How Can AI Help in Content Creation?

In today's fast-paced landscape of content management, the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) has become a pivotal force driving innovation. Through conversations with seasoned content managers and directors, we delve into the transformative influence of AI on content creation and curation. From acting as a collaborative research assistant to catalyzing the emergence of bold and engaging content, join us as we unveil sixteen ways in which AI is reshaping the future of the industry.

Becoming a Research Assistant

I view AI as the ultimate research assistant. When you think of it as a trusty pal instead of a scary foe out to steal your job, then you are in a better position to get helpful answers. I've turned to AI for content ideas, template creation, persona research, SEO formatting, interview question prompts—anything that helps me get pen to paper faster.

Cari Murray, Director of Marketing, Marvin

Speeding Up Content Creation

AI has sped up the content-creation process. From brainstorming to narrowing research, AI has been a great help in quickly developing content outlines and pillars. Although we cannot rely on it fully, it offers a sense of direction, especially when feeling inspired or suffering from writer's block. AI has been helpful in repurposing content and in writing meta descriptions, etc.

AI will continue to influence the future of content, but not so much that it will replace great expert writers or content strategists. AI will always be a few steps behind in identifying what strikes a chord with human readers. However, it will continue to be a big help. As AI progresses, information will become more accurate and speed up the research process for content creation.

Nicole Lee, Content Manager, Remote Company

Vanquishing the Blank Page

Writers, artists, creatives across centuries—our content team—know the blank page so well. We've dueled with it; we've danced with it. How you deal with the blank page can define a lot of things, from your workflow to your identity as a writer.

But now the blank page is dead, if you want it to be.

AI can't generate content you'll be happy and proud to publish, let alone solve your need to produce quality content at scale. But ChatGPT-4 can fill up all that empty space, fast. It can prepare the "crappy first draft," so you can focus on the "good second drafts and terrific third drafts." It can't analyze raw data, but you can ask it to do tasks like explain statistical findings and data summaries in simple terms, or summarize data insights provided to it.

It's important to clarify that this is not a standard procedure or routine by any means—not because of policy but because of the value we put into the end-to-end writing process. Facing the blank page on your own is still as useful and relevant as ever, because it helps the writer organize their work. But knowing that there is an AI option has influenced how we approach content creation.

Remember how ChatGPT was first rolled out and changed the game overnight? I couldn't and wouldn't claim to know how to anticipate the future for tech like this.

What I can say for now is based not just on AI but on other tech that changed the creative process (Photoshop, digital film, 3D printing, to name a few). It's highly likely that three concepts will be more important than ever: proof, imagination, and authenticity.

Imagination allows us to conjure worlds that do not exist in all the data that the smartest learning machines can read (yet). Authenticity pulls from our own unique lived experiences, again something AI doesn't have (yet). Content pieces that have been proven to have come from a place of authenticity and vision-making will stand out—and most importantly, will be necessary.

From an SEO content standpoint, that could mean search engines will surface pages with these characteristics. We can say Google, the content curator, started doing so when it placed a stronger emphasis on E-E-A-T in its Search Quality Rater Guidelines.

Hilda Nartea, Content Team Lead, SEO Sherpa

Enabling Affordable Media Creation

AI is allowing our global start-up to go the extra mile for our visitors in ways that we previously could not afford.

For example, we're now creating our own media gallery with unique photographs customized for all the locations we operate in.

If we had to do this the traditional way, we would have to pay for professional photo sessions from the US to Indonesia, and all throughout Europe. This is way out of a start-up's budget.

With the help of ChatGPT, DALL-E 3, Midjourney, and Canva, our visitors will now see unique photos that relate to them, complement perfectly the written content, and aesthetically align with our brand. All for less than 100 USD per month.

It's a nice extra touch that adds more authority to our content, boosts confidence in our services locally, and we expect to see an increase in conversions, too.

Katya Dimova, Content Manager, Financer.com

Tools Requiring Clear Briefing

I love the Adobe AI tools; they're probably the ones I'd use the most. AI has definitely made me more efficient, but that's because I know how to brief it effectively. Some professionals struggle to brief other humans, let alone AI, which requires clear instructions.

Let's be clear—AI won't "steal" our content jobs anytime soon. Instead, it can complement our work if you know how to use it. If you don't know how to brief it and just copy and paste what it writes, you're doing your content a disservice. AI-generated content often bears a distinct style with emojis, formatting, and words that give it away. Readers can usually tell it's not the work of a human, and this can affect engagement.

