The AI Content Beginner’s Guide

It is not easy to find an introduction to the topic of artificial intelligence in the context of content marketing. Sure, the media have reported on it extensively, and there are also a lot of marketing professionals sharing their thoughts and experiences.

Unfortunately, these are often tips for advanced users who already have a basic knowledge of AI, or superficial reports that do little to help them understand the technology.

And yes, the topic is really complex and multi-layered. There are new developments almost every day, and it takes time and experience to become really good.

But what about people who have never dealt with it before?

Whether you are a CEO and want to have a say in marketing meetings, a content freelancer and want to maximize your efficiency, or you want to understand what content tools and tricks your marketing agency uses to build really good content in record time.

If you’re new to AI content, this article is for you. We shed light on the basics, provide practical tips for getting started and the right resources to expand your basic knowledge.

Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to systems or machines that imitate human-like abilities such as learning, decision-making and problem-solving. imitate.

This point is very important: AI tools cannot “think” like humans. Emotions, creativity and other human characteristics are denied to AI.

To achieve this, artificial intelligence can collect and process considerable amounts of data in a short space of time.

In content creation, AI is used to simplify and optimize the process of writing and publishing content.

It helps to generate content faster, adapt it to the needs of the target group and increase its quality.

For marketers and content creators, this means a more efficient way of working and the ability to be more creative and strategic with their resources.

Social media is about conveying all the important information in the shortest possible time. Your target group must be addressed as well as possible.

AI can help here on various levels. When creating articles – whether text, image or video – AI tools speed up the creation process or can efficiently optimize your templates.

Artificial intelligence can carry out the target group analysis if the target group is addressed correctly. You will then receive specific, applicable tips and suggestions.

In addition, a tool like ChatGPT can also help you to set up and optimize a content plan for your social media marketing.

When the term content marketing is mentioned, many people immediately think of blogs as a marketing tool. This is probably where AI is most prominent. However, this is also where the risk of using AI incorrectly is greatest.

For a detailed guide on how to optimize your content creation with AI tools, we have written an article with 15 practical tips suitable for both beginners and advanced users.

In a nutshell, AI tools help with the creation of an article from research to fine-tuning.

Finally, AI can also improve the efficiency of customer service optimize customer service.

Admittedly, at first glance this has little to do with content marketing.

But customer service is the direct line to your users. Nowhere else can you find out so precisely and reliably what moves your customers. An evaluation of customer feedback is particularly valuable for the creation of FAQs.

In customer contact, AI can automatically process inquiries, contribute to the personalization of service or carry out an analysis of common problems.

In the end, your content benefits as it is tailored more precisely to the real problems of your users, but of course also your users themselves, who receive better service or better information.

The AI tool for content marketing that is probably the most present in the media and therefore also the best known is ChatGPT from OpenAI.

In the Plus version, i.e. GPT-4, it is very powerful and, with the browsing function, plugins and integrated DALL-E image AI module, also has capabilities that go far beyond mere text creation.

The disadvantage is that it is not easy to learn – a thorough familiarization with the topic of prompt engineering is advisable.

The free version is less powerful, more prone to errors and has no Internet access. But it is perfectly adequate for trying out and learning.

Another popular tool is Rytr which is more focused on content creation than ChatGPT.

With features that specifically benefit copywriting and content marketing, as well as integrations for WordPress and Medium, it’s a valuable addition to any content marketer’s toolbox. It also has an integrated plagiarism check.

However, due to its strong focus on content writing, it is more limited compared to other AI tools.

In my experience, the following are essential for translations
Deepl
. The tool uses AI to improve its translations and also copes well with colloquial and technical language.

Like any translation software, it is not free of errors, but it can learn from improvements.

For some time now, Deepl has also included Deepl Write, which I use together with Grammarly in the field of text optimization tools. Both help to check your texts for grammatical and spelling errors and improve the overall quality of your content.

Deepl Write is currently still in beta status and is therefore not yet fully developed.

Grammarly’s premium function offers even more features, including a plagiarism check and more. However, it is particularly suitable for optimizing English-language content. If you want to cover as many languages as possible, Deepl is more versatile with over 30 languages.

To get started with AI support in content marketing, it is essential to first decide on at least one tool. We show the first, important steps using the example of ChatGPT.

The first step is to create an account. This will give you direct access to ChatGPT 3.5, so you can start your first conversations straight away. I also recommend that you have a little chat with the chatbot. It is less important to fulfill specific tasks or solve problems. Let your imagination run wild, ask questions. Rather, you get a feel for the AI, its capabilities, but also its limitations.

Free access is enough to get you started. However, if you want to use the tool permanently in a professional context, you should upgrade to ChatGPT Plus or ChatGPT 4.

This premium version is far more powerful than the free version, both in terms of its training data and its functions.

At this point, it makes sense to take a closer look at the topic of prompts . Prompt is the technical term for instructions that you give to a Large Language Model such as ChatGPT.

To really understand the subject, I recommend that you take a crash course in prompt engineering You can of course also try to get to grips with the subject using the tried-and-tested “trial and error” method. But a basic course will help you to learn the basics in a targeted manner.

In addition, these courses are based on extensive experience and you learn to understand the way AI works and “thinks”.

With this basic knowledge and an initial feel for the capabilities of AI, you can start using the various possibilities of ChatGPT and other content creation tools.

You can find detailed instructions on how to create content with AI support in our article with 15 tips for AI content creation.

To begin with, it is advisable to deal with topics that you already know. This makes it easier for you to recognize and correct any errors made by the AI.

The most important thing is that you get started promptly. AI is already widely used in content marketing, and the competition never sleeps!

If you receive support from freelancers and agencies for content creation, SEO and other tasks, you can also approach your contacts about this topic.

