Imagine a world ruled by artificial intelligence. It has the final say on war and peace. It governs law and politics and manages raw materials. Terrifying, isn’t it?
Fortunately, this scenario only happens in sci-fi movies. At least for now. However, there’s another revolution just before our eyes – artificial intelligence is gradually taking over modern marketing and business. Of course, this is not a negative phenomenon – you can read about the many possibilities of using AI in marketing in the article by my friend Joanna Szumowska: AI Usage in B2B Marketing in Times of Crisis: Make It Your Robin, Not Batman.
However, there is an area that, in my opinion, definitely shouldn’t be based on insights “produced” by AI tools. It’s thought leadership.
Thought leadership or AI leadership?
The development of AI tools, and above all, the implementation of a real gamechanger – the one and only chatGPT – means it’s no longer necessary to have the skills of a writer to prepare a text. Sometimes, even of pretty good quality.
Do you want to seem like an expert? Create insightful content?
Don’t worry, the recipe is quite easy:
- Get some inspiration (you can use tools such as BuzzSumo, Neuron).
- Add a glass of text – it can be generated by chatGPT.
- Add a pinch of tools to check or translate your text.
- Finally, season it with some tools to smooth and improve it.
- Oh, and don’t forget about graphics! But well, it can also be generated for you by Midjourney or DALL-E 2.
Voilla, it’s done!
Thanks to the omnipotence of AI, work is easy and fast – the tool will come up with a content topic for you. It will write the text for you. It will check and correct it, as well as suggest ideas for improvement. Maybe even publish.
However, even well-developed AI tools cannot do what a human can. They don’t think. Thus, there’s a keyword in the very name “thought leadership”. A thought. Therefore, you should ask yourself: can even the most inspiring text be considered a valuable manifestation of thought leadership, if it was not created from the knowledge, experience and personal insights of a man, but a machine? In my opinion – definitely not.
It’s also important to consider the leadership part and its ability to drive change and innovation in your industry. To inspire others, you cannot rely on AI algorithms, but on your own observations, personal perspective, compelling vision, and strong expertise. ChatGPT won’t make you an industry or niche leader if you really aren’t one. It can help you build your personal brand and reputation, but if you don’t have anything personal to say or can’t add your own unique insight – your reputation will be fragile and easily undermined.
In a world full of AI, be the HUMAN that stands out
When everyone is using the same tools to create content, sometimes it takes being human to stand out. – Purna Virji
Considering the various possibilities of creating content today, I believe that the authenticity of content is now more important than ever. When the Internet is flooded with a plethora of texts written by AI – often generic and superficial – it is a great opportunity for HUMANS to use their experiences and insights.
Expertness in content writing is not only a matter of compliance with the E-A-T SEO (expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness) principle, but above all the need to provide a unique thought that comes from a human being. It is humans who gather experience, learn and develop. Unlike artificial intelligence, they can analyse more than just data – context and emotions.
Of course, thought leadership is not easy. It often requires leaving your comfort zone, exposing yourself not only to the possibility of building contacts and image but also to criticism. It requires commitment, time, energy, knowledge, and authenticity. There’s no wonder it’s tempting to support oneself with tools. Obviously, ChatGPT can generate publishable content for you. But even if you write a perfect prompt, how will you verify, without having expert knowledge, whether the text you received is valuable and insightful? And can you be sure that it will be unique? Maybe the same insights, produced by the same tool, will soon appear on someone else’s blog or LinkedIn profile?
So, it is difficult to call it “thought leadership” if it is not a man but a machine behind it. There is no thought here – no personal insight, emotions, or experience. There is intelligence, but it’s artificial. There is also no leadership – no sharing knowledge, inspiring and teaching. These are two key factors that not only constitute the name of thought leadership but also define its meaning, purpose and message.
Therefore, if you are considering using AI for thought leadership activities, ask yourself: if you would not put your life in the hands of artificial intelligence, would you entrust your business, reputation and image to it without hesitation?