After all, the primary goal of any written content is to keep people reading or prompt them to take action. If the audience doesn't stop their scroll in the first place because it looks like regurgitated AI-generated copy, you've got a problem. Looking ahead, my prediction is that algorithms will become more discerning. They'll learn to identify AI-generated content and may even demote it in feeds. This would mean that human-created content, with its ability to connect with readers, will win.

Natalie Koutsikas, Director, Digitale

Needing Precise Human Prompts

AI has emerged as an evolution for this era and has largely influenced every industry. There are two sides to any aspect, and the same goes for AI when it comes to content creation.

Fluent, flawless, and accurate content can be created using AI with ease, but it lacks the personalized touch if not created with a proper prompt. Content curators have to focus on learning several ways to create a precise prompt to create a perfect piece of content.

Ankur Saxena, Content and Freelance Operations Manager

Enhancing Efficiency and Creativity

I view AI-based content-creation tools as means for greater efficiency and creativity in the content-creation process. In fact, AI has made content creation accessible and feasible for everyone, from content creators to marketing professionals. You don't have to be a writer, graphic designer, or video-editing expert to create content anymore. Now, it's more about understanding and articulating your content vision as clearly as possible through succinct and effective prompts. The better you can define your vision in words/prompts, the better output you'll get from the AI tools.

AI use in content will keep growing in the future; however, not without human checks. AI will make content creation faster and simpler, but it will still need to be driven by human discretion and intelligence. AI tools will become better and better at processing tons of information that becomes available online each day, leveraging it all along with its own advanced processing intelligence, to generate outcomes close to perfect. But, it's humans who will still be responsible for bridging that gap from almost perfect to perfect.

Astha Verma, Co-Founder and CEO, WrittenlyHub

Introducing Content Creation Efficiencies

AI has created many efficiencies in my content creation process. For example, it has introduced shortcuts for sorting through details in transcripts. Tools like Wordtune and Grammarly help take my original text and suggest different ways of saying something to clarify intent. Tools like Clearscope and Frase incorporate AI/machine learning to shorten the content creation research process and ultimately help produce something more beneficial for the human end-reader.

I've created my own GPT based on internal documentation and our style guide that acts as a useful quick recall for company standards. Importantly, AI helps with tasks that push the process forward but doesn't handle the entire task as a whole. I believe that AI will improve the discoverability of great content—I just hope that it doesn't come at the expense of cutting out the original creator or encouraging plagiarism by the bot trained on the content it's curating.

Maddy Osman, Founder and Bestselling Author, The Blogsmith

Generating Variations

As an experienced content marketer and the owner of my own agency, we've observed AI's impact on content creation primarily through its ability to generate data-driven insights and assist in tasks like keyword research and trend analysis. However, we've remained committed to crafting personalized, human-written content because we believe it resonates more deeply with our audience. A connection can be made through words, and the best chance to do that is through human-written content.

While we don't rely on AI for straight-up content creation, we've found that utilizing tools like ChatGPT to generate variations of article headlines can be effective in sparking creativity and exploring new angles for our content strategies, ultimately enhancing our approach to content curation while still maintaining the human touch that drives engagement and connection with our audience.

James Parsons, Founder, Content Powered

Acting as a Brainstorming Partner

For me, AI has been a good brainstorming partner. One of the advantages of a tool like ChatGPT is the ability to have headings generated for you by simply typing in the title of a blog you plan to write. One of the best uses of AI in the future will be having it sort out massive amounts of content into various categories and by how useful it is based on a specific prompt.

Adam Statti, Content Manager, RevPartners

Personalizing Content Production

AI has revolutionized content creation by enabling more efficient, targeted, and dynamic content production. One significant way it has influenced our work is through enhanced data analysis and personalization. AI algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data to understand audience preferences and behaviors, allowing us to tailor content more precisely to our audience's interests. This leads to higher engagement and a more personalized user experience.

Looking ahead, I anticipate AI will play a pivotal role in content curation by automating and refining the process of selecting and presenting personalized content to individual users. AI's ability to learn and adapt will ensure that the content we curate is not only relevant but also timely and contextually appropriate. This will lead to a more intuitive and responsive content ecosystem, where the relevance of content to each user is continuously optimized.

Furthermore, I see AI contributing to the creative aspect of content creation. With tools like GPT and others, AI can assist in generating ideas, producing drafts, and even suggesting content improvements based on predictive analytics. This will not replace the human touch but rather augment our creative capabilities, allowing content teams to focus on strategy and storytelling while AI handles the heavy lifting of data analysis and basic content generation.

As AI technology evolves, it will undoubtedly shape the future of content creation and curation, making it more personalized, intuitive, and impactful.

