Was it Written by AI? How You Can Inform, In keeping with HubSpotters

In class, I discovered the fundamentals of excellent writing — hold it quick, concise, and grammatically appropriate. 

By that definition, AI-written content material needs to be good, proper? But, once I mess around with instruments like ChatGPT, I discover a couple of pink flags. 

Positive, it is grammatically appropriate, however it provides off critical “company converse” vibes. It follows a logical sequence, however it usually goes on prolonged tangents. And whereas its responses could also be correct, it usually lacks a singular perspective.

This is not to counsel AI-written content material is inherently dangerous. However should you plan to leverage AI for content material creation, it is essential to know the place it falls quick, and find out how to repair it.

4 Indicators It Was Written by AI

1. It is not skimmable.

As a author, it is good to think about that folks dangle on to each phrase I write. The fact, nevertheless, is way totally different.

Gone are the times of leisurely studying the newspaper on the breakfast desk. Within the digital age, individuals need data, they usually need it shortly. 

However should you’ve ever tinkered with an AI-writing device, you could discover it hasn’t mastered the artwork of brevity. For instance, once I ask ChatGPT to jot down an intro for an article on find out how to write higher headlines, it generates the next:

This intro is not essentially dangerous, however it’s a tad wordy and much too lengthy. Now evaluate it to a weblog publish from Neil Patel on the identical subject:

See the distinction?

Patel begins with an interesting query, instantly piquing our curiosity. He additionally writes in brief, one or two-sentence paragraphs. Each these methods make content material simpler to skim and take up.

2. It is lacking experience.

Which article would you reasonably learn: “Tips on how to Go Viral on TikTok” or “How To Go Viral on TikTok, From 3 Creators Who’ve Completed It”?

I am keen to guess the latter. That is the facility of experience — it immediately elevates any piece of content material with real-world expertise.

The issue? AI does not have any expertise. 

As Kaitlin Milliken, HubSpot Weblog’s Program Supervisor & Content material Editor, places it, “AI chatbots repackage data that we have heard 1,000,000 occasions earlier than. In case you’re on the lookout for a recent perspective, you may need to attain out to a human professional.”

She provides, “Consultants have entry to the newest developments and more moderen information than AI. Plus, they’ll pull from their real-world expertise. If there is a distinctive option to clear up an issue or strategy a scenario, nothing compares to listening to from individuals who have lived by means of it.”

Apart from being an professional (or consulting one), you may weave experience into your content material in different methods.

For example, right here at HubSpot, lots of our articles embrace real-world examples, authentic information, and “professional suggestions.” These parts not solely improve the credibility of our content material but additionally pack extra worth for the reader.

3. It is outdated.

Once I requested ChatGPT to jot down an article about BeReal, a well-liked photo-sharing app that launched in late 2021, right here was its response:

This is not only a ChatGPT downside; all AI chatbots have data cut-offs. In case you use AI to jot down about matters exterior its scope, you danger producing outdated or irrelevant content material. 

Plus, when you think about that solely 45% of pros consider they’d be capable to inform if ChatGPT gave them fallacious data, it creates loads of room for error.

For Clint Fontanella, HubSpot Weblog Supervisor, one workaround is to make use of AI to summarize analysis, not search it out. 

He instructed me, “If you need AI to jot down about information that’s exterior its database, my suggestion is to repeat content material from an present on-line supply and ask it to summarize and rewrite within the type of your selecting.”

As for Milliken, she provides a fact-checking step into her modifying course of. In her personal phrases: “Earlier than you publish something written with AI, fact-checking is crucial. If AI references a sure enterprise or individual, you should definitely double-check and see in the event that they nonetheless exist. ChatGPT can get these particulars fallacious.”

4. It sounds generic or bland.

“The primary time I ask AI to jot down something for me, it normally provides me essentially the most company, templated response you may consider. One thing that is tremendous impartial and feels like a robotic wrote it,” Fontanella instructed me.

That is relatable for a lot of AI customers, myself included. For instance, once I ask ChatGPT to “sound extra partaking,” it usually writes in its signature corporate-y type, however with double the exclamation factors.

For Fontanella, the secret’s tinkering with totally different styling prompts till you land on an output you want (e.g., “Sound extra lighthearted” or “Write within the tone of a HubSpot author”). Nonetheless, as he additionally factors out, this is not at all times an ideal answer. You continue to have to do some editorial heavy lifting earlier than taking your content material throughout the end line.

This might imply including humor, injecting private anecdotes, referencing popular culture, forming a singular opinion, or adopting a sure perspective. On this manner, you are utilizing AI as a basis to construct upon.

In Fontanella’s personal phrases: “Normally, AI cannot write a bit that is on par with our normal of content material. Nonetheless, it will probably positively write a couple of good sentences right here and there that may be the muse of your argument or paragraph. I extremely advocate cherry-picking sentences from paragraphs that you simply like after which rewriting the paragraph round that sentence.”

Again to You

AI provides a wholly new option to create content material, however it is not with out its limitations. This doesn’t suggest you must keep clear of those instruments. Nonetheless, it is best to leverage them as writing assistants, not as precise writers.

As a writing assistant, AI can suggest new concepts and angles, accumulate and summarize data, rephrase content material, and generate fundamental outlines, which you’ll be able to then elevate together with your creativity, experience, and perspective.