I’ll never forget the day that I was helping my 12-year-old son with his homework and he exclaimed in frustration, “No one cares about good grammar but you, mom!”
As a professional writer who had been getting paid to write (at least on a freelance basis) since my freshman year at college, I was devastated. Did what I do for a living no longer matter?
Fast-forward 18 years and it appears that my career and job skills are under attack again—this time by AI.
AI vs Human Writing: The AI Advantage
So what does AI have that we human writers don’t have? Apparently, a lot if you follow trending news stories and popular social posts.
It’s hard for even a day to go by without hearing about something marvelous and new that AI can now do. Such oversaturation of the news space can be a real morale downer if you’ve dedicated your career to writing. It’s enough to make you want to throw up your hands and surrender to the AI gods.
But before you completely rethink your career choice (and there are certainly a lot of people, even beyond the communications space, who are in that exact situation due to fears of AI taking their jobs), let’s consider what we mere mortals still have to offer that provides value to what we do.
While Generative AI can produce rapid, grammatically correct text on nearly every topic imaginable, it lacks the human capacity for originality, emotions, critical thought, and authenticity, among other valuable traits. (And don’t even get me started on its questionable fact-checking skills!)
Why Human Writing is Important
In an era flooded with cookie-cutter AI-generated content, high-quality human writing serves as a critical differentiator, providing the depth and personal perspective that AI cannot (yet) truly feel or invent. Given how many people now turn to AI and its remarkably smart and fast, yet generic, writing skills, it feels somehow refreshing, credible and authentic to read something written by a real person.
One of the differences between AI and human writing is how they contribute to brand building. Human writing boosts a brand by injecting authentic emotion, a unique brand voice, and passionate storytelling that fosters trust and deepens customer loyalty. Unlike AI, human-crafted content offers lived experiences told in a brand-supporting voice that addresses the questions of who you are as a brand and what you stand for–messages that resonate with audiences and help ensure repeat business. It also brings greater clarity and inclusivity to your messaging, helping more people see themselves in your story while identifying blind spots that could undermine connection or trust.
What Do Humans Still Do Best?
AI is a great tool, but there are still some areas where you need the human touch. What are some of the more notable advantages we humans offer?
- Capturing the essence of a brand by creating consistent personas that AI can’t
- Telling a story that taps into consumer emotions and values as a means for creating a lasting and compelling brand experience
- Building a genuine connection rather than simply distributing information
- Exercising creative, out-of-the-box thinking which can lead to fresh perspectives
- Addressing and relating to real-world frustrations and motivations
- Avoiding tone-deaf messaging that fails to consider social context, subtle humor and complicated, polarizing cultural themes
- Providing personalized, authoritative content that establishes brands as trusted thought leaders
- Adapting tone, voice and strategy in real-time response to feedback or changing market conditions
- Verifying AI-generated facts
Despite these advantages, it’s clear that AI still has earned its place in content development. But how do we keep AI in its place while still leveraging human creativity?
A Future of Collaboration
The answer is likely a joint effort in which AI is integrated with human writing skills, but individual responsibilities are delineated and honored. Things that AI can do best in a collaborative relationship:
- Provide a rough first draft or initial outline to help writers gather their thoughts
- Supplement missing information (especially highly technical information beyond the author’s knowledge base)
- Assist with research to identify credible sources for information
- Summarize large volumes of information
- Identify what others (possibly competitors) are communicating on a particular topic
- Provide alternatives to word usage or copy approaches
- Adapt messaging to different audiences
- Edit/proof content, especially for grammar and flow
Technology and Humans Moving Forward Together
Don’t fight it. AI is amazingly knowledgeable and efficient. It can enhance productivity and creativity. It is the future. But it should not exist in a vacuum where you simply push a button and it spits out homogenized content. And it certainly should not exist without some legal guardrails. Be sure to update policy handbooks with the help of legal counsel so everyone at the company knows the limits as to when, for what purpose, and how much AI should be used.
The bottom line is that AI can improve your ability to communicate, but don’t let it silence you as a writer, a thinker or a brand builder. Make sure we humans have the final say when it comes to voice, accuracy, authenticity, empathy and emotion.
Side note: My son has since changed his tune dramatically after having worked in the professional world as an engineer for nearly a decade. It seems that even the stats-oriented engineers need to write presentations, project summaries, and grant requests, and they need to do so well if they want buy-in on their proposals, financial bonuses for a job well done, or money for a desired project.
Should I tell him, “I told you so?”
I think I’ll just wait until he has children of his own.
If you’d like to learn more about how you can create more harmony between AI and human writing, contact us. We’d love to talk more about the topic.
