I’ve been working in marketing for over 8 years now, and I’ve done everything: from social media to email & influencer marketing, even website copywriting and blog content. Now I’m mostly doing graphic design, but I'm still working inside a marketing agency, so I’m very much up-to-date on all the new trends and what’s happening in the industry.
If I’m being completely honest, it’s been a while since I’ve written anything, but there was a time when I used to research and write content for clients from a variety of industries. It was a process that involved time and energy, which I no longer had to invest in my own writing.
How Much Is Too Much AI?
So, what prompted me to start writing again after such a long hiatus? Well, surprisingly, a presentation deck I saw the other day, of a marketing agency presenting its work.
Why, you might ask? The answer is quite simple. I was shocked by how much of their content was generated with AI. Especially in terms of visuals. And it wasn’t even the good kind. There was no thought behind it. No matter the client and its audience, the images looked the same. Which made me think: Are we, as specialists, starting to rely a little bit too much on AI? Is this what the clients are looking for?
Don’t get me wrong, I think AI can be useful, both for design and copy. It can help you research and improve your work. Lord knows I use it a fair amount in my daily work. But seeing 90% of an agency’s content made for clients being AI-generated was shocking to say the least.
How do we show up as specialists? Sure, AI can cut your time in half, but where do we leave the thought process, the brainstorming, the ideas? Where do we leave authenticity & the human connection that the audience of the clients need and look for?
And I’m talking from experience, I, too, rely a bit too much on AI when I’m doing research, when I need to write a report, or when I need to interpret data, but I strive to understand it and still leave my personal touch on it.
How I Use AI
When it comes to copy (the little that I still write), I see myself reaching out to AI more often than not, but even in those specific situations, I still comb over and adapt the texts so that they fit the clients’ audiences. But my ideas are still mine. (Mostly.)
The design, however, is a different story. While it helps me with design thinking and better clarifying the processes, or understanding user problems & webflow, I cannot rely on it to generate design. Not for ads, not for social media posts. (Except for voiceovers for videos, when needed.) It feels unnatural & unauthentic, and I think, what little we still have of authenticity, it should be used and preserved as much as possible. And for that to happen, it needs human touch, it needs a voice, and it needs mistakes.
What Is The Client Looking For?
Is this what our clients want? Yes and no. I know they love to use it and then offer input based on that, like they’re experts on the subject. But hey, it’s their business; they can offer as much input as they want. They also love that it saves time and money, and what business doesn’t want that?
But I also know that they don’t want it to alienate their audience. Customers need to feel connected to the human behind the business; they need to see authenticity and realness. And if we start sharing with them images generated with AI instead of offering them an experience with the brand and the product, then you basically lost them before you ever got them. Unless the business is AI-centered, then probably that’s the way to go.
AI as a Supporting Tool
So am I against AI? No, definitely not. AI can be a powerful helper, I can’t deny that. When used as a support to your skills and not as a tool that replaces them.
It’s fun and it’s useful, but it should be a supporting tool. Not something that replaces our thinking process, our content, and sometimes our communication altogether.
In the rush of speeding things up, being more efficient, and delivering campaigns, content & results fast while cutting costs, it feels like we're no longer thinking for ourselves and we let the AI do the thinking (and designing) for us.
Final Thoughts
So, are we relying a bit too much on AI to do our jobs? Yes. Definitely. Should we stop using AI? No. But we should use it wisely and still let our own work and the personality of our clients’ brand shine through.
I’m not gonna lie and tell you that there weren’t moments while writing this when I thought that maybe I should ask ChatGPT to give me some ideas for it or write these final thoughts, but I resisted the urge. Not because I didn’t think AI could help. I’m sure it could.
It’s because, first of all, I wanted to see if I still had it in me to write after not writing at all for years, and second, because I wanted the thoughts in this article to be AI-free. Who knows what the next article will be about, and if I’ll write it with the help of AI. I’ll let you know.
