The emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has brought about significant transformations in various aspects of our lives, including content and design creation.

Utilizing AI Tools for Design Creation

Within design and creative teams, AI tools are becoming pivotal for project efficiency. These tools can act as springboards for creative ideation, practically eliminating the need for initial idea generation.

AI tools such as Adobe Firefly are capable of producing tailored images or videos in a matter of seconds. This allows Creative Strategists and Designers to focus on campaign strategy and optimization, rather than spending hours on repetitive and time-consuming tasks. Below are some tools that have made some noise in the industry.

Text to Image - If a Creative Director is putting together a creative proposal and needs assistance to visualize the idea for a client, Firefly can produce any image based on a prompt in a fraction of the time it would take a designer. This eliminates the need to manually produce numerous drafts of content before an idea is finalized.

Extend Image - Previously, when optimizing an image to fit the placement dimensions, teams would have to manually extend the background of the image by cloning/stamping, or adding a border to the asset to fill the additional space. Now, Firefly can change the size of the background to fit specific ratios for a project with the click of a button.

Text to Vector - Designers can create vectors via text prompts and reupload them to Adobe Illustrator in order to further manipulate and customize the image.

These are just a few examples of ways in which creative teams can leverage tools such as Adobe Firefly to create more efficient creative processes and eliminate the need for tedious administrative tasks. Teams are able to spend more time on the ideation and strategic ends of the creative projects.

Utilizing AI Tools for Content Creation

With the advancement of AI-powered content generators, including ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, Adobe AI tools and a WordPress plugin by Jetback, the process of producing content and design has become faster and more efficient. However, it is crucial to acknowledge the limitations associated with relying solely on AI for content creation, as we have learned through practical experience.

Pros of Having AI-Generative Content

AI-powered content generators can save time by automating the process of creating content. This can be especially helpful for busy creatives, bloggers, and content writers who need to produce a large amount of content regularly. Idea generation, first drafts of content, and content editing are all ways that AI generation can serve as content assistants for writers and designers. When it comes to copywriting, writers can take their crafted content and use AI-powered content generators to improve the quality of their content with the tools suggestions and feedback. Ensuring the content is accurate, engaging, and informative are all ways in which AI tools can help improve content quality. Finally, AI tools can help reach a global audience and grow business by utilizing different languages or generating region-specific content. For example, if a business sells products or services to people in different countries, an AI-powered content generator can help them create content that is relevant to each country's audience.

Cons of Using AI to Generate Content

While AI can assist in content creation, it is important to recognize the potential drawbacks associated with relying solely on AI-generated content.

Content may not be E-E-A-T compliant

Google wants to rank websites that are created by experts who are knowledgeable about the topic they are writing about and that have authoritative and trustworthy content. AI-powered content generators may not be able to create content that meets Google's E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trust) guidelines because they are not human experts and they do not have the same level of knowledge and experience as human writers. As a result, AI-powered content generators may produce content that is not accurate, up-to-date, or comprehensive. This can hurt a website's ranking in search results, as it is a factor Google considers when doing so.

Content may not be original

While AI tools may be able to generate large amounts of content in a short period of time, that content may not be original. Content produced by AI is sourced from a database – meaning the content generated is never truly new – so what content teams are using for their website could lead to problems with plagiarism and copyright infringement. Both plagiarism and copyright infringement can result in legal action, which could damage the website's reputation and cost a brand money.

Content may not be accurate

After using generative AI tools for months, many have noticed that these tools have a tendency to create content that is not inaccurate, but sounds like it could be. This is referred to as an “AI Hallucination” and is not only a problem with ChatGPT, but has also been seen in Bard and Bing as well. Because of this tendency to “hallucinate,” experts suggest that if the user do not know the answer to a question being presented to the AI program, it is best not to ask. According to an internal memo at Microsoft, the AI system is “built to be persuasive, not truthful…This means that outputs can look very realistic but include statements that aren’t true.”

Striking a Balance Between AI Technology & Human Expertise

As the field of AI continues to evolve, it's essential to remain mindful and critical of AI-generated content. By leveraging the strengths of AI technology while harnessing the expertise of human writers and designers, impactful and successful content that resonates with a brand's audience can be created.

To learn how Direct Agents is leveraging AI technology or to get in touch with one of our experts, please visit https://www.directagents.com/.

Cari Bacon, Associate Director of SEO, Direct Agents, and Katherine Grabowsky, Senior Creative and Content Specialist, Direct Agents