Is it ethical to use AI to create your content?

Is it morally right or wrong to use AI tools to write and create your content? While many creators and marketers have leaped upon Artificial Intelligence to generate tons of content, others still have some qualms about doing this. In a weird way it may feel like cheating. And there are those that fear for their job security, copywriters and graphic designers for instance.

So let’s delve a bit into this conundrum.

My personal opinion on the ethics of using AI

Is it wrong to use AI to generate your content? In short and in my personal opinion: no.

And why not? First, AI is a neutral tool in which it is mostly up to the user whether it is morally right or wrong.

It can be a wonderful means to help you quickly create good content that also provides value (or at least entertainment) to your target audience.

And while some may argue that using AI to create content is morally wrong, I believe that this technology can be used in an ethical manner to improve the quality of your writing and provide valuable insights.

AI is here to stay

We can talk around it, but simply put, AI is here to stay.

In 2019, I interviewed an experienced copywriter for my old blog Bartsguide.com (now off the air). This guy had a good income among other things from translation jobs in the video game industry. He translated both ingame texts and instruction booklets for some big titles and publishers.

Even then, he had to edit texts that had already gone through a translation tool. At that time, he was not impressed by these tools, the quality of the texts was very mediocre to poor and a human hand was absolutely necessary to make them readable. But he did have the realization that this would change at some stage. And that moment has now arrived.

Within a year, the use of AI Tools like ChatGTP, Mid Journey, Jasper etc etc has multiplied massively.

From hobbyists doing some experimentation, to savvy marketers generating tons of content with it for niche websites, it is impossible to imagine our professional lives without AI.

You can complain about it, or you can adapt to the situation and make sure you have at least some basic understanding of AI. Just like inventions like the car and airplane were lasting in our way of life, Artificial Intelligence won’t disappear.

The way to conduct marketing: always be honest in love and business

In business and marketing honesty IS the best policy

But how can you use AI ethically in your marketing and content creation?

An experienced business consultant/marketer once advised me:

always be honest in love and business.

This basically means:

be honest about what your product/service entails
don’t create false expectations
and above all that you offer value in your content to your target audience

I know quite a few successful businessmen and I can say with hand on heart that 99% are totally honest. Sure, they can be tough and businesslike. But they won’t bullshit you. They stand behind their business and the services they offer.

So in the content you generate through AI, make sure you offer an honest, valuable solution to the need/pain your target audience is experiencing. If you keep that in mind, you will also have great success in the long run and thus make more money.

What AI can’t yet do: writing about experiences

Your own personal experience of you enjoying an nice meal and cocktail on Crete for instance can’t yet be emulated by an AI Tool

AI is currently mostly perfect for creating generic content. By this I mean topics that have already been described by many others, small facts and simple product descriptions.

But what it cannot yet do is put the human experience into words properly.

Take a Travel blog, for example. You can obviously commission a tool like ChatGTP or Koala to write a compelling story about, say, a holiday in Crete. And there will then be a result that is at least readable. But it will still not come close to your personal experience if you have been there.

You yourself, with all the imperfections and possible spelling mistakes, will be able to make this a much more credible and entertaining story than AI.

And that can apply to so many different subjects, whether it’s drone flying, playing a particular video game or going to a concert.

Your own experience cannot be matched by anyone else, including AI.

And that’s right where you can differentiate yourself, both from other content creators and AI: through your personal experience, opinion and branding.

What AI is perfect for at this moment

ChatGTP is excellent for Keyword Research, among other things

Ok, we now know that in my humble opinion, the use of AI is not inherently bad. Provided you are honest, don’t sell nonsense and above all offer value to your audience.

And that AI cannot quite replace human experience itself yet (thankfully).

But in short then, what is AI perfect for right now? Just a few examples (mainly from a marketing point of view):

Research, e.g. on topics and keywords for your content
Writing generic articles and product descriptions
Improving your productivity
Writing good blogs and business emails at lightning speed (don’t forget to edit yourself, though)
Generating easy-to-use prompts for other AI tools
And, of course, coding, although I don’t have much experience with that myself

Final Thought

In conclusion, I believe that using AI to create content is not morally wrong. While there are certainly some potential downsides to using this technology, the benefits far outweigh the risks. By using AI in a responsible and ethical manner, businesses, bloggers and affiliate marketers can improve the quality of their content and provide valuable answers to their target audience.

And in all honesty, you can’t afford to ignore AI. It is here to stay, in one form or another.