Artificial Intelligence or Humans: Who Wins a Content Creation Battle?

Does the human touch still mean anything to writers?

Over the past several years, artificial intelligence has advanced exponentially in its capacity to understand and generate text and speech. The technology is still nowhere near perfect, but the improvements have been dramatic.

The dramatic improvements in AI have led many to speculate about how long it will be before AI produces content that humans can’t distinguish from written by humans? To answer this question, we conducted an experiment using both AI and human writers. Read on to find out how it all turned out.

AI vs. humans — who wins?

The debate between AI and humans in content creation is often framed as one where only one can win. Some proponents of AI tout how machines can generate thousands of relevant articles on any given topic within seconds, in fluent English and, potentially, at scale.

What’s more, because algorithms have no bias (or so we like to believe), it removes human error from content creation. And for brands that want to put forward their best face online but are short on time and resources, AI provides a cost-effective solution. But what about human oversight?

As marketers and public relations professionals we might be less concerned with perfect spelling or precise grammar than establishing trust with our target audience, one that has been increasingly wary of bots and spammy tactics.

“The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race…. It would take off on its own, and re-design itself at an ever increasing rate. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, couldn’t compete, and would be superseded.” — Stephen Hawking

How AI is helping digital marketers

With how rapidly technology is advancing, it’s only natural that marketing will start to see some major changes in just a few years. Many people are already familiar with AI as it’s been integrated into many apps and websites. But you may not realize just how useful AI is for your business.

There are tons of ways that AI is changing digital marketing, from tools like Facebook and Twitter bots to help with customer service issues, to advancements in search engine optimization. Read on for ways artificial intelligence will change digital marketing in 2022 and beyond.

Here is a trend in particular where AI will have an impact:

Improved Customer Service- One of the more exciting developments involving AI has to do with helping businesses interact more effectively with their customers. For example, instead of having teams spend countless hours crafting perfectly-worded email responses, companies can now use chatbots.

They are computer programs designed to simulate conversation, to handle things like handling routine inquiries and quickly alerting human agents if something seems off. Although chatbots aren’t typically advanced enough yet to handle truly unique queries (like serious complaints), they’re getting there fast.

And it won’t be long before they’re handling all kinds of basic queries automatically while simultaneously routing complex questions for human attention when necessary.

Will AI take over content creation?

There’s no doubt that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has taken over so many different areas of life, from making recommendations based on your shopping history to producing content for large companies. But there are still many people who question how AI will make an impact on their professional lives.

For example, while some argue that AI will eventually take over content creation and marketing entirely, others believe it’s just another tool to help professionals do their jobs better. So is AI here to stay or is it going away anytime soon?

And what are companies already doing today with AI-based technology? Let’s dig deeper into how artificial intelligence is being used today and where it might be headed in years to come.

How artificial intelligence will change the future of writing

Will AI be able to write better articles, books, and stories than humans? The answer isn’t clear. Computers can do simple searches and make recommendations based on our stated preferences. They can even scan social media posts for information that might be relevant to our interests.

But writing with nuance and detail that engages an audience, let alone doing it well, is still beyond their grasp. But it won’t always be. One day, I imagine we’ll have virtual assistants on hand to take dictation while we brainstorm ideas (once they learn how not to garble every name they encounter).

While those bots are developing their chops, maybe some human characteristics will forever remain beyond their reach and maybe humans will want them to stay that way.

Automated content suggestions and machine learning

For years, people have made fun of computers for being unable to understand basic human language. After all, if a computer can’t even tell that a dog biting man is not as interesting as a man biting a dog, how will it ever be able to engage with humans in conversation?

Well, we now live in an age where machines can do both of those things. And not just because they can memorize millions of facts about hundreds of different topics and use that information to answer questions asked by humans; machines are now creating their own original content based on what they learn from us. They are taking our data and turning it into compelling and attractive stories all on their own.

Are human copywriters threatened by AI?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of today’s most talked-about topics, and it’s easy to see why. Technology is reshaping nearly every industry, from transportation to robotics to business.

AI is also having an impact on content creation, making it more difficult for human copywriters to compete with their AI counterparts. But do we need these new technologies in our businesses? Can they enhance content creation or are they too expensive, impersonal, and imperfect?

Can AI make you more productive?

It depends. First, you have to decide how exactly you define productivity. If it’s something like generating $X of value at minimum cost per unit time, then AI can be very valuable in certain situations.

For example, email automation tools (like FollowUpThen) are great for streamlining an inherently repetitive task that still must be done, as long as using these tools doesn’t require more time than performing manually.

But if your definition of productivity involves high-level thinking and problem solving (rather than just putting words on paper), AI may never deliver on its promise to make you super-productive.

Bottom Line

Artificial intelligence has already had its influence on online content creation and will continue to do so in ways that will reshape and restructure how we view our technology, how it works, and what to expect from it. What’s still uncertain is exactly where AI falls in line with humans when it comes to creating great content.

Each has its strengths and weaknesses that complement each other. I can see many changes coming for online content marketing for years to come as these two entities battle it out for control of our digital world. Personally, I still like the human touch.

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