As a freelancer, I’m sure you’ve heard of ChatGPT and other AI tools and how they can help people speed up their content creation process.
Some business owners even use it to write blog posts without any human intervention. So bold!
If you’re a writer, though, you know something that many business owners don’t—if you don’t know how to write content, don’t use ChatGPT.
Since business owners typically aren’t the best writers, when they use ChatGPT, they feel it’s a miracle. They are flooded with ideas of publishing hundreds of articles daily and ranking in Google for thousands of keywords, which all result in income.
Well, I’m sorry to say that this type of content marketing strategy is built on straw, and Google doesn’t even want that type of low-value content in the SERPs (search engine result pages).
So, besides the standard 1-click ChatGPT blog post, what other things should you NEVER use ChatGPT for?
Let’s look at LinkedIn to find out more.
What to Never Use ChatGPT for Your Freelance Business
AI tools are a fabulous sidekick to your freelance business.
But if you aren’t an expert in what you are doing – graphic design, content writing, freelance art – then ChatGPT will not help you.
1. Summarizing
So, over on LinkedIn, Gordana Stok says,
“I would never use AI to summarize insights from a buyer or customer interview. It omits important details and nuances and human emotions. And it can’t decipher what people are really saying. Not everyone is articulate, and what they say is not always what they mean. Humans can pick that up. But AI can’t. Not for now at least.”
What Gordna says is true.
While I like to use ChatGPT to summarize long pieces of text, it isn’t the best tool for summarizing parts of an interview.
ChatGPT, for example, will take your prompt of wanting something insightful and turn it into the most basic idea, which is not something you want for an interview.
2. Writing an Introduction
Freelance writer Aparna Seshardi doesn’t enjoy using ChatGPT or some other AI writing tool to help her write introductions.
Also, I would never ask it to write an introduction before I have written mind for the blog because I don’t want to be pissed off by the same old, ‘in the digital realm,’ digital revolution. Duh…I did ask it to give me a buyer personal for a brand I was writing for and boy was I wrong.
I feel the same way Aparna!
I will NEVER use ChatpGPT or Jasper AI to write my introductions. Many times, it’s soooo generic and bland and just robotic. It’s a good idea to use AI to help with writing aspects of your subtopic but even with that, you have to heavily edit your work to make it sound and flow better.
3. Customer-Derived Content
Yasaswini is a writer who uses AI tools to help banish writer’s block for good.
This is the correct way to use ChatGPT and can help many freelancers get out of a writing slump.
But she won’t use it for customer-derived content.
Would never use: to create customer-derived content. Their unique voice gets sandpapered into conformity.
Gathering resources for your client’s article is important to creating a high-paying article.
These resources are often customer-derived, and you don’t want an AI tool to muddle or dilute what a customer says.
4. Persona Writing
Have you ever given ChatGPT a prompt like “act like a Youtuber,” or “you are a tech writer for SaaS companies?”
Kjell says that’s the wrong way to use AI tools.
I’ve always found it stupid when people suggest prompts like “act like a senior copywriter.” Yeah, that’ll make all the difference. I’d never use AI to write personal blog posts. I probably wouldn’t even use it to help me write them.
Just realize that ChatGPT isn’t an expert. This tool pools all the content on the Internet to figure it out, which means it regurgitates all the information.
So don’t expect it to be an expert in any industry.
5. Expert Interview Questions
While ChatGPT can be a great thing for ideation if you’re stuck, it’s not great creating questions for an interview you need for your client piece.
Freelancer Rochi knows this all too well.
I’d never have it draft Qs for expert interviews. Your Qs should be contextual to the contributor (their experience, specific skills, etc.), company, topic, and stand you’re taking. AI just spews out random, Google-able Qs.
Instead of asking ChatGPT these basic questions for an expert interview, look at the customer-derived content and understand the expert’s business/stance to create the right interview questions.
6. For Serious Work
McKenzie doesn’t mind playing around with ChatGPT since it gives us random facts and information. But, for the serious stuff? Nope.
I did an experiment. Input all my interest and told ChatGPT to help me pick a niche. The results were wild. I think it was fun, but I wouldn’t do it seriously. I don’t know if there is an “adventure, herb, sustainability” niche.
ChatGPT does hallucinate – giving wrongful information as it is actual information – so when using it, know that the information will have to be checked and heavily edited.
When I Will Never Use AI Writing Tools For
I’ve been playing around with ChatGPT and Jasper AI for over a year now, and I know it can’t beat a good quality writer like me.
So, I use it sparingly and for only certain things.
I will never use an AI writing tool:
- writing a post
- writing an introduction
- writing an email
- writing an eBook
- writing a sales page
- for certain ideation processes
- to give me information on a topic I don’t know (ex: Cryptocurrency or how to create an app)
But, I will use AI in these ways:
- To elaborate
- To summarize long pieces of text
- To give me other angles on a topic
- To break down concepts that I know
- for a Pinterest description
- for a social media post (short form or carousel form)
Do You Use AI?
Let me know in the comments if you use AI and how it’s helped you in your freelance business.
I’d love to hear!
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