You can’t move these days for the sheer volume of articles on AI and how it seems to be taking over the world. I’ve begun many an article in this vein before realising that, in fact, anything I say is likely already out of date because AI has already moved on.
Although AI has undeniably transformed the art of copywriting, thankfully, only mediocre writing has been affected. The generic, characterless content produced by ChatGPT and similar tools makes every business owner sound as though they have all attended the same University of Verbose. Quality work, which stems from human thought processes, remains safe, at least for now.
AI excels at creating explainer articles, summarising information, and generating ideas and frameworks for articles. But, if you’re looking for the kind of content that resonates with a human touch and drives engagement, only human-generated content will do. I think we’re all somewhat tired of clichéd content that begins, “In today’s fast-paced business environment…” or “In an increasingly competitive marketplace…” All this does is highlight to the reader that this is going to be another generic piece of AI-generated content that is often dull, repetitive and lacks originality.
Why is human writing better?
Anyone can put words together, and those words might sound better if ‘refined’ by AI, but what AI cannot do is add those touches of wit, nuance, and cultural context. As you’d expect, it’s also inept at emotions, so it may superficially show understanding, but it lacks genuine empathy. It cannot express experienced emotions as we do.
These humanisms—these traces of lived experience or idiosyncratic interpretations—are what make writing compelling. Just as we would become bored speaking to a computer at a party, we all eventually grow disinterested in reading an AI’s interpretation of events.
There’s every indication that, in the near future, AI will imitate human writing to such a degree that it becomes indistinguishable from that of real, live humans; for now, only humans possess the ability to write as humans do. Therefore, if you are one, you ought to produce quality words that rise above the noise of AI-generated content—the more authentically human your writing is, the more valuable it will be. If for no other reason than it will be read and not dismissed. Does anyone actually read anything they know to be AI-generated?
Most people are either completely for it or utterly against it. I, for one, love AI because I use it as a tool to help me do my job better. It handles all the tedious tasks while I focus on the truly interesting and creative aspects. I’ll use it to enhance my work: to generate general ideas, organise content, refine my own words, and essentially make my working day more efficient. However, I don’t use it to create articles or do my work. It cannot create new ideas, analyse or empathise the same way humans do – it can only regurgitate existing content. It operates at such a superficial level that any client worth their salt would reject fully AI-generated content for the simple reason that it just screams laziness.
If you require some content merely to occupy space, then by all means, use AI, but that content won’t be insightful, up to date, or emotionally resonant, and these are the qualities you need to gain people’s trust in your business and what it offers. Humans are predisposed to respond to emotional stimuli, particularly in marketing. Emotions play an essential role in how we engage with brands and make purchasing decisions. Attempting to elicit human reactions by employing AI will not achieve that.
Yes, AI affects your SEO
The aim of SEO is to stand out and rank among the top in your field. While AI-generated content may not necessarily harm SEO, because it rehashes existing online material, it tends to blend into the vast sea of uniformity, making it ineffective. Content that does not stand out can negatively affect your rankings. Have a look at this video, which states, “Google algorithms favour human-generated content.” If you want copy that stands out for the right reasons—because it persuades and engages—then get a human to write it and let AI refine it.
There may come a time when chatbots and similar technologies can produce something that sounds human. One thing is for sure: it will continue to improve and become essential in many roles that involve written content. For now, though, while we humans still hold an advantage, let’s make the most of it.
Image courtesy of Pixabay