Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a powerful tool for generating content quickly and at scale. From blog posts and marketing copy to social media captions and customer service replies, AI-generated content is everywhere. While this offers huge time and cost savings, there are quite a few downsides to relying heavily on AI content including poor ranking in search results (you are not bringing anything new to the table) and content that feels generic, impersonal, and robotic.
The truth is that AI is still not up to par when it comes to replacing content written by a human. The world of content SEO is still ruled by English majors and professional writers. But this is not to say that AI doesn’t have a place, it just needs a human editor to add emotional insight, fresh intuition, and a better connection with your audience.
Fact Check Everything and Anything Written by AI
While AI has improved quite a bit, it still can hallucinate information from time to time. The best example of this were the New York attorneys who used Chat GPT to write a legal brief and were sanctioned by the judge when it was determined the cases cited in their brief didn’t exist. Don’t let this happen to you. Always check facts and citations when using AI to produce content of any sort.
Keep with a Consistent Voice and Tone
Consistency is everything when building a brand and your audience can be easily put off by a change in tone or voice. Your next pass in editing should be to give life to the generic sounding AI voice. Is your brand playful and informal, or serious and academic? Make sure the AI writing matches that tone and voice.
Use Specific, Real-World Examples
Generic content lacks the texture of real human experience. One way to fix this is by adding concrete details. AI often speaks in broad terms unless told otherwise. During editing, insert stories, data, analogies, or personal anecdotes that your audience can relate to. Much like we did above with the story of the sanctioned attorneys. Even when we are producing content without the help of AI (which is more often than you’d think) we try to be cognizant of the AI world we live in and write to reflect the humanity behind our work.
Add Emotion and Empathy
AI often lacks emotional intelligence. It may give logical answers but miss the heart of a message. Human content speaks to the reader’s fears, desires, frustrations, and joys.
To make AI content more human:
- Use emotion-rich language (e.g., “frustrated,” “excited,” “overwhelmed”).
- Ask rhetorical questions to simulate human thinking (“Ever feel like your social posts are being ignored?”).
- Include empathy statements (“We get it – ranking high in Google search can be frustrating without help.”)
You can train AI to do this to some extent by specifying the emotional tone in the prompt, but human review is crucial to ensure it doesn’t feel forced or artificial.
Pay Close Attention to Grammar
Human writing often breaks grammar rules for effect. We use sentence fragments, contractions, slang, and even emojis or dashes. These elements make writing sound like real speech. AI, by default, often writes like a textbook.
But the opposite is also true. AI writing is full of quirks that make it easy to recognize. Probably the biggest example of this is the overuse of the em dash, but the words “enigmatic,” “palpable,” and “pragmatic,” are also red flags.
When editing AI content it is just important to know what to remove as it is knowing what to put in.
Inject Personality
Whether it’s humor, strong opinions, or fun phrasing, personality is what sets human content apart. AI content often lacks flavor. It’s too safe.
Inject personality by:
- Using metaphors or pop culture references.
- Adding humor where appropriate.
- Letting your brand’s quirks shine through.
You can also include personal touches, such as stories about your team, customer testimonials, or behind-the-scenes insights. These elements are difficult for AI to create convincingly but are easy for humans to insert.
Edit for Flow and Rhythm
AI generated writing often feels flat because it lacks rhythm. Human writing varies in sentence length, uses pauses for emphasis, and includes natural transitions. Read your AI content out loud. If it sounds stiff, rewrite for rhythm and cadence.
In Conclusion
AI is a tool, not a replacement, for genuine human connection. When used wisely, it can help you create content that’s both efficient and emotionally resonant. The key is to remember that people still want to feel like they’re hearing from other people, not machines. By injecting personality, emotion, consistency, and a clear voice into your AI generated content, you’ll ensure it lands with real impact.
Ultimately, making AI content more human means putting humanity back into the editing process – and this takes time. AI can help you write, but it’s still up to you to make it feel alive. If you’ve been frustrated with the results of your online content and AI has only made things worse, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team. Having a team of professional content creators on your side can make all the difference.
