Let’s talk about the eleph(AI)nt in the room

Written By Amber Rhodes

Certainly! Here’s a blog post explaining your position on AI in this ever-evolving digital landscape:

Just kidding ;)

After having lots of conversations about the role of AI in marketing with other marketers, I think it’s probably time to make my position on AI clear.

Here’s my line in the sand: AI cannot (and should not!) replace humans.

In fact, if you are a potential client and you believe AI can replace human content marketers, please do me a favor and forget my URL.

IMO, there’s nothing forward-thinking or future-proof about outsourcing your most valuable assets — empathy, relationships, thoughts, feelings, lived experience — to LLMs. I think that’s the opposite of forward-thinking. You do realize GenAI is trained on tons of data to recognize patterns and mimic them at scale, right?

That means when you use AI as a replacement for a human, you’re regurgitating what an LLM thinks a human might create based on a ton of data points. And it might be passable. It might even be kinda good. But what it’s missing is nuance, taste, and the ability to really, really understand what matters most for your stakeholders and audience.

AI is predictive, not inventive — and definitely not creative.

If your goal is to create differentiated content and effective strategies, the AI-human centipede is not your way forward.

That being said…yes, I use AI in my work. I’m not a Luddite. I have used — and currently use — AI in my workflows. Most of my clients expect me to use AI and want to know how I’m using it for content.

Some ways I’ve used AI:

  • To help templatize processes

  • To brainstorm angles

  • To pull quotes and ideas from transcripts

  • As a structural editor

  • Quick, high-level research

  • Early rough drafts

  • To challenge my assumptions

  • To uncover customer insights

Just to name a few! And you know what? It has helped a lot. I think of it like my trusty intern or assistant that can help me get unstuck and more streamlined. But I will never use it to outsource my curiosity, empathy, or strategic thinking.

Because that’s the good stuff — the stuff that leans into the humanness of marketing, the feeling, the storytelling, the vibes.

Besides, I’m way funnier than AI 💁‍♀️

Amber Rhodes