Top 7 disadvantages of using AI in Digital Marketing

So many people have asked me if I am using AI for my content marketing.

Tempting as it may be, the answer is a firm no! I’ve never thought about using it, and for the moment, I have no intention of even getting close to it. 

Sure, there will be people who will quickly adopt AI and use it for their marketing, but like with all new technologies, it comes with some downsides. And honestly, I don’t know how Google will respond to articles of any content written in AI. I think they’ll start to penalise sites using AI. But, more about this later.

In this blog, I’ll go through the state of play with AI in digital marketing in Australia. I’ll then highlight the 7 disadvantages of using AI, but I’ll also explain how you can reduce the risks of AI in your digital marketing so you can start to employ it to your marketing advantage.

How AI is Used in Australia by Digital Marketers

There’s a lot of miscommunication regarding the use of AI by companies. It’s such a huge buzzword, and businesses are now in the experimental phase. So no one has a firm grasp on it and its potential as it’s such a new technology, and that’s what’s happening. Having said that, AI has penetrated much of the digital landscape. It’s crept in slowly and has now cemented itself as an integral marketing puzzle piece.

For example, AI is used by some email and adverting platforms to collect data and personalise the content for the user. There are also those nasty Chatbots that pop up and try to help you solve a problem online without having to speak to a real person. This is the tip of the iceberg, and as the technology grows, so will the uptake of AI and how it’s incorporated into the digital marketer’s arsenal. 

It’s vital to understand the downside of using AI, and the following are some serious issues.

Lack of Search Engine Optimisation

SEO is what we do here at SEO Sydney Experts, and if there is one thing that scares me when I write content is that it has to be authentic, unique and trustworthy. So, the big question is, we use AI to write content; where is it drawing the information from, and what will Google think of it? How will Google rank the data, and will it significantly impact its overall trust?

See what Forbes has to say about earning Google’s trust.

It might seem to find to use AI to churn our articles, and they might rank now, but all it takes is one algorithm change to see all your AI-written articles come crashing down in the rankings. Using AI to write copy is far too risky regarding SEO value. I would never do that, and I would be freaking out the whole time, just waiting for the rankings to plummet.

Google has invested far too much effort (through its algorithmic refinement) in ensuring that content is written specifically for your intended audience, it answers specific questions, and the copy is unique. Now imagine two businesses deciding to use AI for a topic and producing an identical copy; what will the results be? Chaos! Duplicate content is an SEO killer, and AI copy will propagate this.

Incorrect Information

As digital marketers and SEO experts, it’s vital that all information that we create is accurate, precise and backed up with references or is evidence-based. So if you are going to use AI, you have to ask yourself where they are getting the information from, and if they are using ChatGPT, then it’s only accurate till 2021, as this was when the data was collated. I generated content that may seem like a quick and easy solution but is the information correct, and does it convey the personality of your business or company? If I were using AI for content, I would have to vet it thoroughly and edit every word, which seems like a waste of time. Why not spend those man-hours creating something that you have written?

Very robotic

While AI “speech patterns” are improving, something is still amiss, especially if you are writing for an Australian audience. The tone and style seem robotic, unconvincing, and almost unnatural, which can be off-putting. When writing content for your business, you have to infuse it with jargon your customers will resonate with and identify with. AI simply cannot do this at this stage. AI copy can often sound awful; your customers will see through this. Is this what you want??

You become lazy

Like with all new technologies, they are outstanding in the beginning. They save time and can help you solve problems quickly. But there will come a time that you become reliant on AI for all your marketing and communication. This results in less creative thinking and over-dependence on AI technology. Over time you can imagine what will happen; all creative writing will be handled by technology. Yikes, how terrible. Think about all the people put out of work by AI. It may be inevitable, but let’s hold back the tide for as long as possible. For owners of digital agencies and clients, this may seem like a dream where they save money using AI and can pass the savings onto their clients, but the resulting copy will be a shocker.

Contents Boring

It’s the same content repeatedly and can get boring. For first-time users, it may be OK and even exciting but repeat the process constantly, and it becomes machine-like, dull, monotonous and needs more personalisation. Again, if you are writing content for your market or audience, AI won’t magically change the tone to appeal to the audience but will maintain its drone-like copy. And if another competitor uses it, they’ll have the same content; it’s awful for SEO and conversions.

Lack of Personality

You must set yourself apart from the competition and have some unique selling points. It’s what keeps buyers (in the eCommerce space) and clients returning for that special something different you offer. Now, ask yourself this question. Will AI offer this? No, it won’t. AI churns out the exact copy for you and other similar businesses, defeating the whole purpose of your unique offering.

So what’s the takeaway from AI?

AI has benefits, and there is no disputing these facts. However, as a digital marketing and SEO agency, I see the huge downsides and potential risks of an over-reliance on AI. My main concern is the quality of the content produced and how consumers and your customers will perceive it. I’m always petrified about what Google thinks about technology and how it may affect rankings. But Google has now clarified that they are becoming more involved with AI and has announced BARD, which could affect how Google responds to AI-generated content. The jury is still out, so we must wait and see.