Why AI Can’t Write Your Thought Leadership
This post was created 100% by humans.
We are on the verge of widespread adoption of generative AI (GenAI) in marketing. A McKinsey study released in December 2023 showed that 14% of the organizations surveyed said their marketing function was regularly using GenAI. By 2025, 30% of outbound marketing messages from large organizations will be synthetically generated, up from 2% in 2022. (Gartner)
Whether it’s jumping into Claude to explore blog post ideas, creating images in Jasper Art, or using the tools embedded in platforms like HubSpot to generate email copy, GenAI has forever changed how we create content.
AI-generated content has a place, and GenAI sure makes content creation faster. Our team uses GenAI to explore topic ideas, generate first drafts drawn from interviews, edit down lengthy text, summarize notes from meetings, and find or enhance images, as just a few examples.
While it’s tempting to lean heavily on GenAI to produce more and more content, this can backfire. This is especially true with your strategic thought leadership and point of view content, as it’s so visible and a point of differentiation for your organization.
With thought leadership, individuals or organizations show their expertise and unique point of view through speaking or writing to become more credible and recognized experts.
Risks of using GenAI to write thought leadership:
It sometimes delivers inaccurate content.
The content it generates may not be ethically attributed or sourced.
It can’t produce original ideas and critical thinking.
These risks are at odds with the intention of good thought leadership, which is to offer value and build trust with your audience.
Human-to-human thought leadership
We help our clients reach and engage employers and other stakeholders in the communities. These leaders work with and invest in people they trust. They value integrity and bold thinking. They want to see fresh thinking.
Real, live humans want something truly original from a source they trust–not what GenAI is known for.
What does good nonprofit thought leadership look like?
Human-to-human thought leadership is not about piles of “content,” but sharing a fresh point of view and advice that people will value.
Help make sense of challenges your audience is facing
Share real-world stories and challenges and how you worked through them
Offer usable tips and tools and readers can immediately apply
Don’t feed the glut of “look-alike” thought leadership
From grant applications to emails to blog posts, we are seeing more and more generic “AI-sounding” content with obvious headers written for Google or ChatGPT. There is a place for that, but…
Consider. Is all your content designed for the algorithm?
Do you have content that serves humans who actually want to read?
How long do your website visitors spend on your content pages?
How many people actually read through a piece of content they download?
Are they getting value from what you produce?
Thought leadership strengthens relationships
Quality human-to-human thought leadership generates higher engagement by sparking an emotional connection around pain points and burning issues that your audience cares about. It shows them who you are, how you think, and what matters to your organization.
A great point of view piece can drive website traffic and record downloads, AND open doors to partnerships and funding.
Related Content: 5 Ways to Secure More Customer Stories and Testimonials
Find your fresh take that GenAI can’t
Whether you are speaking at a conference, writing a blog post, or publishing your recent research, human-to-human thought leadership must be deeply rooted in your personal perspective, experience and areas of work or study.
While every word or idea may not be original, work to make your organization’s thought leadership recognizable as being yours – in your voice, with your stories, and highlighting your personal opinions. This builds trust, credibility, and ultimately, loyalty—with that human audience that matter most to you.