It’s never easy, but staying up to date with current communications trends can help startup founders and CMOs get their story out there, while avoiding common pitfalls. 

‘AI washing’

The new wave of businesses integrating and experimenting with AI has also given rise to the communications no-no of the moment – AI washing. So far this year, a number of companies have been criticised, and some even charged, with ‘making false or misleading claims’ related to their AI use. 

It’s important to note however, that many of the businesses who are implementing this technology and talking about how they’re doing so, most-likely don’t have any intention of being purposefully misleading. Nevertheless, the signs are there that ‘AI washing’ could become ever more prevalent. 

Much like ‘greenwashing’ before it, ‘AI washing’ is likely fuelled by the desire to position a business in a positive light – to investors, stakeholders, competitors, and customers. This can be a particular issue for startups, who are often under pressure to be seen as ‘innovative’, leading to marketing and messaging choices which could result in misunderstanding and miscommunication. 

It may prompt, for example, a startup to communicate about its AI adoption and usage before it’s fully ready to do so, or before messaging has been aligned across the team. 

And as we know, once a story is out in the wider world, media and audiences can be unforgiving if a brand has been caught exaggerating the capabilities of a product or service. From this, serious reputational damage can occur and make a dent in customer trust. 

To avoid this, company departments and experts must work even more closely together – e.g. tech and marketing functions – to ensure claims and messages are clearly defined and based on evidence, including data and insight, as well as third party audits where relevant. 

‘Greenhushing’ 

Although it’s vitally important to call out greenwashing – e.g. companies making false or exaggerated environmental claims – one of the less helpful side effects of this practice is that businesses aiming to do the right thing will sometimes stay quiet about sustainability plans and measures due to the fear of being accused of making incorrect claims or ‘not doing enough’. In other words they’re ‘greenhushing’. As the rules and regulations around what companies can and can’t say in relation to sustainability initiatives become more stringent, this practice is unfortunately on the increase. 

A recent report found that over half of the US’s largest companies (58%) are responding to greenwashing concerns by staying quiet on genuine ESG progress. When this happens, everyone misses out, as it stunts the discussion around what improvements are being made and how we can collectively move forward. 

If large companies are concerned about this issue, it’s likely to be even more of a headache for startups and growing businesses – with much to lose from reputational damage and less resources at their fingertips to deal with a PR crisis. 

While it’s absolutely vital that sustainability claims are robust and backed up by evidence – beyond this, business leaders must be brave and speak up about the goals their brands are striving for, plus be prepared to have an open conversation and talk about mistakes and improvements made along the way. The alternative has serious implications for the progress of many industries, not to mention the future of the planet.  

‘Social oversharing’

Social networks have become indispensable platforms for business leaders and employees, not only looking to share their successes, but via which they can also talk about the difficulties – failures, mistakes and hard decisions that come with working in or running a company. 

And this is certainly to be applauded – a more open and authentic dialogue encourages us to talk about areas which inevitably impact on brands, leaders and individuals alike, in order to address and solve these issues – including mental and physical health, stress and balancing family life with work. 

Since the pandemic and the rise of flexible working, life and business have become even more intertwined, with the lines further blurring between our personal issues and pressures and professional endeavours. 

This topic has recently been written about in relation to startup companies – the founders of which are finding it cathartic for themselves, as well as hopefully helpful to others, to discuss areas such as shutting shop, having to let employees go, pivoting or starting over. It’s admirable to open up about challenges with a view to moving forward, but be mindful of oversharing.

Founders and business leaders that stray too far off track can run the risk of looking, at best, unprofessional and at worst, desperate for attention – neither of which tend to be beneficial in the long run. It’s a difficult balance to strike, but  getting an objective second opinion, particularly if a post or announcement touches on a personal or emotional topic, should help to mitigate any major miss-steps. 

As our world changes, the way in which we communicate needs to keep pace in line with new developments, trends and innovations. The founders and business leaders that recognise this will have a head start in the vital but challenging business of getting USPs and messages out to target audiences.