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I’ve had a hate-hate relationship with AI ever since it emerged.
A productivity boost, you say? Sure. Mediocre content fully embraced? Absolutely.
Don’t get me wrong, AI can be a useful tool. Its adoption and widespread propagation are also something we have to accept. Fighting against it isn’t going to make it disappear. Using it for all types of creative tasks, however, contributes to a steep decline in originality and effective self-expression. So, what’s the best way to use AI without drowning in a sea of generic content and becoming a mere drop in this ocean?
While I have fought hard against using AI in my copywriting work, I know that it’s here to stay.
So, I started experimenting. It can be a great partner during brainstorming sessions. It can also do a decent proofreading job, especially if you’re one of those people likely to miss tiny typos and sneaky commas.
To make content great, however, you simply can’t count on AI to handle the entire process. Here’s my recipe for streamlining content creation while still having a point of view and personality that shines through.
Pushing Against AI Isn’t the Answer
That statement is weird coming from me. I pushed against AI for a very long time. Eventually, I lost all of my copywriting clients in the summer of 2024, and I knew that denying the existence of new technology isn’t the way forward.
AI is fast. It’s cheap. It does a decent job when it comes to putting together generic pieces of content. Obviously, many businesses are going to prioritize such a solution and eliminate expenses.
I kept on writing 100 percent human texts. I had a point of view. I did my research. Still, that wasn’t enough to remain competitive.
The pool of clients dwindled, and I knew I had to embrace a different approach.
I started thinking about AI integration into basic processes. So I came up with a few prompts. I read and I learned. They helped me in getting a better understanding of the way it writes. Familiarizing myself with its strengths and shortcomings. Employing those strengths allowed me to optimize processes without losing my identity as a writer and a journalist in the process.
Today, I do use AI for some parts of content creation. It is great when trying to come up with ideas. It can help polish the structure and the outline of a text. Proofreading also becomes much easier with its assistance. I’ve even used it to make sure that all content SEO steps have been completed successfully.
Knowing when to use AI and when to push myself to deliver human-generated content has given me perspective. I’ve accepted the fact that copywriting will never be the same. Still, I can’t accept the excessive reliance on content that’s been fully AI-generated, and that misses the human touch. Such content is easy to spot, and it doesn’t do a business any good.
Why AI Copywriting Fails
To use AI as an effective copywriting partner without losing uniqueness or personality, you have to understand what it does wrong.
A few characteristics make it super easy to spot AI texts, even if you’re not a professional in the realm.
Generic Structure, Repetitive Construction
AI content structure can be described as formulaic at best.
Every sentence follows a similar pattern. The same applies to paragraphs and the overall construction of the text. There’s no variety, no spice. Sometimes, human writers will break the rules and experiment with linguistic tools to achieve a certain effect. Incomplete sentences. Chunky structure on purpose. AI is never going to be so bold. It will stick to a polished formula that makes the content sound boring and repetitive.
AI has its favorite buzzwords and filler phrases. The moment I see “In today’s fast-paced world” is the moment I feel like screaming. Sometimes, I even get the urge to start pulling my hair out.
It also tries to build suspense and anticipation in a rather amateurish way. Trying to pose questions, labeling something as a plot twist (spoiler: it’s not), or identifying a “game-changer” often makes the whole thing sound forced and fake.
Finally, AI is absolutely terrible at showing rather than telling. AI can’t experience human emotions. It regurgitates texts that it has extracted from a database. It can’t describe what surprise or love feels like. It would much rather make the content safe and generic, telling you that the sky is blue instead of trying to describe its depth, nuance, and dynamic shifts in appearance.
Factual Errors and AI Hallucinations
This one is very important and very, very bad.
AI draws information from the internet. This means it has access to sources that aren’t factually correct. Some of them are even misleading on purpose, but a machine can’t question data in a way a human can.
Made-up statistics, questionable studies, citations that can’t be verified – these are just a few of the authenticity problems AI copy is known for.
Outdated information could also be featured as something still relevant when, in fact, the landscape has changed significantly since the time the respective piece of data came to light.
If anyone leaves such errors in a text, they can quickly lose credibility and even ruin their overall reputation. That’s why AI content needs to always be double-checked. Verifying sources and making sure numbers are accurate is non-negotiable if you want to maintain your authority.
No Originality
Do you want to feature content that always has a point of view and a unique take?
AI isn’t your strongest weapon. It’s a killer of originality, critical thinking, and distinctiveness.
An AI engine can’t come up with a unique concept. That’s potentially its biggest failure. It will use bits and pieces people have seen elsewhere to give you a “brand new” text. While this kind of filler will make you feel good about keeping up with a content calendar, it’s not going to engage, impress, or inspire your audience.
Poor Conclusions and Summaries
The conclusions AI makes are just as generic as the rest of the content it just generated.
You will get a vague summary and a bland call-to-action. There will be no synthesis of thoughts and ideas, no actionable steps for readers to follow if they’d like to solve a problem or learn more.
AI summaries and conclusions sound indecisive and meek. Readers wouldn’t be pushed or motivated to undertake additional steps, to act in a way that aligns with your marketing goals and priorities.
Lack of Personalization
You always want to be talking to your target audience in a way that makes people feel seen and understood.
When the structure, ideas, and concepts in a piece of text are generic, you’ll never introduce the kind of personalization your audience deserves.
The same applies to content personalization for a certain channel or medium.
Can AI point you in the right direction when it comes to topics and story ideas? Absolutely! But the execution will be lacking. That’s where you’ll have to step in and make sure the way readers are addressed is the way that you want to have associated with your brand.
