Marketing and brand development have always been about human connections. Your brand should share the story of your organization in a way that connects people and invites them to be a part of it in some way. As AI makes it easier than ever to create content, businesses can sometimes lose sight of who the work is for — that is, people.
With AI tools, A blog post, social media post , web page, image or marketing campaign can go from an idea to a finished product in minutes. As more businesses use the same tools to create more content, content can start to look and sound the same, which can make people engaging with your brand feel less connected.
Content homogenization is perhaps the sneakiest issue facing brands. AI can be an incredibly helpful tool for content guidance, even helping to get a first draft down on paper. For businesses that already have their hands full, AI can feel like a miracle! However, if you’re using AI to do everything, there’s nothing that makes you stand out from the hundreds of other brands.
Research into AI-assisted marketing content has found evidence of this homogenization. When businesses had greater access to generative AI, their marketing content became more similar in vocabulary, structure, topics and writing style. When access was restricted, the content became more varied and consumer engagement increased as well. That creates an important distinction for businesses and organizations. The problem isn't simply using AI. The problem is using AI to produce content without adding anything of your own.
While AI can help content teams be more effective to keep up with demands for fresh content, simply asking ChatGPT to “write a blog about” a topic and publishing the response doesn’t give customers a reason to choose your brand over everyone else. In fact, you are robbing people of the opportunity to see what makes your brand unique and worthwhile. Your team’s relationship to your brand is what makes content stand out. Only you know the stories or have the local knowledge to make content that sounds like you. That relational factor is something an AI tool can't automatically know about your business.
And when it comes to online content, a unique perspective is doubly important for SEO. Creating larger quantities of content does not automatically mean you are creating more value on your website. Website content still needs to display E-E-A-T: Expertise, Experience, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. Human-created content is still the best way to do this.
Even though SEO tactics are changing, the end goal is still the same. Search engines are designed to provide useful results and businesses that fill their websites with generic, repetitive content risk weakening the overall quality and credibility of their online presence. Low-quality AI content can also create a poor experience for users who arrive on a page expecting useful information but find something generic instead.
Tools like ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity and other AI-powered search experiences are not just important for the way they can help create content, they are also the primary places where people get organic information. When people are researching a product or service, they are now more likely to use an AI tool for research than a traditional search engine. Showing up in these tools is essential for businesses if they want to reach any sort of audience. But chasing AI visibility by simply producing more AI-generated content can miss the bigger picture.
Large Language Models (LLMs) need useful information to reference. If dozens of businesses publish essentially the same answer, there’s little to distinguish one source from another. That's why being useful and being different also matter in AI search. Original insights, firsthand experience, proprietary information, specific examples and genuinely helpful answers give your content something more substantial to contribute than another generic AI-generated response. This works hand in hand with a website’s SEO health. When a website loses visibility in traditional search, that can also affect its exposure in AI-powered search experiences that rely on search results and web content as part of their information-gathering process.
These principles are true of visual content as well. Even if your designs and branding never make it onto the internet, true authenticity is still the best way to stand out. Sure, AI can generate an attractive image or suggest a layout, but there is a reason the term “AI slop” has become so mainstream. Effective design requires a level of understanding of your audience, brand messaging, and overall context to make a real connection with people. Only a human designer can recognize when something doesn’t fit the brand. In a world where anyone can generate an image in seconds, thoughtful design can become a differentiator.
It would be foolish not to recognize the ways in which AI can empower organizations. Especially for brands and destinations with a small team, AI allows them to accelerate their work to keep up with larger competitors. AI can help with many steps of content creation, making space for your team to do the customer-focused work you want to accomplish. Use AI to do the time consuming, labor intensive research. Let AI assist with your efficiency but make sure to add the things that make your brand worth listening to. Show off the stories and people that make your brand experience what it is.
And before you publish any AI-assisted content, ask yourself a couple questions:
If the answer is no to either of these questions, the solution isn’t more AI. The solution is going back to the drawing board to provide greater human input. As AI output becomes easier and more accessible, the value of content that feels genuinely human will become more necessary.
There’s a reason our slogan is “Remarkably Uncommon.” For decades, we have helped our clients produce writing and design that stands out and empowers their brand to be all that it can be. That remains our mindset, especially with AI.
At McDaniels Marketing, we believe in producing human-created content that doesn’t just battle AI slop but takes advantage of AI trends to make your brand more visible and attractive to the people you are trying to reach.
Let us help you keep a human in the loop.
Talk to us: 309-346-4230 or email info@mcdmarketing.com.
