ChatGPT: How It Will Impact Communications in International Development

ChatGPT has become a force to reckon with and it is no longer a secret to many in the field of communications for international development cooperation. It’s a language model trained by OpenAI that can create very catchy and valuable content from a loose starting point.

A number of articles have been written already on how this technology might disrupt different fields. This post focuses on how it can impact the area of communications for international development cooperation in the near future.

Workflow Improvement

The first area that ChatGPT can impact is workflow. Until today, scientific experts or at least scientifically trained advisors were usually the source of content for communication purposes in international development, especially longer-form and more substantial, meaningful content — and getting these colleagues to produce content was a challenge. They prioritize their scientific work and publishing and don’t always have the time to create communications content.

ChatGPT opens up opportunities for communications people to have the advisors create loose copy and pre-structure their copy, then generate communications content. ChatGPT can be used to help generate polished paragraphs in a coherent structure and have short articles ready that serve the purpose of communication outreach. This way, the communication department can work more efficiently and effectively. Though they obviously need to learn how to use ChatGPT to support their content suppliers with generating meaningful communications content, especially content that adds value for the target audience. The issue of experts and decision-makers instructing communicators to focus on what they think the audience should be told about the project can obviously not be tackled by using ChatGPT.

Fact Feeding

The second area is the fact-feeding process. ChatGPT is a language model, and it does not research the web for information. Therefore, it creates false facts. To clarify, ChatGPT generates text based on the input it receives, but it does not have the ability to fact-check or verify the accuracy of the information it uses. This means that it’s important to carefully select the input and review the output to ensure accuracy. This fact is often misunderstood and then used to claim that model could not deliver certain outputs. It’s simply not set up for research (yet).

However, this condition can be managed by feeding it the right facts. Rather than asking the system for facts, the system should be fed the facts to work with. When you do that, you get astonishing results. Though, as mentioned, it is still absolutely essential to check for mistakes and ensure that the formulation is not wrong. Therefore it doesn’t look as if anybody with deeper knowledge in the thematic areas can be replaced by AI in the near future.

Nonetheless, the workflow is much quicker than creating all content from scratch manually. ChatGPT can really aid communications units in producing content more efficiently and with greater turnaround time, but it’s going to remain challenging to ensure that the generated content aligns with the organization’s messaging and values. Creating more fluff and engagement for the engagement sake kind of content is hardly going to give you a decisive advantage in the race for getting attention, just because it is easier to produce it. Let’s look at that.

Competition for Attention

The third area that ChatGPT will impact is the competition for attention. ChatGPT has added a new weapon to the arms race, and it is available to everyone. The decisive factor will not be who has the smart gun but who knows best how to use it.

ChatGPT has the potential to accelerate the competition for attention, and it is crucial to use this tool in the most effective way possible. It is also essential to note that it takes time to become knowledgeable about the information that is being fed into the system. To clarify this refers to learning both the subject matter at hand as well as the process of learning how to feed chatGPT, fine-tuning the language model, which can be time-consuming but is necessary to achieve the best results.

Thus, it is crucial to invest time in learning the ins and outs of ChatGPT to make the most of its potential. It can be a powerful tool for generating content, but it can only be one part of a larger communications strategy and should be used strategically to achieve specific goals.

A way out — at least for now

In the age of ChatGPT and other AI tools, written copy can become too optimized in the sense of formulaic, making it difficult for communicators to make it stand out on social media. This is where video content can be a game-changer. Despite requiring more resources and time, video offers an engaging and eye-catching format that can convey complex information in a more dynamic way.

By using ChatGPT to generate script ideas or incorporating generated text into video captions or titles, communicators can take their video production to the next level. The combination of ChatGPT and video can be a powerful way to increase engagement and attention, providing a potential competitive advantage for those who can invest in it.

The Way Ahead

Moving forward, investing in knowledgeable and experienced senior communications staff will be crucial in fully realizing ChatGPT’s potential. The effectiveness of the technology depends on the user’s ability to utilize it, and having senior staff who understand how to harness its capabilities is key to maximizing its benefits. This not only ensures that your organization stands out in the competition for attention with AI, but also prevents adding unnecessary workload to your communications staff.

It’s time for communication departments in international development cooperation to recognize the importance of investing in capable senior staff who can take advantage of the opportunities presented by emerging technologies like ChatGPT.

Moreover, as technology continues to advance, we can anticipate even more groundbreaking impacts on the field of communications for international development cooperation. For instance, ChatGPT could potentially be integrated with other technologies like virtual reality and augmented reality to create more immersive and engaging content, which could be particularly useful in raising awareness for certain causes or educating people about complex issues.

In conclusion, ChatGPT has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach communications for international development cooperation. While it is not a perfect solution and requires some investment in terms of time and resources, the benefits are undeniable. By using this technology effectively, communication units can improve their workflow, create more engaging content, and stand out in a crowded field of competition. As the technology continues to evolve, we can expect even more exciting and impactful innovations in our field.