Before launching AZK Media in 2017, Azadeh Williams was a business, technology and marketing journalist for 15 years, reporting for Reuters, The Times (UK), The Sunday Times (UK) and IDG mastheads CMO, CIO, ComputerWorld and PRWorld.
Williams got into the PR industry because, as a journalist, she saw many PR professionals and agencies struggle to pitch complex news stories that intersected major brands with data, technology, and AI.
At the same time, Williams could see large global technology vendors serving the marketing, retail, consumer, loyalty, and advertising sectors wasting significant money on events, expensive PR contracts, and local teams, yet still struggling to get noticed in the local ANZ market.
AZK Media was founded with the vision to help a nuanced yet growing sector, enabling technology companies to get their brands noticed across their target markets.
“Media and PR is a very exciting, fast-paced industry, and the stories we tell are shaped by very fast-moving technology and innovation. What inspires me is that we’re always learning, sharing, and launching new concepts to the world, always finding new and exciting ways to communicate and promote our clients’ brands,” said Williams.
As AZK Media grew, Williams’ husband became her business partner, and, in many ways, he has been her biggest mentor, inspiring her to tap into her potential and lift the company to new heights. Other mentors she mentioned included Matt Hunt, Simon Marmot, Darren Woolley, and her dad, who gave her the best advice.
The fast-shifting industry has continued to motivate Williams to keep learning and keep up with the pace of change. Beyond this, what motivates her is her daughter, as she aims to move the industry in a positive direction so future generations can understand the powers, potential, and boundaries of technology and leverage it in responsible, ethical ways.
Having spent over 25 years in the industry, she said a lot has changed, with the most recent significant innovation being AI search. No longer can brands rely solely on SEO and their own websites to be found by prospects.
AEO (AI Engine Optimisation) now favours third-party websites like news channels, review pages, and index pages for awards and accolades to rank the brand and make it more visible, which has fueled a ‘PR Renaissance’.
Looking ahead, Williams would like to see the technology companies better understand and value the power of media to help them get noticed in the ANZ/APAC region.
“A lot of global technology companies come to the region, nobody knows who they are, and they think the same tactics they used in other regions, like North America or Europe, will work here. But ANZ/APAC is far more nuanced.”
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