Be honest: When you read the title, did you think, “Great, another marketing agency complaining that AI is taking their jobs.”?
What would you say if we told you we used AI to brainstorm this post?
Whether you’re a writer or a leader in a business or organization, you’re bombarded with AI daily. Even as we type this, an AI generator is offering to tweak this content.
Many of us are resistant to this new trend of relying on technology to do what we’ve been doing well ourselves for decades. Although AI has been a hot topic for the last few years, many of us still associate it as a tool for students to procrastinate and avoid putting in the work.
According to ChatGPT, AI is an asset to writers — not a technological upstart knocking us out of our seats at the table. In every stage of the writing process, the AI generator claims: AI can boost writers’ ability to deliver a compelling story and, as the papers students hand in demonstrate, can complete a full paper on its own with the right prompt.
We’re not surprised writers are pushing back against the trend toward AI by releasing long articles to solidify their place in the marketing world. If AI can generate a draft in seconds, what point is there to continue bringing on a marketing team with committed writers?
Why do we, a marketing agency sharing stories of charities and change in local communities, insist on a human voice for our clients?
The difference is writing versus storytelling.
Anyone can write. We daily write texts, to-do lists and reminders. Writing involves putting words on a page, whether a literal page or a screen.
Storytelling takes the act of pen to paper to the next level.
When we prepare social media captions, draft a newsletter or upload a feature for our nonprofit clients, we’re not trying to convince our audience to buy or subscribe to our product. Every post and piece we write aims to awaken the desire so many of us have to build a better world one individual, family and community at a time.
Human connection is the baseline that makes our work more than work and a story more than words on a page.
The heart behind the writing turns organized paragraphs into storytelling.
A computer can generate a logical sequence of ideas, mimic tone or replicate a subject’s emotion, but AI can’t feel the warm hug of a person with renewed hope or see the tears of a grateful parent. Technology can’t recreate the sinking feeling parents feel when a doctor explains their child has a chronic illness or the untamed excitement little ones feel on Christmas Day.
But the writer who hears the story or even holds the hand of the storyteller can shape the story until the rhythm and order of the words carry the weight of suffering or joy.
AI builds upon existing stories, but storytellers help you and your organization tell new ones that captivate readers and touch hearts. When readers give in response, they’re not donating time or money because they’ve been manipulated by a clever phrase or colorful infographic. They give because your organization has inspired them to do good.
The big question: Should writers abandon AI?
The short answer? No!
Although AI lacks the human element, it can strengthen a writer’s natural gift and improve the writing process from start to finish. Instead of a “cheat,” when used properly, AI can be a helping hand!
If you’ve felt hesitant, adversarial or overwhelmed about incorporating AI in today’s digital age, here are some tips to maintain your voice while improving efficiency:
1. Focus on the human element of your writing.
Consider why the story you’re writing resonates with you first. Eventually, you’ll be writing for a specific audience, but as the writer, you hold the key to the story.
What part of the story touches your own heart? What do you want other people to know about this person or cause?
2. Develop your own unique style — before getting the robot in on it.
Before you use AI, see what you can create on your own. Brainstorm the route this story will take and the thread you’ll weave throughout to tie it all together. When you’re stuck, that’s when it’s time to bring in your new brainstorming partner!
Give the AI generator your ideas and let it help you develop additional ideas and explore new angles you might not have considered on your own.
3. Let AI help you sort, troubleshoot and break down content.
Maybe the person you interviewed took the conversation several different directions and you don’t know which route to take. Perhaps the pages of research notes have been haunting you from the corner of your desk but the material is too overwhelming to separate into logical sequence.
AI can take somewhat jumbled ideas and organize them into a coherent plan. Once you’ve used the tool to find a route you like, you can begin writing, keeping in mind the story elements that pulled on your own heartstrings in the first place.
4. Consider AI a tool, not training wheels.
Once you’ve written a draft, turn to AI to refine your words — only if you need the help. AI can catch spelling mistakes or grammatical errors or recommend areas to restructure for stronger organization. If you feel a part of your story is lacking, AI can help you brainstorm or co-write to improve it.
From the first word of the first draft to the last word you tweak in the finished product, AI can offer ideas for a tricky section and tighten your prose as you edit.
So if your team isn’t using AI, it’s time to reconsider.
We’re pulling up a seat at the table for AI because it won’t go away any time soon, but our writers aren’t losing their spot either. It’s just time for a bigger table!
