From the point of view of a Marketing Manager...
Months have gone by, and AI and its various disruptive platforms continue to be at the forefront of various marketing newsletter accumulating in my inbox. What made me write about OpenAI and how exactly is this relevant to you? Not only is this one of the most fascinating additions to the internet but it is a shame that this tool, despite all the noise, seems to only be utilised by start-ups, specific professionals and limited to the marketing and sales departments. Many have not yet witnessed the value that it can bring no matter what business support function you do.
The first thing I did with this assignment is type that title straight into chat.openai.com. Given content writing can take up to 70% of a marketeer’s time, am I cheating here? Has this opened a new flood gate to get lazy? I wouldn’t say so. An opening like ‘as an AI language model, I don’t have emotions or desires, and I don’t have the ability to work ‘harder’ or ‘smarter’ in a way that humans do’ certainly does not fit our Bain and Gray branding. But the machine has got a point there – this will be the case with most things you will throw at that search bar but time in a workplace is limited and when under pressure to continuously deliver why not adopt something that will free up your time, increase your productivity and creativity? Allow me to explain,
Friend or Foe?
I have yet to see an AI article of this nature without the mention of the ridiculous Skynet inspired paranoia that comes around the theme of artificial intelligence (I am a sceptic to Elon Musk’s view that AI is more dangerous than a nuclear weapon). Without getting too invested into this issue, it is human nature to fear what we cannot understand, and I am yet to find a fantastic book recommendation that can simplify the vast scope of this theme. However, after even one hour of research, you will learn that AI has its limitations. OpenAI has its limitations. If you look at my previous blogs including National Stress Awareness and Top 5 hand luggage must-haves for any EA, it portrays a perfect example of where AI was my assistant, not some potential replacement for my capabilities that needs to be brushed under the carpet. When I write a blog, putting various keywords and questions into OpenAI can not only help provide an instant essay structure but give me some ideas which saves me time having to go through countless Google links before I even have the confidence to start writing about a topic. Many of us will have to write content at some point in our career; as the digital space evolves faster than our own comprehension, your employer is guaranteed to ask you to contribute your efforts to growing their business’ digital footprint. Why not have a go – start by typing your title in OpenAI, ask the deeper questions and fill in the gaps yourself to give the piece soul. You heard the machine; it won’t give you any content with character – it does not have emotions or desires!
Information Age
In the world of marketing and personal branding, good content always sells (you can even consider your CV here if that sentence does not seem to apply to you). No matter what path you are on it is essential to incorporate this skill for career success. Get it right, and it can drive visitors, leads and revenue. Aside from the above OpenAI may be the cure for that case of writer’s block which tends to be a key reason many miss out on hitting those additional merits at their workplace. Think about the possibilities – OpenAI can plan and write your marketing list, content for your company’s social media, product descriptions and even video scripts. However, this is where I come in with a damp disclaimer and mention that it cannot be relied on 100%. What I mean by this is to avoid the ‘copy and paste’. I am not comparing you to those multiple students that got caught cheating on their college exams because they used OpenAI to write their entire thesis but not double checking the content is not just advised but essential. As much as big data can be processed in the space of seconds these days, we must remind ourselves of the unpredictable nature of these neuro linguistic programs – some of the generated information could be false! With great innovation like this, comes a drawback and that is these language models being trained by other users for disinformation campaigns. Especially when working in regulated sectors, ensure you cross check your facts and do your own research. AI contains untold potential to uplift our world, but as an assistant! As humans we remain at the steering wheel if we are mindful of the co-dependency.
