, your opportunity to grow expanded exponentially due to your competitors’ absence. This is as smart and incisive a time to quickly expand your PR and other marketing programs as the ultimate power move in your home turf and the broader Asia-Pacific.
In a shrinking economy, the cost of capturing market share actually drops for those with the courage to spend. Advertising rates may soften, but the “Share of Voice” (SOV) becomes exponentially easier to dominate when others stop talking. By expanding your PR efforts internationally now, you capture the “Invisible Evaluation” phase of the global buyer.
Conversion is the Proof
In this time and age amidst the insane global turmoil, we need to address the bottom line.
Traditional advertising leads are often “cold” even if they seem legitimate on many fronts, which means they demand massive nurturing and have high abandonment rates. Conversely, leads generated through AI-informed research (fueled by PR and the media coverage or earned media) are pre-qualified and easier to convert.
The data is undeniable: AI search traffic converts at a rate of 14.2%, compared to just 2.8% for traditional Google organic search. That is a 5.1x conversion advantage. When a buyer finds you through an AI recommendation—a recommendation built on the foundation of your earned media and PR—they arrive at your door with a level of trust that no banner ad could ever buy. Don’t even think of traditional advertising, which fare even worse.
Profits Follow Authority
The choice is simple. You can join the ranks of the forgotten, cutting your budget and hoping for the best while the world moves on. Or, you can act with the heart of a general. You can double down on Public Relations, dominate the AI citation landscape, and out-spend your retreating competitors to capture the pipelines of tomorrow.
Profits follow authority. In the AI-centric world, authority is earned. Keep expanding your PR programs and you will reach there way ahead of your competition.
Are you ready to claim your territory in the AI research landscape, or will you let your competitors define your story? Talk with us and find out how.
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Dr Seamus Phan – Global C-suite Publicist & Strategist (Biochemist, Cybersecurity & Webdev pioneer, Author, Journalist) with nearly 40 years of professional field experience.
