124: How AI Is Changing PR (and Why It’s Having a Comeback) - with Molly George, CEO & Founder of Kickstand

Molly George has spent her career inside B2B tech and on the agency side. Today she is the CEO and founder of Kickstand, a PR and research firm helping brands win in an AI-shaped search world.

In this episode of Women in B2B Marketing, we unpack why PR is having a comeback in B2B, how AI search is changing the playbook, and what modern comms leaders are doing to show up in the consideration set. We also get into Molly’s founder story, the power of setbacks, and practical ways to make PR work alongside demand, content, and product marketing.

Here’s what we cover:

• PR’s real job in B2B and why quick wins are the wrong expectation
• AI search and brand visibility: how citations shape consideration
• Owned vs earned in 2025: your site, plus offsite owned profiles like G2, AWS, Wikipedia
• Press releases today: when they help train models and when wires waste budget
• Formatting for LLMs: structure, subheads, and consistent boilerplates across properties
• Using query data to guide narratives, pitches, and thought leadership
• Reddit for B2B: participate with value, not a megaphone
• Budget shifts: why teams are moving dollars from classic SEO to brand and PR
• Starting an agency while employed, finding the tipping point, and trusting your gut

Key Links:

• Guest: Molly George: https://www.linkedin.com/in/molly-george-kickstand/
• Host: Jane Serra: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janeserra/
• Kickstand: https://meetkickstand.com/
• Kickstand Research Report on AI and GTM: https://meetkickstand.com/landing/the-zero-click-era-is-here-are-you-ready-to-show-up/

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