If there’s one thing people say about me—whether as a compliment or, well, not as a compliment—it’s that I’m often direct. So, here’s my direct answer: yes, a content writing company can use AI writing tools. Of course, the reason behind the answer isn’t simple. But my goal here isn’t to just take a stance on this entire debate; it’s to also show you how we use AI tools at our company so you can incorporate them into your own writing processes.
What Are AI Writing Tools?
Artificial intelligence—AI—is a computer that can learn, but only via what it’s been taught. Although what we’ve seen in the past year is very impressive, we’re a long ways away from computers with human intelligence. Using AI for writing can range from an editing solution, like ProWritingAid, to asking an AI to write a full novel for you (something I don’t do).
(Novel-writing programs, by the way, have been around for at least two decades. I remember seeing ads for them at the backs of literary magazines when I lived in Germany, when I was in my 20s.)
For the past few years, my company has been testing solutions that promised to write a full blog post for us. One tool couldn’t even come up with 600 words on tech writers. Plus, every time we asked it to start over, it kept insisting on writing about how much money tech writers earn. It gave us useful content like this gem:
If you’re looking for a career as a writer, there’s no better place to start than with a website that covers technology. Websites that cover technology tend to attract readers who are interested in learning more about the latest trends in technology.
What can we say? Mind blowing.
Not.
(Just needed to prove my age with that idiomatic usage.)
However, AI has improved. This is ChatGPT’s opening paragraph on “tech writers”:
In an era where technology is evolving at breakneck speeds, one group of professionals often remains in the shadows, despite their crucial role in the tech ecosystem: tech writers. These unsung heroes of the digital age are responsible for making complex technological concepts accessible and comprehensible to a broad audience. But who are they, what do they do, and why are they so vital?
Certainly an improvement. I still have some issues with it, like its generic opening sentence and clichéd used of “unsung heroes,” but it’s not bad. The rest of the suggested blog post stayed on topic, no mention of salary.
Asking AI to Write About My Company
With the latest craze around ChatGPT, I couldn’t resist. I’d heard it was amazing at writing About Us content, so I visited the site and asked it to write about Lori Straus Communications. The tool is still in its infancy, combining standard texts it has ingested from across the web. Let me show you.
Here are the first two paragraphs from its first attempt at About Us copy from May 2023:
Lori Straus Communications is a boutique public relations and communications firm based in [city/state]. Founded by [founder’s name], our team is dedicated to providing personalized and effective communication strategies for our clients.
We specialize in [services offered], and have worked with a diverse range of clients in [industries/sectors]. Our team brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to every project, and we pride ourselves on our ability to craft and execute customized communication plans that drive results.
My company sounded like almost every other small communications company out there. Anyone who’s in business knows that you need a USP, a unique selling proposition. Plus, the only part of public relations I offer is press releases for regular clients.
This time (August 2024), I asked ChatGPT the same question. These are the first two paragraphs:
Welcome to Lori Straus Communications
At Lori Straus Communications, we believe that effective communication is the cornerstone of business success. Founded by Lori Straus, a seasoned expert in corporate communications and public relations, our firm is dedicated to helping organizations amplify their messages, build strong relationships with their audiences, and navigate the dynamic media landscape with confidence.
Our Mission
Our mission is simple: to transform the way businesses communicate. We understand that every organization has a unique story to tell, and our goal is to craft and convey that story in a way that resonates deeply with your target audience. Whether you’re looking to enhance your brand presence, manage a crisis, or engage more effectively with stakeholders, our tailored communication strategies are designed to meet your specific needs and drive meaningful results.
Our mission is to actually broken down into three parts: one each for business owners, marketing professionals, and graduate students.
Furthermore, I’m not a seasoned expert in public relations. Yes, Lori Straus Communications helps with communications (hence the name), but we focus on content. We can write press releases as part of our work with our clients, but PR is not our speciality.
When clients decide to hire a company like mine, they want original content. Nothing in either sample is original. For someone who hates writing and needs something clean, fine, those samples would do. But they won’t help your company stand out.
AI for Writing Blogs
When you use AI for writing blog posts, you risk creating fluff, and readers often pick up on that immediately and leave. This increases your bounce rate and affects your SEO score with Google.
If using AI tools entices you because you believe they can help you create content without spending money on a writer, you will still need to write. That’s not a bad thing–I’m rather fond of writing myself–but think of AI more as an idea generator instead of a writer.
“But You’re a Writer. I’m Not: I’m Not Even Creative.”
