Why you still should edit your AI generated texts

With AI tools like ChatGPT, Jasper or Koala it is now possible to generate readable and enjoyable texts in a jiffy. And the internet is flooded with them right now. But overall these still aren’t on the same level as a human writer can create. So on that note it is advisable to edit your AI generated texts.

In this blog I explain why you still should post-edit your content. And of course how to do this.

AI content comes across as generic and bot-like

AI has made giant strides when it comes to being able to create readable texts. But let’s face it, a lot of content still comes across as a bit awkward. As you can see from my example, AI writes rather in a Bot-like manner. Or, at the very least, like a first-year student trying to fill an essay with gibberish so that he gets to the minimum word count.

If you don’t edit your content before posting it, you get texts that come across as generic, unreadable and even a bit fake.

Generic can be fine when it comes to standard product descriptions for example, but when it comes to larger texts, like experiences, reviews, opinions etc, you still want to come across as a real person.

And both Google and your readers will notice. Besides, most copywriters also proofread their own texts first for errors and possible improvements.

But enough scolding , time to show you how to edit a text!

The First step in Editing your content: would you read this your yourself?

An experienced copywriter once gave me the tip:

With every text you write, you should ask yourself ‘would I want to read this myself?’

If the answer is ‘no’, then you have some work to do to rewrite it.

So if ChatGPT or Japser created a text, read it carefully first and try to think: would I want to read this myself?

At the same time, you can already note any mistakes and improvements.

Use an AI Content Detector

Step 2 is to have your text checked by an AI Content Detector, as offered by Writer.com, for example.

You can have your text checked here. The AI Content Detector will then check to what extent it comes across as written by a human or by a Bot. Personally, I keep to the rule of thumb that I should edit things if the text comes across as less than 80% human.

Check for spelling and grammatical errors in your text

This should make sense whether you wrote your text all by yourself or had AI perform it, but:

always check your texts for spelling and style errors.

AI is not yet infallible, so scour your text for obvious spelling errors. As well as for weird, unreadable sentence structure.

Check AI written content for overuse of your main keywords.

In my example, I had ChatGPT write a short blog on Affiliate Marketing. And as you can see, this term was used in almost every sentence. Sometimes even twice per sentence.

How many times can you see the term ‘Affiliate Marketing’ in this short text? It doesn’t make for great reading.

This is overdoing it though. Your text comes across so unreadable, it makes it feel like it was written by AI and not a human.

And worse, search engines like Google will interpret it as if you are trying to manipulate search results the old-fashioned way by including the same keyword in your text as often as possible.

And that’s not good if you want to be found and noticed. And penalized.

So check your text for this. Rewrite paragraphs where it is obvious and use synonyms for frequently recurring terms, for example. This will make your text more human and easier to read.

Does the Tone of Voice in the text match that of your Target Audience?

And last tip: does the tone of voice (or vibe) of your text connect well with your target audience?

You yourself probably already have an idea of who you write your texts for. And if you need help with that, check out this article for researching your target audience.

If you have travel blog for hip, young backpackers, you want your texts to match their perceptions. If you write for a more conservative audience, you will want to adapt your texts accordingly.

And of course you want your texts to exude the tone of voice that suits your personal brand (or that of your company).

So rewrite your text in such a way that it has the right tone of voice.

The beauty of AI, by the way, is that you can already ask it to do this for you, as in my Affiliate Marketing example:

Now, I myself am from Generation X, and don’t know exactly what Zoomers are concerned about, so my new text may come across as quite presumptuous. But you get the idea.

Final Thoughts

Whether your content is created by yourself or by AI, editing and improving it should be standard practice to provide quality to your target audience.

Whether you have blogs, landing pages, leaflets, white papers, advertisements or reviews generated by AI, editing them ensures that your texts remain readable, human and, above all, entertaining.

With the tips in this article, you at least have basic knowledge to get started, I say in all modesty. And in addition, you will also make sure you become a better copywriter yourself every time you take this step.

Bonus Tip: Fact Check Your Text

Ah, and one final tip: Check your text for factual errors!

AI gets its information by checking online sources. And these can be either outdated or just plain wrong. So make sure that what you are stating in your text is factually true. Especially when it comes to YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) content like Medical or Financial Advice.