I’ve worked across a wide range of business sectors over the years, from voiceover artist and writer to hypnotherapist and Operations Manager; from pharmaceuticals and education to energy, with an awful lot of sales along the way.
The common thread running through all of it has always been communication. Whether I’m behind a microphone, writing, selling, training or managing people, at my core I’m fascinated by how we communicate and, perhaps more importantly, how that communication is received.
I’ve watched excitedly as technology has progressed and the opportunities have snowballed. Communication in the digital world has become fascinating. The advancement of AI has opened up a whole new world of possibilities, helping businesses communicate more efficiently and streamlining processes that once consumed enormous amounts of time.
It’s so fast. It’s so efficient. And sometimes it’s so incredibly frustrating.
Because somewhere amongst all that efficiency, I began to notice that something vital to customer connection and loyalty had quietly left the building.
And honestly, this bugged me.
I know many people have concerns about AI, but I believe everything has a dual nature. Used collaboratively, AI is an extraordinary tool. It can free us from tasks that technology can handle brilliantly and give us more time and space for the things we humans do best.
When efficiency and convenience become more important than how the customer feels on the receiving end, you risk losing the very connection that keeps that customer coming back. Humans are all about connection, even with AI.
As an actor, I would break down the layers of a character to understand what needed to come together to create the right performance. I realised communication in business works in much the same way.
Clarity, trust, credibility, sincerity, personality and emotional relevance none of these work in isolation, they're a team, an orchestra, they interact and they need synergy.
A message can be perfectly clear but feel impersonal; warm but unbelievable; professional but completely forgettable.
And that applies whether the words were written by AI or by a person.
What matters isn't simply what a business intended to say, but what its customer actually heard.
And that’s how AINC came to be!
Meet Siobbhan Shaw
