Over the past year, AI has gone from something we were experimenting with at IMPACT, to a core part of the way we work.
The change didn’t happen in a dramatic, overnight way. Instead, it was a process driven by thousands of micro moments.
Trying a prompt. Stress-testing an idea. Comparing outputs across platforms. Running the same question five different ways just to see what changes.
And slowly, those moments added up to something bigger.
It started with curiosity
Our early approach was simple: test and assess everything.
We quickly realised that each AI platform behaves differently. Some are structured and predictable, others are more conversational. Some synthesise well and others are better at tone.
It became clear there is no such thing as “AI” in a general sense, just different systems with different strengths, biases and blind spots. We learned that the advantage isn’t the model, it’s knowing when and how to use it.
Somewhere along the way, ChatGPT also got a nickname. “Chatty.”
It stuck and says a lot about how quickly these tools went from technical to instinctive.
The early learnings
One of our earliest lessons was one of the most important. AI is incredibly convincing, even when it’s wrong. We saw answers that sounded right but weren’t. Sources that didn’t exist. Logic that felt complete but wasn’t.
It forced a rethink. AI isn’t a source of truth. It’s a tool for exploring and accelerating thinking, but every output needs to be interrogated, validated and refined.
Through this we also discovered that AI is not always faster. There are moments where verifying, checking and honing takes longer than starting from scratch. In some cases, it adds friction, not speed.
The gains come from using AI selectively, not everywhere, and from knowing that personal judgement is a key part of the craft.
It made us better communicators
One of the more surprising outcomes is how AI has changed the way we think.
Good prompts demand clarity. You need to know what you’re trying to achieve, what assumptions you’re making and what “good” looks like. If that’s unclear, AI struggles, and so do we.
The need for precision has sharpened everything. Briefs are tighter. Questions are better. Conversations are more focused.
AI hasn’t just sped us up. It’s allowed us to better understand our own thinking and creative processes.
Learning became a team sport
As experimentation grew, the whole team leaned in. There were webinars, training sessions and courses, from CPRA to Inventium.
Some useful, some less so, but collectively they created momentum.
We adopted a shared learning approach, constantly swapping notes on what worked and what didn’t. This turned curiosity into skills, knowledge and expertise and marked the turning point from AI being ‘interesting’, to an effective tool.
New communications frontiers
For IMPACT, the true value of AI has emerged in how it shapes the way we advise clients and rethink communications.
We use it to analyse how brands appear in AI-powered search, how reputation is interpreted, and which sources influence that perception. By employing personas and agents, we can test messages and campaign ideas before launch, making our strategies sharper and more effective.
AI tools have become the starting point for people seeking information about companies, industries, and leaders. Brands are now judged not just by their websites or the latest media coverage, but by the collective evidence that exists online.
AI acts as an aggregator, bringing together both owned, earned and third-party sources into one cohesive answer. This shift means communications is now about influencing the evidence that these systems draw from, not just the audience itself.
In short, reputation today is engineered as much as it is managed, requiring a deliberate and strategic approach to every piece of content and every interaction across the digital landscape.
LinkedIn matters more than we expected
One of the more surprising lessons is how often people show up alongside brands.
Executive profiles, thought leadership and LinkedIn content all shape how AI interprets credibility and authority.
Building the reputation of leaders is no longer separate from building the organisation. The two now reinforce each other.
What we know now
We’re still learning. But a few things are clear.
AI rewards clarity. It exposes inconsistency. And it amplifies whatever already exists, whether that is good or bad.
The technology itself is no longer the differentiator. Almost everyone has access to the same tools. What sets organisations apart is their judgement, maturity and usage strategies (you can read about IMPACT’s approach here).
If you’re starting to think about what AI means for your organisation’s communications needs then reach out to victoria@impactagency.com.au
IMPACT can:
- Assess how your brand is showing up in AI-powered search
- Understand how your reputation is being interpreted
- Strengthen your authority across the sources AI trusts
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