Even writers hit road blocks, whether ideas dry up or something psychological is at play. I definitely run of ideas from time to time, even though I’ve written hundreds of thousands of words for clients and published 11 novels totalling about another 600,000 words. I can write a blog post of about 800 words—from concept to research using reliable sources to proofreading—in about two hours on a topic I know very little about, but once I create thought leadership content for my company, that process can take weeks.
It’s that simple and yet that hard.
Although I don’t know what’s holding you back from writing your own content, I can at least help you with a writing routine that includes appropriate uses of AI writing tools that support your voice and truly help you create strong content.
A Blog Writing Routine That Safely Uses Artificial Intelligence for Writing
I need a very structured system, so I separate my writing steps and will usually do them on different days, or at least at different times in one day. If you like the thought of using technology to help you, as I do, here’s one way to bring in AI. (I don’t list all the tech I use just to stay on point. I’ll do that in a later blog post.)
- Brainstorm and, if needed, do SEO research. Although SEO research is a topic for another day, it’s part of brainstorming for me because it brings up different ideas.
- Conduct any necessary research. I may need to alternate between Steps 1 and 2, depending on the length of the piece.
- Outline the piece and know your point. The level of detail depends on the length and topic of the article. Writing 1,200 words about a person requires much more planning than writing 600 words about the best five ice cream parlours in town. You may need to do a little more research at this point to fill any gaps.
- Write your draft without stopping to worry about details. This gets everything onto paper, where you can deal with problems like fuzzy ideas, factual errors, etc. I find it hard to deal with things in my head. I presume others do, too.
- If you haven’t taken a break yet, this is the spot to do it. Editing is easier with fresh eyes.
- Edit for structure and factual errors. The biggest mistake I see in amateur writers is that they write chronologically: “At 8 a.m., this happened. Then this happened at 10:30. Then we had lunch as everyone got laid off.” When you’ve buried the most interesting event—getting laid off—you risk losing your reader before they reach it. That’s called “burying the lede.” So, when you edit for structure, see if you’ve buried the lede. If you have, move it to the beginning, then ensure everything else still makes sense.
Now it’s time to pull out the AI writing tools and other software.
- Edit for grammar and syntax (that your sentences make sense). I use ProWritingAid for this. It’s a fantastic tool that helps you see everything from words you use too often to passive voice to grammatical errors. You don’t have to fix everything it flags, but it flags them for you so you can decide what you want to do.
- Edit for typos and consistency. This is where you look for form and from. ProWritingAid finds most of these, but I prefer PerfectIt’s interface for some of these errors. It lists all the errors, and you can either fix all at once or one by one. It also interfaces with The Chicago Manual of Style if you have a paid subscription. PerfectIt does not use AI, but the company, Intelligent Editing, has recently released DraftSmith, a fantastic AI-powered editing tool that helps you edit for plain language and other styles. It’s also great for those who don’t speak English as a native language.
My only word of caution: ensure you know why your AI writing tools are giving you advice. Just because an app says you should improve something doesn’t mean you should. If you accept all suggestions, your writing will still sound stilted. And, quite frankly, sometimes they flag something, I accept the fix, and then the fix gets flagged. Guess what the recommendation is? To change it back to what it was.
You still need to be in control of your writing.
Will AI Take Over Writing?
We have predictive text now with Google and Word. I turned mine off because it distracted me. But not everyone loves writing for a myriad of reasons, from simply not interested to having any number of disabilities. Dictation is certainly improving, so hopefully some will find use in that.
Although AI has improved by leaps in bounds since we first published this blog post in February 2023, and I do use it for many translation projects, I think it’s a long time before it takes over writing. People lament we’re all beginning to think alike because of social media, yet how many of us watched the same 28 channels growing up? Listened to the same handful of radio stations? Selected from the same dozen cereals? I thought it was all grrrreeaattt!!!
Every generation connects over common experiences. But our immediate environments, our genetic makeups, our interests, the languages we speak, and how we process all of it still make us unique. AI can’t replace that.
But there are already many AI tools for writing because, like many endeavours, writing has onerous aspects to it. I once realized that I love the verb “to know.” Even used it 25 times in one chapter. Would you really want to read a chapter that used the same verb 25 times? Thanks to AI, I cleaned that chapter up before sending it to my human editor, who improved my writing even more.
AI writing tools have their place in a content writing company. Never be afraid to ask how they’re being used on the content you’re having created. If you don’t have the budget to hire a content writing company, experiment with these tools, but don’t be fooled into thinking that they can write complete blog posts for you. I use AI writing tools to support my writing, not do it for me. You can use them for those same purposes, too.
