There’s been a lot ado about AI currently, particularly since ChatGPT was launched to the general public in November 2022. Since then, we’ve seen an inflow of ideas and instruments across the matter and using AI.
We like AI right here at Buffer – we’ve even launched an AI Assistant to assist our viewers create content material higher and sooner. Nonetheless, we perceive its limitations, particularly in the case of creation, higher than most. We additionally perceive the (legitimate) considerations that many creatives and entrepreneurs have concerning the impression of AI on the standard of content material.
So though we use AI in our processes on Buffer’s Content material workforce (there are solely three of us, and it helps us work extra effectively), we needed to make clear precisely how and the place we use AI in our work.
Our historical past with AI
We’ve been enjoying round with completely different AI instruments for a number of months, and it exhibits in our content material archive from the previous yr.
The primary article from Buffer about AI went dwell in Could 2022 to reply the query, “Must you be utilizing AI for content material creation?” Reflecting on this text is fascinating as a result of our stance then and now is identical – let it deal with the small stuff, so you possibly can higher deal with the massive, artistic work.
Our curiosity in AI has solely grown since then, as ChatGPT went public, we revealed a number of articles mentioning AI on the weblog, and we launched an AI Assistant.
Spending time with the completely different instruments powered by AI has allowed us to outline our boundaries higher. Consequently, we have already got unwritten guidelines round AI in content material. Nonetheless, a sample emerged in two latest occasions that prompted us to ask ourselves: how will we let individuals know our stance on AI?
The primary was our newest (now closed) hiring run for a Content material Author. This text goes into extra element, however a shocking quantity of functions have been accomplished utilizing AI. Our understanding of the standard AI-generated content material helped us establish these functions, however it was prevalent sufficient to spotlight.
The second occasion is ongoing – our not too long ago launched Visitor Put up Program. The concept of this system is to open up the Buffer weblog to information tales from creators and small enterprise house owners. We wish expert writing that feels private and leaves our viewers feeling like they’ve discovered one thing invaluable. However, once more, many pitches that come via are AI-generated with little to no enhancing. All of them adopted the identical construction we’ve recognised from AI-generated solutions, particularly these created in ChatGPT.
Regardless of the hypothesis that AI is a ticking time bomb for individuals in artistic industries, we beg to vary. No device can change the human thoughts and its capability to create artwork that connects deeply. Additionally, it’s price remembering that AI is simply an in depth language-learning mannequin. It makes inferences from what you inform it and its restricted financial institution of data to carry out what a number of individuals have referred to as “spicy autocomplete”. It’s a device – solely nearly as good as the one who wields it.
So, sure, we needed to take the time to make clear our stance as a result of whereas it’s nice, it’s not changing any of us any time quickly.
Our strategy to AI in content material
Listed below are the 4 statements that cowl 90 p.c of how we consider using AI in content material.
- AI assists however doesn’t change
- AI by no means writes full drafts or paragraphs with out being edited by a human
- AI content material is at all times reviewed for accuracy
- We don’t imagine AI can change artistic work in any sense
The Content material workforce’s expertise with AI
Buffer’s Content material workforce contains three individuals who handle the workforce’s blogs, social media, PR, and different content material and communication-related wants. The scale of our workforce versus our obligations usually means we should flip down sure initiatives and alternatives. We have to prioritize, however on the finish of the day, content material and social are prime priorities for our workforce, to allow them to’t be put apart.
Adopting AI instruments has allowed us to unencumber extra time to discover these alternatives and collaborate with different groups extra successfully. For instance, the primary edits are accomplished with Grammarly as an alternative of certainly one of us to catch probably the most seen errors in grammar and punctuation. This enables us to give attention to deeper-level construction, voice, and tone enhancing. I exploit Otter lots to document interviews. It joins my Zoom calls and makes tough notes – that means I don’t have to start out listening and transcribing from scratch. It even offers a abstract of every name.
Outdoors of AI-heavy instruments, a few of our different assets have AI included into them like
- Threads, which we use for inner communication
- Notion, which we use for information administration
- Canva, for designing social media posts and weblog graphics
- and even Buffer.
AI’s an inevitable a part of our course of, and whereas we might select to not use these instruments, we’d all be much less efficient for it.
What we use AI for
We use AI for necessary, time-consuming duties {that a} nonhuman can do.
- To proofread writing and test for grammatical errors
- To unlock inspiration earlier than attending to the analysis course of
- To assist with outlines
- For creating templates
- For arising with interview questions
- For suggesting title concepts
- For the primary draft of social posts
- To repurpose present content material for a number of channels
- To make our content material extra related for a hyper-specific viewers
What we’re not utilizing AI for
We don’t and can by no means use AI to
- Analysis as a result of it’s incorrect most of the time
- Absolutely draft articles or write full paragraphs inside our drafts – we use AI purely as a companion in brainstorming and writing
- Create ultimate posts for social media
- Develop any visible content material – we solely use actual pictures from small companies and creators they submit themselves or from Unsplash.
Actual methods we’ve been utilizing AI
The Content material and broader Advertising and marketing groups view AI as a companion – and we’ve initiatives as proof. For somewhat extra of the sensible aspect of how we strategy AI, listed here are a number of the public methods we’ve been utilizing it.
The social posts experiment
Our social media supervisor, Mitra, shared the outcomes of her experiment of writing social posts with AI.
Mitra highlighted that AI didn’t make a distinction within the efficiency of the content material and even used phrases that she would by no means use. Nonetheless, Mitra gave the concept an A-plus for creating captions on days with out inspiration.
Lunch and be taught
I introduced a lunch and be taught on AI for the broad Advertising and marketing workforce at Buffer, sharing how I’ve been utilizing it in my work.
Social media glossary
We not too long ago launched a Social Media Glossary that resulted from months of exhausting work and cross-functional collaboration on the Advertising and marketing workforce.
It might need taken us longer to finish, however utilizing AI minimize the time we spent determining what to jot down below every time period and the way to write it in half. We developed a immediate that helped us fill out the fundamental define of every time period inside our Glossary that we used as the inspiration for every phrase.
We additionally thought of the impression of AI-only content material on the efficiency of the web page and its effectiveness for the reader. So, we spent quite a lot of time enhancing and including extra assets to extend the worth searchers would get from spending time on every web page.
Localizing your entire Buffer web site
We’ve been engaged on a challenge to localize the Buffer web site to different languages, beginning with Spanish – and AI has helped us notice most of it.
After all, we’re utilizing a human translator to double-check our work, however we have been capable of do the majority of the preliminary translation because of AI.
What’s subsequent for AI on Buffer’s Content material workforce
The place will we go from right here? To be sincere, not a lot else goes to alter for us. Largely we’ll maintain attempting new instruments and implementing them after they make sense. We’ve been utilizing AI instruments in our course of for months, and it’s helped us do our work higher and higher.
In sharing this we hope to assist content material groups and content material creators who’re enthusiastic about defining the place AI has or ought to have of their artistic course of. Tell us the way it goes!
