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ai-generated content

We talked about AI and your brand in the last issue of Focal Point (our free monthly newsletter that if you don’t get, you should!). In fact, I asked AI to write about the impact of AI on one’s brand then shared my thoughts. Now, I’d like to go a little bit further. 

AI-generated content is great. Kind of. It certainly can save you a ton of time and take over when the writer’s block rears its ugly head. However, take caution when using it. 

DIFFERENTIATE YOURSELF 

First of all, keep in mind that you’re not the only one using it. What Chat GPT might spit out for you, it’s most likely spitting out the same for someone else, unless your prompt is super unique.

Wes McDowell shares some thoughts in a recent YouTube video which makes sense. In essence, he’s saying be yourself! Tell stories that only you can tell. I agree. But I’d like to go a bit further.

Specifically, you also have to know exactly who you are! 

FIND YOUR VOICE

Sure, as individuals, we each have distinct voices, but organizations sometimes lack a unique tone-of-voice or it’s been diluted from years of neglect. Ensuring that our brand’s verbal identity comes through in any AI-generated content is critical.

To find your brand’s voice you need to understand what makes you unique tangibly and intangibly—both of which come out in the Focus & Messaging Framework we create for clients. What you do and how you do it in a way that is relevant and competitively differentiated from all the other options people have takes care of the tangible part. It’s your brand’s personality attributes that help with the intangible part.

To find your brand’s personality attributes, imagine that your organization were a person. What adjectives would you use to describe them? Imagining them as a person is essential, otherwise you’ll get descriptors like cloud-based, platform-agnostic, or B Corp-certified. Nothing wrong with those descriptors, but they do little to evoke an emotional response, which is the key to have your message embraced, believed, and remembered.

One more caveat: If your organization is founded or run by a charismatic leader, resist the temptations to use their personality attributes as the brand’s. Very few aspects of life are guaranteed not to change and leadership certainly isn’t one of them. Best to describe the entire organization and the impact it has on the world. Then, use those personality attributes to write in corresponding tones.

Take a look at this language from two organizations fighting for the same end goal—a healthier planet:

Nature Conservancy
Climate change is here now. We can limit further warming and the dangers it poses—if we act now. Every fraction of a degree matters. What we do between now and 2030 will determine whether we can slow warming enough to avoid climate change’s worst impacts.

Greenpeace
The fight to save the planet and everyone who calls it home is at a tipping point. The devastating impacts of climate change, an extractivist, racist, and inequitable socioeconomic system, the destruction of ecosystems by greed-fueled corporations and governments, and the deterioration of our oceans grow more dire by the minute.

See how unique—and authentic—each sounds? Both are great because both are a reflection of the brand’s personality.

TELL IT TO THE BOT!

Once you are happy with your personality attributes, now you can begin to explore AI-generated content. Tell your AI agent of choice to imbue them into your writing. For example, here is a passage of content I took from the US Postal Service.

USPS Marketing Mail items are not automatically forwarded or returned if they cannot be delivered (including cases where an intended recipient has moved). USPS Marketing Mail items may include catalogs, flyers, circulars, and advertising mail. Undeliverable USPS Marketing Mail items are handled according to the endorsements on the item (endorsements are placed on the mailpiece in advance by the sender). If the USPS Marketing Mail item does not have an endorsement, the mailpiece is disposed of by USPS.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. However, to make it sound more unique, I again asked Anthropic’s Claude for help: “Please re-write the following passage in a way that brings to life the personality attributes of conscientious, optimistic, and trustworthy.” Here’s what Claude came back with:

Good news! Your USPS Marketing Mail items—like catalogs, flyers, and promotional materials—follow clear delivery guidelines that help ensure efficient handling. When the original recipient has moved, these items are managed based on special markings called endorsements that senders can add beforehand. While unendorsed items are responsibly disposed of by USPS, senders who want specific handling instructions can include endorsements to ensure their mail reaches the right destination. This system helps USPS maintain reliable service while giving senders control over their mailing outcomes.

Big change, no? Now, you try it. Let me know how it went!

In conclusion, think of AI-generated content as a tool. It is not a solution.

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