Authentic Content: The First Steps (Forget about AI at This Point)
Right now, we’ve drawn two important conclusions:
- AI is here to stay
- AI can’t produce incredible content, but it can be used as a productivity tool
To overcome its limitations, you need to come up with a strong foundational process that gives you clarity and a good concept that will enable better prompts.
So, sit down… preferably away from your computer or phone.
Take a notebook. Write a few things. What do you want to say? How do you want your audience to perceive you?
Draft ideas as they come. Don’t try to edit yourself or limit the scope of possibilities. Brainstorming that involves pen and paper allows you to dig deeper than the computer screen does. While writing one idea, you will potentially come up with something else. That new direction will prompt you to explore concepts you wouldn’t have come up with originally. Many of these ideas will suck. A few will be brilliant. To uncover those, you’ll have to comb through the mental layers on your own.
Brainstorming can also involve reading books or turning to the content sources that inspire you. Not only will you discover unique points of view, you’ll also come across writing styles that break boundaries and provide examples of just how much originality can accomplish (even if the writing itself isn’t fully polished).
Now that you have this type of background, you can begin employing AI to strengthen the concepts you fancy.
Specific Prompts and Human Involvement
You’re now ready to bring AI into the writing process.
Getting good output from a machine is all about brutally specific prompts. Know what you want and communicate that in detail. This is the first step towards escaping from generic content.
The outcome you get will still lack personality and credibility. Still, getting AI to “understand” who you are and what you want to accomplish will result in a solid foundation that will minimize the amount of work you’ll have to do after AI is done.
Effective prompting is about:
- Provide background information and context: What’s your business, who’s your reader, what’s the persona you want to adopt while writing? What are the unique features of your product? What actions do you want the audience to undertake? If you’re targeting moms in their 30s who want to stay away from mass-manufactured products and lead a more sustainable, healthier life, let ChatGPT (or the other AI engine you’re using for copywriting) know about these facts.
- Always give examples: Sharing examples of the content types you like and want to emulate delivers another level of specificity to counter the generic nature of AI content.
- Get an outline first: Asking ChatGPT to give you an outline before moving on to the writing phase will give you even more control over the content and the style. At this stage, you can request edits and modifications that will let the machine learn a bit more about you and the specifics of the request you’re making. It may also be a good idea to get two or three outlines. Having such material to work with will speed up the learning process and ensure a better outcome.
- Provide information about SEO and marketing goals: Now that you’ve narrowed it down in terms of content and structure, provide some information on your marketing and SEO goals. What KPIs matter the most? How would you like the audience to engage with your content further? Are there particular keywords you want to target? All that information is important and should be provided to get an optimal result.
- Let AI ask you questions: Here’s a simple prompt that can improve the outcome even further: Is there any additional information you want from me to write an in-depth article about XYZ? Try it, and you’ll probably be surprised by the relevant additional questions that ChatGPT will ask before moving on to the writing stage.
While these steps will improve the quality of the output, you’ll still get a text that lacks soul and personality. That’s inevitable. Even if you become a prompting Yoda, you’ll still face the language and style issues that AI has. The aim of this step is to optimize the quality of the information and the relevance of the article. Once you get your text, you’ll have to move on to the next step for a fully polished and impactful outcome.
Share Your Perspective and Experience
You have a draft that you can work with, congratulations! It’s now time to put your writing hat on and give the text substance.
You should have personal and professional anecdotes, as well as examples stemming from experience, to sprinkle throughout the text. These are the elements that add depth and value to content. These are the things that AI can’t produce. As a result, the personal touch is the one thing that will immediately humanize texts and set them apart from a sea of generic, repetitive, copycat articles.
One more thing you have to focus on: emotion! Channel your passion for the project in the introduction and the conclusion of the article. Make the reader care by showing them how much this whole thing means to you. Get real and be specific. Honesty and passion sell. Good information is just the first step that you can build upon.
Edit the Heck Out of the Draft
Regardless of the fact you’ve done a ton of work already, the article isn’t done yet.
Sit down and start editing:
- Strengthen the introduction and the conclusion (or rewrite them altogether). These are usually the weakest pieces of content AI generates, and they almost always have to be revamped
- Look for inconsistencies, fluff, and empty phrases – get rid of those
- Change sentence length and structure, especially when it seems to get repetitive and monotonous
- Double-check and verify facts, numbers, case studies
- Restructure anything that isn’t logical or that doesn’t flow well
- Make sure the search engine elements are properly incorporated in the text
- Read it out loud to make sure the transitions are good and the structure is logical
Trust your gut. If you don’t like a sentence, or paragraph, or even an entire section, there’s a reason for those sentiments. Review, rewrite or get rid of the pieces that don’t add anything to your text.
Sometimes, Writing from Scratch Makes More Sense Than Going Through the Whole AI Process
Following the steps outlined here will produce significant improvements in the quality of the content you put out there.
Sometimes, however, you wouldn’t be happy with the outcome, no matter how hard you work on idea generation, prompting, and editing.
Writing from scratch can prove to be more effective and satisfying in various situations.
Are you dealing with a topic that you’re particularly passionate about? In those instances, writing the text on your own will be a much better approach.
It’s also a good idea to consider a partnership with an experienced copywriter. A human being will find it much easier to get you and your business than an AI agent. Copywriting services still deliver an excellent return on investment, especially if you’re trying to build and maintain the reputation of your brand in a highly competitive niche.
AI has its place in the world of content creation, but it shouldn’t dominate and kill creativity.
You can tell your own stories. You can get human assistance to improve outcomes. I’d love to be a part of your marketing journey. Let’s get in touch and discuss who you are, what you’re trying to accomplish, and what message you’d like to deliver.