Original Content Value

Original, truly original (i.e., authentic) content is seeing its value on the rise. Why? Well, we all know why. Artificial intelligence (also known as A.I. or AI) is taking the world by storm, but it’s imperfect, and always will be. Still, flocks of marketers (as with other types of writers) are relying heavily on this relatively new technology.

Your Competition is using AI

Your competition is inevitably using AI. The reason, specifically, is productivity. AI is a productivity machine because, well, it is a machine (albeit a virtual one, to a degree [considering that it does take hardware to run it]). It doesn’t cost much (even being free for some) to run. And it never stops working. You can literally, no pun intended, publish dozens of decent, niche-related articles in minutes… so, why shouldn’t you use it?

For one, as artists, we’re not after the mediocre. We expect more out of ourselves, and others sometimes do, too. But the harsh reality is that you should be using it to compete from a technical marketing perspective (because quantity does occasionally win out over quality). The question, then (and more importantly), that a person or organization should be asking themselves is (if we want to remain authentic AND relatively keep up from a productivity standpoint)… How should we be using it?

Striking a healthy balance would be nice, but remember, we’re not sacrificing any authenticity. But even ethics aside, when conducting searches online and sifting (in an instant, thanks to AI [and its developers]) through the potentially hundreds of results associated with your query, do you prefer a mish-mash of content (with errors, as often seen), or an authentically-authored/published article? We take it that the latter is more appealing to you — More so, probably, if it’s in audio/podcast or video format. People still prefer real results from real people, so the demand is high (in an arena of decreasing supply).

But to address the question (once again, of how we should be using AI), we need to take the above and a few other truths into account. For example, the initial excitement of AI as a replacement for human creativity is dwindling fast; we’re talking from the readers’, listeners’, and viewers’ perspective, of course. But that doesn’t make AI any less effective at providing writers with the most powerful tool since the Internet itself. In this case, though, the usage we’re referring to may not be what you’re thinking. In other words, it’s not doing the writing for you (whether or not you’re proofreading & editing it thereafter [meaning, after a couple of simple prompts]). It’s actually brainstorming!

Brainstorming with AI

If original, authentic content is king… brainstorming is its queen. While your competition might be popping out with entire websites surrounding the same industry, it’s time to ask yourself if you’re going to join the flock — or be steadfast in your approach to writing. As an entrepreneur (naturally taking the bottom line into account), if the former is screaming at you to join its ranks (because, and we understand, productivity is important in any competitive market), we urge you to look at the most influential artists across time, including right now.

Pablo Picasso, for example, enjoyed a high degree of success by being unique, rather than by trying to replicate others’ work. Conversely, many tried to replicate his work (although rather mechanically)… but when you’re continually innovating based on your own passion & knowledge, it’s a difficult gig to follow. But that doesn’t mean another artist couldn’t learn from or be inspired by Pablo Picasso (founder of Cubism). Many have, and we anticipate that those who didn’t want to create as he would (but rather brought their own unique style to the equation) were also successful, in their own right.

But to clarify, as far as brainstorming content goes, we’re not just suggesting getting ideas from existing websites, blogs, etc. We’re letting you know that it’s okay (if you so choose) to use AI to bounce ideas off of. Because AI isn’t just great with search (more specifically known as AIO, or AI Overviews/Optimization), it’s phenomenal for coming up with new ideas (which are basically ideas you haven’t thought of yet or considered). The ideas aren’t exactly coming out of the aether… but because they’re ideas exclusively (as opposed to what is arguably plagiarism [yes, even in mished-mashed articles stemming from the work of several authors combined]), the process should fit within the moral compass of virtually any individual writer/author or publishing house.

So, yes, your brand can thrive with AI (i.e., get recognition & reward for your work). Yes, your content will maintain its integrity — and value. And, yes, it’ll indirectly help you write articles (or create content, more generally) faster, albeit not as fast as your competitors. But keep in mind that a single Picasso (at the height of Pablo Picasso’s career) was worth hundreds, if not thousands, of relatively generic works of art by artists who chose, dare we say, subpar creative conformity over their own intuition. Today is no different. Why should it be? Reality is still behind it all, after all. And AI doesn’t care. It’s just a tool, even if it’s a helpful one. Use it for what it’s worth, but don’t let it become your master. You won’t need to work as hard.

Oh, and a word on speech-to-text apps/software/AI for digital content creators (especially writers)… USE IT!