We have a 21st-century gold rush on our hands.
Folks are rushing to the digital wild west, scavenging for streamlined workflows and broadened capabilities. Only to realize the lawless lands of AI are not as fruitful as they were once led to believe.
This is especially true for content creation.
We can push content out more quickly than ever, but is that what brands need?
There is a way to use this tool to its advantage. (Note the use of the word “tool.”) Content creation is the backbone of your business, telling consumers what you’re about and how you’re the best solution for them. It should not be more droning, unsupervised AI-created content that adds to the hum drum of other AI-created work.
This article will help you distinguish the good from the meh ideas when it comes to AI’s usage in content creation. We’ll do this in two ways:
- Discuss the three considerations that should be weighed before AI is used: outside circumstances, resources, and the creativity/efficiency dynamic.
- Then, we’ll learn to distinguish the metaphorical pyrite (fool’s gold) from the gold nuggets surrounding content creation processes in the AI age.
1. How Should I Use AI for this Piece of Content?
Don’t head into this journey with a suitcase and a dream. This is what you should consider before traveling into that wild, wild west of AI content creation. You need to organize how you’re getting there and what you’ll need.
Outside Circumstances
We all remember Coca-Cola’s fingernail-less Santa and Xbox’s eyebrow-raising winter wonderland. Think back to the last time you saw one too many em dashes in a valueless LinkedIn post (no slander to em dashes — as you can tell I love them too). We know audiences cast a critical eye on obviously AI-generated content, so we have to be very careful with its use.
Then, when you add in Google cracking down on spammy AI articles and security-sensitive industries like health, finance, and legal, AI use in content is even more risky.
Controls need to be in place to review anything AI touches. An extra Google search should confirm sources. Keen eyes should review imagery/video and written work. Think like the legal department in your reviews; pick apart every detail and try to refresh the perspectives.
TL;DR: Keen eyes win the prize when it comes to using AI for content creation!
Resources
Ah, this is a mighty proponent of using AI. Smaller teams can produce more with less.
Yet, even though we can create more, it doesn’t mean we necessarily should. So ask this question in the brainstorming process: Will the ideas you’re sharing be valuable to your customer/client?
Quality over quantity wins with content. Every. Time.
One gleaming piece of content gold is better than smaller nuggets of pyrite any day. Make a well-written piece of content go further by repurposing it. Adapt it to different channels through carousels, short-form videos. Keep it fun and interactive.
HubSpot does an awesome job of this. One report will be released. It’s posted on social media in a unique way. An influencer or two collabs on it. Email supports it when it just comes out and reminds you in a few months when it’s relevant again. (See the AI plug-in piece collab with Modern Mille.)
TL;DR: Even though you can create more content with AI, prioritize high-quality, well-written, repurposeable pieces.
Creativity/Efficiency Dynamic
The great debate: AI ruins creativity vs. AI enhances creativity through efficiency.
I sit on the borderline of these beliefs. Sometimes, if you choose efficiency in the brainstorming/creation process, you sacrifice creativity. You lose whatever words or graphics you could have come up with if you hadn’t chosen to use AI.
But, if you prompt with detailed, well-thought-out prompts, you might be able to enhance what you can brainstorm and expand your perspective for a more bird’s eye view.
While creativity is not exactly a give and take, it does pose many what-if situations. The real question is how will AI enhance your output. Not great at putting words together, but you have great ideas? AI streamlines your thoughts. Good at getting words or images on the screen, but could use a detailed review? AI’s got your back.
TL;DR: (Carefully) experiment with how AI can fill in your knowledge/skill gaps while enabling your talents. Use it to help you think more creatively, not think for you.
2. Is This Content Idea Worth Pursuing or Just Fool’s Gold?
This brings us back to our gold rush metaphor of AI content creation. Which ideas are lurking around like pyrite, making you think they’re hunks of gold? Here are my top metaphorical pyrites of content marketing with AI:
- Making streamlined creation and promotion the #1 priority: Going overboard on streamlining often stands in the way of real goals (lead generation, audience building, etc.). Orbit media reported that, in this AI-integrated age, content marketers are pulling back on previous high-performing strategies like guest blogging, influencer collaboration, and publishing original research. Creating something genuinely valuable for your audience should be the top goal, then work on streamlining it.
- Neglecting proper research to save time: AI is an amazing timesaver when it comes to research, but remember to put the guardrails in place to check our convincing but often misinformed robot research pal. SEO keyword and AI prompt research is also a great way to delineate the good ideas from the bad, but be sure to prioritize feedback from the sales and business development team first… they know what customers are actually saying, feeling, doing.
- Guessing what will work and never checking: AI (when not prompted correctly) can give you the same, worn-out ideas it gives everyone else using those prompts, resulting in a lack of differentiation and visibility. Be as detailed as possible in your prompt about the audience, the context, the channels, your brand, and any thought leadership perspectives you own when prompting. THEN, monitor your performance via analytics dashboards for traditional channels. For AI platform monitoring, you can create your own tool to do this work (if you’re fancy like that) or there are some tools that can do it for you. (I’ve heard good things about Profound.)
- Having AI just write some social posts for your content: AI can be super helpful in repurposing content beyond just social media posts. Prompt AI to search your website for internal linking opportunities. Let it pick out chunks to repurpose for each platform and in what manner (carousels, short videos, webinars, and more). Get creative with it!
Going For AI-Assisted Content Gold
AI is becoming a habit and the norm. The content marketers that win know not to use it as a crutch for creative thinking and doing, but as an assistant to enhance the creative and promotional processes.
We have the opportunity to expand beyond our talents to create value for our audiences…. We just have to be smart about it.
Happy creating!
Also published on NatalieLorenzo.com.
