AI writes more and more of what you read every day. Whether for advertising, social posts, web searches, or even entire articles or publications, AI was likely involved in the production process. Despite its rapid improvements and growing adoption, there are still places where submitted content must be entirely human-authored. Even in those cases, there are many opportunities to use AI technology to assist in the creation process.
Many places where articles are published don’t allow AI in the authoring for credibility reasons. Regardless of the requirement, I’m a writer who always prefers to write everything myself without machine involvement. Even where AI is permitted, personally, I would not want to run an article through AI for ‘clean-up’ as I feel it would result in some loss of my personal style for my writing. That said, AI can always assist ‘around the edges’ to help make any writing more effective overall.
There are numerous ways in which the information AI produces can help improve the overall output, readability, and quality of content. Below are six examples in which you can use AI to help you create more effective, readable, and engaging content, but without having the AI write or modify the actual words you’ve authored:
- Article Ideas and Research: AI is designed to predict the most likely answer to a question. You can leverage that capability to determine what the broader world thinks are the most significant ideas and information to pursue. That said, keep in mind that AI essentially produces information from information, so it’s important to be aware of its limitations. In the case of research, be sure to inquire about sources and cross-check the accuracy of the information and the credibility of the sources.
- Formatting: Poorly formatted and structured content is much less likely to be consumed in its entirety or even consumed at all. Numerous AI tools exist that can take existing text and apply excellent formatting. The right additions of things like bullets, indentation, different-size fonts, underlining, etc., can make a big difference in the readability of an article or post.
- Hashtags: If you post on a social or business site, you’ll likely want to use hashtags. Figuring out which hashtags are most relevant and will offer the best amplification is a job AI can easily tackle. For example, you can ask a tool like ChatGPT for hashtags relevant to a specific LinkedIn post. It’s worth noting that hashtags do need to be used sparingly. Some platforms will throttle back amplification if hashtags are overused. So limit the use, but consider AI to help create the maximum amplification with your hashtags.
- Images: Creating compelling images for content is a specialized skill – and can be a time-consuming part of the creative process. However, It’s worth the time, as images nearly always increase engagement with content. To quickly create an image that will increase interest in your work, you can iterate with an AI by just describing the image you want. Choose your images carefully, as they are a key aspect of any work in terms of reader engagement and interest. Before publishing, however, make sure your image comes with the necessary licensing for how and where you plan to use it.
- Feedback: AI-powered tools can provide valuable feedback and suggestions, much like an editor might, without rewriting your text. You can give an article to AI, ask for feedback, and see a summary of the strengths and gaps or areas for improvement. Another approach is to simply ask AI to summarize your own draft article and then examine that summary to make sure your topic and key points are clear. Embracing AI for feedback can help you adjust your style, choice of words, or tone, leading to continuous improvement in your writing. This guidance can be a valuable asset in your writing journey.
- Generating Titles: Writing an entire article is easy for many, yet developing a good title is often a huge challenge. An article or post title is exceptionally important, arguably one of the most important pieces of any content. This is because not only does it create a first impression with potential readers, but the title frequently is the sole determining factor as to whether or not a person decides to engage with your content at all. Once you’ve written your article, ask your favorite AI to generate several good titles for it to achieve the goal you’re looking for. This type of effort plays into the strength of AI’s prediction engine. As mentioned earlier, consider not using the AI-suggested titles verbatim but instead working with the closest suggestion to make it match your own voice and objectives.
Although it does fall into the “AI wrote it” category, it’s worth discussing AI and translation because this is an area where AI is truly a game-changer for content distribution. Entire articles, even novels, can be quickly translated into numerous languages without the author having to speak those languages or hire expensive translation services. While not perfect (even human translation is not always perfect), the low cost of providing these AI-based translations lets you offer localized versions to a much wider audience.
With these types of AI-assisted improvements, you can significantly improve the quality, readability, reach, and effectiveness of your writing without having AI do the actual writing or rewriting. Utilizing AI as a supportive tool allows you to enhance your content creation process while maintaining the authenticity and originality of your work. By embracing AI around the edges, as I have, you can leverage its capabilities to streamline various aspects of content creation, making your writing more compelling and engaging without compromising the unique voice and perspective that only a human author can provide.
Special thanks to Kendall Miller who provided inspiration for this article.
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