The Pros and Cons of Using AI for Content Writing – And How to Do it Right

As professional writers, we always look for ways to streamline and enhance our content. With the rise of AI tools, many of us are at a crossroads: Should we embrace these tools or are they evil? Let’s explore the pros and cons of producing AI-generated content to help you decide if you want to use AI in your content creation process or not.

The Cons and Pros of AI-Generated Content

Like everything in life, AI content generation has its upsides and downfalls. While many fear AI will steal their jobs or even take over the world, you must adapt to every new development. You can’t stop progress.

Whether you like it or not – sooner or later (if not already), you need to use AI tools as a content writer. Otherwise, you simply can’t compete anymore. It’s possible to welcome AI while still producing high-quality content and being creative. Let’s have a look at the most important pros and cons of AI-generated content – and how you make the machine your friend, not your enemy.

The Advantages of AI-Generated Content

Use AI-generated content tools the right way; they can improve your writing process and make your life a lot sweeter:

1.      Speed and Efficiency by Using AI Tools

Using AI tools to generate content can save time by quickly producing more content. This is crucial for content writers now, as the prices have dropped significantly. So, if you think you can earn a lot more money now because of AI usage – well, this isn’t the case.

This means we need to write two to three AI-assisted articles to earn the same amount. The downside is that the concentration span is shorter, and it becomes kind of an assembly-line work. Therefore, lots of content created can lack quality—not because of AI use itself.

But how often do you suffer from writer’s blockage? Or do you have to research many articles before you know what you need in the outline? Content-based on an AI-generated outline can save you so much time and brain cells! And often, the model suggests topics you wouldn’t have thought of.

2.      Use Generative AI as your Research-Buddy

AI tools can gather information on a topic in seconds. It searches for similar content and provides us fresh insights. You don’t need to do those time-consuming Google searches anymore. With AI for content, you can focus more on creating engaging stories and less on tedious research.

Here is also a big BUT: AI seems to have quite some imagination. Suggested links are often not valid, and the model makes up “facts”. This is pretty dangerous and needs manual control. Therefore, it might be faster and more reliable to do manual research right away. Additionally, you won’t get anything new. It still needs your experience and ideas to stand out and be creative.

3.      SEO Strategy and Keyword Integration in AI Content

Even though generative AI claims to be able to do all the SEO for you, it can’t. You still need professional SEO tools, experience, knowledge, and creativity. But AI can help implement those keywords. How often did you pore over something to implement keywords or keyword phrases naturally, but it just didn’t want to flow? Here, you can get suggestions from AI.

It is also helpful to check if all the necessary keywords are implemented in the content. Instead of counting manually, highlighting them, or however you did it in the past, the model does the job in seconds. Super helpful!

The Cons of Using AI for Content Creation

On the other hand, if you’re cheering for AI and think you can generate hundreds of blog articles per week now, hold your horses! It’s not that simple. Let’s have a look at the pitfalls of AI content generators:

1.      Creativity Might Take a Hit

One major con of using AI is that it can make a writer’s mind “lazy.” When we rely heavily on AI tools to generate content, we risk losing some of the creativity and originality that make our work stand out. Instead of writing unique angles, implementing personalized content, writing with empathy, or exploring new ideas, it’s easy to let AI do the “thinking” for us. The human brain needs training.

One example you, as a writer, can surely relate to: You have to write ten blog articles per week for a new customer. The topics are completely new for you. It’s not a problem at all; this is why we have the Internet. You do the research, read articles about the topics, etc.

But now you just tell ChatGPT to spit out the article for you. You don’t have a clue what it’s about. You don’t know if it’s helpful content or not. Additionally, even though you write so many articles for the same branch, you still don’t learn anything about the topics. Not like you would do when writing the articles manually.

2.      Readability and Typical AI-Language

Another downside to content produced by a machine is the readability. AI uses really long and wordy sentences. Additionally, the sentence length is often the same, and certain words are overused. As a writer, you know how to add variety. If you work with generated texts, ensure the content is easy to read.

Also, AI-generated text can feel robotic or overly formal (not to say boring). It lacks the warmth, empathy, and humor a human writer naturally brings. And if you think an “intelligent” machine is perfect in grammar and spelling – you might be surprised! There is still no way around your knowlegde or Grammarly.

3.      SEO Concerns and Risk of Over-Optimization

Although AI for content creation can support SEO, it has a downside, too. If you tell the model to implement a particular keyword, you’ll find it way too often in the text. This can harm readability and even lead to penalties for over-optimization.

Especially if you tell AI to implement exact keywords, it doesn’t care about Grammar anymore. The result is unnatural implementation, no flow, and awkward text.  Not very SEO-friendly.

4.      AI Detection Issues

Finally, an important con of using AI is the risk of detection by algorithms that detect AI-generated content. But many AI detection tools – nearly all of them – are totally unreliable. These detectors are designed to identify AI-generated text, but they’re far from perfect and often flag genuine human-written content as “AI-generated.” For professional writers, this can lead to real trouble.

Imagine pouring effort into creating high-quality content, only to have it mislabelled by a detector as AI-generated. Clients or platforms that are wary of using AI for content may question the authenticity of your work. If AI content detectors mistakenly flag original writing as “AI,” it can be the death of great quality content writers. Been there!

Why does this happen? The current technology behind AI content detectors often misinterprets stylistic patterns or common phrases as indicators of AI usage. These inaccurate labels can be seriously damaging for content creators who rely on credibility.

Until these detectors improve, communicate those limitations to clients. A good client relationship has to be based on trust. Be honest about using AI writing tools, but explain in detail how you use them and for what. If your customer insists on content without AI assistance, simply don’t do it. 

How to Generate Content Correctly with AI

Getting the best results with AI is all about balance. AI can help you create website content and social media content more easily, help you rewrite existing content, or even do parts of your content marketing for you. Here are some valuable tips on how to get good quality content with the help of AI:

• Let AI Be Your Assistant, Not the Star: Think of AI as your trusty sidekick—great for sparking ideas or digging up relevant content insights. But remember, the magic of content created for your website or social media comes from your unique touch! AI can handle the basics while you add the flair and creativity that make your content stand out.
• Polish and Personalize: After generating content with AI, add your own sparkle. Shape it to match your voice, vibe, and standards for high-quality content. Whether it’s website content or social media content, let your personality shine through for an authentic feel that readers love.
• Keep SEO Friendly and Natural: Instead of relying only on AI-suggested keywords, go for phrases that feel natural and flow beautifully. The goal is to create generated content based on AI insights that don’t just hit the right SEO notes and read quickly. This way, the content on your website becomes both relevant content for search engines and delightful for your audience!

Wrapping Up

Ultimately, the pros and cons of AI-generated content boil down to how we use this technology. Generative AI can be a helpful tool, but it can never replace the creativity, insight, and personal touch that human writers bring to the table. By balancing AI tools and your unique style, you can produce content that meets high standards and resonates on a human level.

For writers and businesses alike, using AI tools to generate content can be strategic if it complements rather than replaces a human writer’s voice. Embrace the blend of AI and human expertise—this synergy will set your content apart.

Looking for a professional AI Content Creator? Contact me here.