Automate some of your content creation to unleash more creativity

New studies show how fast PR pros are adopting generative AI

Muck Rack’s State of PR study found that 61 percent of PR pros currently use generative AI or plan to explore it. 

And the USC/WE study showed 59 percent already have or are looking into ways to useChatGPT specifically. 

Compare these attitudes, captured in April, with your reaction back on Jan. 18 when you may have read my prediction:

By the end of 2023, all forward-thinking PR pros will be using AI tools to write their commodity content.

Most people were surprised I would say that. Now I’m wondering if I shouldn’t have said “by Halloween.” 

It’s important to note what I mean by “commodity content.” This is content where:

• The angle or focus is not driven by creativity, but rather by your assignments 

  • A news release announcing a new CFO

  • A blog post designed to be evergreen about employee safety measures

• The target audience does not have specific expertise in the subject matter

  • A blog post about marketing aimed at financial advisors

  • A local media pitch about the opening of a popular fast-food franchise in the area

• The format or channel does not typically provide content with unique energy or flair

  • Most people don’t expect news releases or corporate blog posts to deliver compelling writing

Now you may be thinking “That doesn’t sound very fun or motivating! Are you expecting me to dumb down my work?”

I get where you’re coming from, but my intent is the exact opposite. 

Be real – most of the time, you view the type of writing outlined above as a chore, something to just crank through. I’m simply saying it out loud and giving you permission to let a computer write it for you. 

Then you can spend your time and energy on the opposite of commodity content – the premium content that requires creativity, expertise, and flair. (I’ll show you later how AI will help you with that, too). 

For now, here are your recommendations:

• Slash the time you give yourself (or the teams that report to you) to produce commodity content in half. 

• Replace that time with brainstorming better angles, new audiences, and livelier wordplay for your premium content. 

Holding yourself to this simple constraint will nudge you further along the AI adoption curve. Don’t stress about which tool to use. Remember the caveat to edit and fact-check everything, just like you would with a junior staffer. 

I’ll close with an analogy to help you overcome any limiting beliefs of “laziness” associated with adopting this approach. 

If writing a piece of commodity content was likened to a building a warehouse, then up until now you’ve been functioning as the architect, the construction superintendent, the skilled craftsperson, and the day laborer, plus the city inspector upon completion. 

Going forward, you’re amplifying your role as architect and delegating all the mundane tasks to the superintendent and their team (that’s your AI tool). Then you put your inspector hat on at the end to make sure it’s “up to code.” 

And that frees you up to design the next Sydney Opera House 😊.