Elevating Communication with AI: Beyond the Basics

Are you ready to go beyond the basics with AI? If you’re only using it for simple tasks, it’s time to level up. Andrea shares three powerful strategies that move past the fundamentals to elevate your communication, deepen your audience connection, and help you integrate AI seamlessly into your workflow.

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How to Use AI to Improve Your Communication

Most of the executives I coach are already using AI in their day-to-day work. They’ve mastered the basics, but they know there’s more potential.

If that sounds like you, you’re in the right place.

Welcome to the Talk About Talk podcast. I’m Dr. Andrea Wojnicki (but please, call me Andrea). I’m an executive communication coach who helps leaders communicate with confidence and credibility. Through private coaching, workshops, keynotes, and this podcast, I empower professionals like you to level up your executive presence and personal brand.

In this episode, I’m sharing three next-level strategies for using AI to supercharge your communication effectiveness.

But first: let’s talk about how most of us are already using AI.

5 Basic Ways to Use AI to Improve Communication

AI has become a behind-the-scenes partner in our daily workflows. If you’re using it this way, you’re not alone:

• Spellchecking and grammar correction
• Using AI as a thesaurus to find better or more precise words
• Brainstorming content, from blog posts to presentation titles
• Adjusting tone, such as making your writing sound more formal, supportive, clever, or empathetic
• Summarizing or shortening content to make it more concise

These tools are powerful, but they’re just the beginning.

3 Next-Level AI Strategies to Boost Your Communication

If you’re ready to go beyond spellcheck and tone tweaks, here are three powerful ways to use AI to improve your communication strategy:

1. Crafting Compelling Metaphors

Metaphors are one of the most underused tools in business communication. They help clarify complex ideas and make your message memorable.

💡 Example:
A friend of mine, Richard (a partner at a consulting firm) explains staffing requirements to clients using a metaphor: “Our team is like a tennis ball machine. If your team doesn’t have enough people to hit the balls back, the balls pile up on your side, and the engagement stalls.”

How to Use AI for Metaphors:

• Ask AI: “Give me 10 metaphors to describe [concept].”
• Narrow it down to a few promising ideas, then refine with follow-up prompts.
• Test different tones (professional, humorous, or inspirational) to fit your audience.

When used well, a metaphor can become the centerpiece of your pitch, deck, or keynote.

2. Creating Visuals with AI

AI isn’t just for text. It can also generate or inspire visuals that elevate your communication.

Here are some ways to use AI to create effective visuals:

• Upload a document and ask: “What visuals would best support this?”
• Ask AI to generate charts or graphs to illustrate data
• Request slide outlines or graphic design ideas for a presentation
• Use AI to generate illustrations or images or brief a designer with AI-generated direction

💡 Pro Tip: I used AI to create the cover art for this episode. Check it out at talkabouttalk.com on the podcast tab (link in the show notes!).

3. Getting Critical Feedback from AI

Would you rather get constructive criticism from your audience, or from AI before you hit send?

Use AI to anticipate issues with your communication by simulating tough critics:

Prompts to Try:

• “What questions might my audience have after reading this?”
• “Why might my boss reject this?”
• “What parts of this proposal might frustrate a skeptical customer?”
• “If you were a disillusioned editor, how would you critique this article?”

Asking AI to play devil’s advocate helps you spot blind spots and strengthen your message before it goes live.

3 Caveats to Keep in Mind When Using AI for Communication

Before you go all-in, keep these best practices top of mind:

1. Enhance, don’t outsource.
   AI is your assistant, not your voice. Start with your own ideas.
2. Keep personal messages personal.
   Use your real voice in personal communication. Relationships deserve authenticity.
3. Double-check everything.
   AI still hallucinates. Your credibility depends on accuracy.

Recap: How to Use AI to Communicate More Effectively

The Basics:

• Spellchecking
• Thesaurus use
• Brainstorming
• Tone adjustment
• Summarizing

Next-Level Tactics:

1. Crafting compelling metaphors
2. Creating engaging visuals
3. Getting constructive, critical feedback

What About You?

How are you using AI to enhance your communication?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Connect with me on LinkedIn or Instagram, or comment on YouTube.

If you found this episode helpful, please share it with a colleague, and don’t forget to subscribe to the Talk About Talk podcast for more communication tips.

Thanks for listening. Talk soon! 

The post How to Use AI to Improve Your COMMUNICATION (ep.188) appeared first on Talk About Talk.