Lata Tewari, Chief Content Officer, Webuters Technologies Pvt Ltd

Customizing User-Focused Narratives

AI has transformed content creation, especially in curating tailored, user-focused narratives. In the future, I see AI further personalizing content curation, using sophisticated algorithms to understand and predict audience preferences. This will lead to more engaging, relevant content, meeting the diverse needs of consumers.

As AI evolves, it will play a critical role in shaping content strategies, blending technological insights with creative storytelling to enhance user engagement.

Marco Genaro Palma, Content Marketing Manager, PRLab

Driving Content Personalization

As Chief Marketing Officer with over two decades of experience in marketing and business development, particularly at FireRock Marketing, I've seen artificial intelligence (AI) pave new ways for content creation and curation. A significant development is the advent of AI-driven content personalization tools.

These tools allow us to produce content that addresses the unique needs of each segment of our audience, effectively engaging them by speaking directly to their specific interests and pain points. For instance, we've used AI algorithms to dissect customer data, leading to highly targeted content strategies that significantly increased conversion rates for our clients.

Anticipating the future, I'm convinced that AI will revolutionize content curation by enhancing predictive content analysis. This will not only entail recognizing topics that will become trending but also determining when the content should be published for maximum impact. Moreover, AI will enable real-time content adaptation, dynamically tweaking content parameters to suit immediate user behavior and feedback.

This proactive approach will not only streamline content relevance but also forge deeper connections with audiences as their preferences evolve. With AI's role in content becoming more sophisticated, the key will be to marry this technology with the creativity and intuition that only human experience can bring, ensuring that content retains its authenticity and resonance.

Ryan Esco, Chief Marketing Officer, FireRock Marketing

Amplifying Human Creativity

I firmly believe that AI serves as an amplifier for human creativity rather than a replacement. In our content creation process, we maintain a hands-on approach to writing, while AI fuels our storytelling engine.

While recognizing the limitations of AI in fully automating creativity, I've observed that AI-generated content can be somewhat superficial, lacking the intricate quality that human-authored content possesses. Writing compelling content involves the art of blending facts with emotion, personal experiences with expert analysis—a balance that AI, on its own, may struggle to achieve. Instead, we leverage AI-powered research tools to explore new topics and identify emerging trends. These tools serve as invaluable assistants, allowing us to stay ahead in the ever-evolving content landscape.

While some express concerns about AI overshadowing human creativity, I view it as a complementary force. AI excels at data mining, language refinement, and suggesting unexplored angles, enabling us to focus more on refining the emotional impact of our writing. The collaboration between human ingenuity and AI's capabilities results in a more powerful and efficient content creation process.

Scott Gabdullin, CEO and Founder, Authority Factors

Transforming Content Creation

AI has increased speed and efficiency within our content creation process. A few examples are transcribing audio and video content, grammar adjustments within the copy, initial copywriting, initial thumbnail generation, image enhancement, title & thumb suggestions, and testing specific pieces of content. AI removes many mundane tasks while also providing more insight to the team, almost like a thinking partner that helps spark creativity and new ideas. Inevitably, this has allowed us to speed up our processes and create a higher content volume across all platforms.

AI is growing and will continue to grow extremely fast. As AI grows, I think the content creation process will become quicker and quicker. More people will be creating content at scale then ever before. When that happens, the value of your content will be more important than ever before if you want to have an impact and grow your brand. Also, I think as AI expands, the post-production process will be a lot more streamlined - I could see a world where AI could clip specific moments based on facial expressions and just read the behaviors within the actual clip. And pulling still images based on the emotions, behaviors, and reactions within a video. Also, as AI technology starts to think more and more like humans, the creative aspect of production will get better and faster - AI will provide incredible ideas that make sense for you and your team.

James Contrini, Content Manager, Acquisition.com

Spurring More Outspoken Content

The increase of AI-based tools for content creation—things which I do not use in my process—has caused me to lean further into creating content that has a more outspoken nature to it and has a more well-defined and unique tone of voice. The reason for this is that AI/ML tools have a tendency now to create copy that is flat and bland. Although it supercharges your ability to output large swathes of verbose content that will rank well, good writing is meant for humans, not solely for the ways in which search companies order content on results pages.

Depending upon what the maintainers of models do going forward, this boring gap could get even wider, as AI models ingest more and more AI-generated content that has been posted to rank well online. If you want your content to have personality, to spark something in the reader, and to offer something different from your competitors, ensure it is written by a human; I believe that this rule will hold for the foreseeable future.

Joshua Long, Head of Comms, Mojeek Limited