There’s no arguing against it. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude are a huge helping hand in creating digital content. Earlier this year, Axios reported that almost 50% of online news articles, blog posts and listicles are primarily AI-generated.
However, these tools have heightened the need and importance of human oversight.
Importance of the Human Voice
As PR pros, we are constantly reading articles, reports and blogs. Now that we’re more than a few years into the generative AI era, it’s not difficult to spot when content is AI-generated.
Reporters and readers are starting to pick up on generative AI limitations, too, which is why it’s important to understand the value of the human voice.
Why does AI-generated content all sound the same? Because most tools are pulling from the same training data and defaulting to the same patterns. That’s a problem for brand voice differentiation.
A company’s tone should be recognizable across every piece of content. You can feed LLMs lists of banned words and phrases, but at the end of the day, nothing can fully replace what a human can do to keep AI and authentic brand voice working together instead of against each other.
And you often don’t need a tool like GPTZero to catch AI-generated content. Over 73% of creators are using ChatGPT, and almost 70% use Claude. Imagine every company in the world hired the same two or three writers. Brand voice would be obsolete.
Where to Use AI
So, how can PR teams and digital marketers use AI effectively? There are many ways to take advantage of AI without recreating the same, repetitive content seen on a daily basis.
At the surface, AI is effective in summarizing reports and research, very rough first drafts and formatting. Companies nowadays are always unveiling reports, research and data. Sometimes it can be hard to differentiate what’s actually new and interesting versus what’s already out there. AI tools can pull out specific, compelling stats from a report or data in seconds.
First drafts of deliverables are another great way to utilize AI tools. When using AI for a first draft, start with the basics. Then do your review and add a human touch.
What AI Shouldn’t Touch
AI is good at some tasks, bad at others. Knowing when not to use AI in PR writing for pitching is just as important as knowing when to reach for it.
Executive quotes are a huge driver in PR. One of the clearest risks of AI in public relations and corporate communications is executive communications. CEOs have their own voices. Their quotes need to sound like the actual person, not an idea of what an executive might say. That’s a matter of content authenticity. Readers and reporters can tell when a quote feels manufactured.
Crisis communications is one of the highest-stakes kinds of writing and content generation that PR teams do. Although in an ideal world, it’s not done often, it should have full human ownership. Content, tone and timing of response to crises are everything.
Pitches and other content dealing with politics, layoffs, litigation or client history also tend to be particularly sensitive and require nuancing that AI cannot handle and does not have. Tools like Claude may not know what almost went wrong the previous time, or which phrase may be taken out of context. Between executive quotes, crisis communication and sensitive positioning, it’s clear what PR tasks shouldn’t be automated, no matter how good the tools get.
AI is an Enhancement, not a Replacement
AI isn’t the enemy. The enemy is the risk you take if you treat it as a replacement rather than an enhancement. Companies that let AI take over end up sounding just like everyone else.
