There’s no denying it – ChatGPT has taken the world by storm, and other AI companies are in an arms race to keep up.
Since its release in late 2022, ChatGPT has amassed more than 100 million users, breaking the record for the fastest-growing user base. Many of these users are businesses looking to automate operations and find cheaper alternatives to outsourced work.
If you’re thinking about how AI can streamline your company’s workflow, we don’t blame you – we all are (and should be).
You might be surprised to hear that coming from a writing crew. Most expect us to balk at the thought of AI content generation.
Well, sorry to surprise you, but… we’re kind of digging this evolution.
In the world of content creation, there’s a vast, vast range of talent. There are those who regurgitate information that any search engine can generate – and those who bring creativity, research, and true depth to writing.
It’s our belief that ChatGPT will not replace the most talented content creators, but rather, give them a more advanced role. The best-of-the-best writers out there will find themselves using AI as a tool, then relying on their skills to take content to the next level.
The question is, what does it take to create content that goes beyond what ChatGPT can provide? How are these cream-of-the-crop writers “humanizing” AI output?
Let’s talk about it.
(1) Personality
It’s what keeps Austin weird, makes Jennifer Lawrence relatable, and creates that sense of Disney magic. It’s the crux of who a person (or a brand) is.
In other words, personality isn’t something we can ignore – and yet many businesses underestimate its power and purpose in content generation.
When a branding team imbues content with personality, they are better able to connect with customers and establish a public identity. They also have the opportunity to mirror traits that their target audience values – whether that’s boldness, environmental advocacy, comedy, or something wildly different.
This brings us to a big drawback with using ChatGPT alone: it has no personality.
Most AI output is as bland as a slice of bread sans butter. These bots know how to spit out imitations of human writing, but at the end of the day, they cannot fully replicate a brand’s voice, tone, or “it” factor.
That’s where talented writers and editors take AI content generation to the next level. It takes a human touch to give copy a sense of personality, as well as to express opinions or make original jokes.
(2) Depth
“Quality of content” is rated the number one most important success factor among bloggers. To impress real readers and search engine crawlers, your brand’s content needs to have meat – and that’s something AI content generation cannot necessarily provide.
Remember: ChatGPT’s aim isn’t to incite arguments, express creativity, share experiences, or bring something new to the table. Instead, its goal is to find already existing information, compile it, and spit it out in a way that’s easy to understand.
If you’re looking to provide depth or value that goes beyond what a textbook or Wikipedia page can give you, ChatGPT likely won’t be your go-to solution.
Our experience with AI tools has revealed that they offer excellent building blocks for posts, but that a top-tier writer will still have more research, statistics, and “hot takes” to add to a standard ChatGPT post.
(3) SEO
Why are you writing content like blogs and guest posts? Chances are, you’re trying to draw organic traffic to your website – and that’s why search engine optimization matters.
Up to 71% of bloggers say SEO is the most important source of traffic. They know that ranking in the top search results is critical, and they’re employing tactics to improve their SEO in every piece they publish.
Alas, that’s another point for human experts against artificial intelligence. Although you can tell bots like ChatGPT to use certain keywords and meet length requirements, you cannot explicitly instruct them to write a post that will rank well.
Google has made announcements stating that it will continue to prioritize high-quality content in search results, even if it comes from ChatGPT and other tools. So, the search engine giant won’t ding you for using AI – but it will still hold you to its quality standards.
If you want to get a leg up on your competitors and impress search engines, a fully-generated AI piece likely won’t cut it. You’re still going to need input or touch-ups from a human expert to increase your post’s rankability.
Otherwise, wouldn’t we all use ChatGPT to “win” Google with posts that take 30 seconds to generate? It’s just not that simple.
(4) Editing
Lastly, humans will continue to polish ChatGPT output for things like grammar, industry-specific jargon, and wordy sentences. A human editor trims fat – something that many AI pieces have in heavy supply.
For example, we recently used ChatGPT to generate this paragraph:
“People with ulcerative colitis (UC) may experience abdominal pain and cramps due to inflammation and irritation in the lining of the colon and rectum. The inflammation can cause the colon to become inflamed and irritated, which can lead to abdominal pain and discomfort.”
See how the bot talked itself into a bit of a circle?
Sometimes, it takes a human hand to extract the real message from AI content (and delete the amateur fluff). It’s not uncommon to find nonsense paragraphs and rambling sentences in some ChatGPT pieces.
Will ChatGPT and other tools continue to improve when it comes to these nitty-gritty details? Of course – but ultimately, it’s always going to pay to have an editor to hand select the information and phrasing that ends up in a final draft.
Getting Back to the Big Picture
TLDR: ChatGPT can be an advanced, hugely beneficial tool for many people, including writers and content producers. But has it replaced the human side of the equation?
Nope – and we don’t see it doing that any time soon.
For now, the Razorcopy crew is welcoming AI content generation with open arms (and a heavy-handed red pen). We’re all about innovation and saving time for clients, but more importantly, we’re dedicated to producing top-quality content with a human heart.
Want to chat about AI-assisted writing? Shoot us a message with your thoughts.