Most professionals will be happy to talk about their own approach to AI and explain how they let the clever programs help them in their work – and how your company benefits from it.

The responsible use of AI in content marketing is an important topic that encompasses several aspects.

On the one hand, the data protection plays a major role: it is important to ensure that all data processed by AI complies with the applicable data protection regulations and is treated confidentially.

It is equally important to consider the impact on jobs. AI should be seen as a tool that supports content marketers and not as a substitute for human creativity and decision-making.

Finally, the ecological aspect should not be neglected. The operation of AI systems requires considerable computing power and energy. Therefore, a conscious and efficient use of this technology is necessary to minimize the environmental impact.

I’ve already hinted at it: despite its impressive performance, AI is far from perfect.

There are some problems that occur quite frequently. These problems can be very frustrating, especially for novices in AI content creation, which is why we will deal with them here.

Incorrect information. Sometimes AI invents facts, but sells them credibly and plausibly. This is called “AI hallucination”. It is therefore important to check the information. If you can get experts to review it, that is even more valuable.

Inaccurate or inappropriate answers. This problem is usually due to an unclear prompt. Try to formulate your question or instruction more precisely. Sometimes, however, it is enough to generate the answer again.

Too long answer. This is not uncommon and is also due to the fact that AIs such as ChatGPT have no real concept of text length. Here it is usually sufficient to ask the AI for a short version of the answer.

The AI refuses to answer. This problem usually takes the form of the AI announcing that it only has limited information as a language model or is otherwise unable to answer the question. There are two reasons for this: Either it is an AI without browsing, which therefore has no access to data that is newer than the last information learned. Or the query concerns a topic to which the AI is not allowed to give an answer by your programming.

Lack of creativity or originality. Since the AI can only use the information with which it has been trained, its responses can appear uncreative. It is therefore important to combine the power of AI with human creativity and expertise.

Using the latest version of your AI can help reduce such problems. Instructions that violate the AI’s restrictions – such as making ethically reprehensible statements – should be avoided as a matter of principle.

A current project in which we were able to accelerate and optimize our content creation with AI support was the support of Brühmarkt, a coffee roasting company from Frankfurt.

Among other things, this project involved writing category texts for the individual categories in the online coffee shop.

We mainly used AI to quickly design and structure the content. The finished texts contain very little of the AI.

This is mainly due to the fact that the texts were formulated too generally and became too long. With a thorough fact check, an adjustment to the desired tonality and our understanding of good content, we were able to quickly build a usable end product.

We also enlisted the help of AI to create a content plan in order to cluster the topics sensibly and obtain additional, suitable ideas. AI participation was lower here.

Overall, we were able to achieve time savings of around 40% in content planning and creation without compromising the quality of the content.

AI content at UnitedAds

Of course, we don’t just talk about how exciting and useful AI is in content marketing, we also work with it ourselves.

This currently affects our blog in particular. Here we can experiment with different methods and find the right balance.

Our customers also benefit from this: by generating really good content faster with AI support, we can take our SEO work to a whole new level.

Next, we will start training our own GPTs for customers with larger projects. These make it easier and more efficient to tailor content precisely to your company’s target group and tone of voice.

Of course, the human component is not neglected. We are convinced that AI is a valuable tool: it cannot replace people, but it can support them.

This article, for example, was drafted with the help of an AI, but the final text was written almost entirely by me.

The AI work has allowed me to concentrate on the creative part. This saved me about 50% of the time I would have needed if I had done everything without AI support. The AI was also able to help me come up with ideas and point out aspects that I might otherwise have overlooked.

AI is now well established in marketing, especially in the content sector.

Gradually, the initial hype is giving way to increasingly robust and well-developed approaches.

It is therefore also possible to venture a few predictions about future developments. However, these are still quite uncertain: technology is developing very quickly and always has surprises in store.

Artificial intelligence can collect, process and organize huge amounts of data, but this also requires large resources. In order to keep the cost-benefit calculation as positive as possible and to use AI in a targeted manner, the importance of data management will become more important.

The second factor here is that it is also becoming increasingly important to retain control over the data. The more data is collected and processed, the greater the responsibility in the context of data protection.

Conveniently, the AI itself can offer a solution here. By processing data quickly and efficiently, it can filter out unimportant information and sort data in a meaningful way.

With increasing complexity and capabilities, AI tools harbor a certain risk of displacing jobs. Increasing efficiency through AI support is already ensuring that fewer people can do more work.

I don’t expect the impact on the labor market to be massive in terms of job losses.

Rather, I think that the skill of prompt engineering, i.e. the ability to give an AI clear instructions for optimal results, is gaining in importance.

Despite all the impressive capabilities that AI already offers today, we must not forget: The technology is still at the beginning of its development.

I asked both Google’s Bard and ChatGPT about their predictions for how AI will develop over the next few years. The two are pretty much on the same page.

The technology will continue to develop and spread rapidly. With new capabilities, new applications will also emerge.

Both also expect the technology to become increasingly accessible so that more people can benefit from it.

And both expect artificial intelligence to make a contribution in areas such as health and environmental protection.

Overall, AI itself has an optimistic outlook and expects above all that cooperation between humans and AI will intensify.

ChatGPT summarizes it like this:

Artificial intelligence (AI): A generic term that refers to machines and algorithms that demonstrate or simulate human-like abilities such as learning, understanding and problem solving.

Machine learning: A branch of AI that enables systems to learn from experience and improve themselves without explicit programming. The basis of almost all artificial intelligence as we know it.

Natural Language Processing (NLP): The ability of computers to understand and process human language.

Deep learningA subclass of machine learning that is based on neural networks and can recognize complex patterns in large amounts of data.

Algorithm: A set of instructions or rules followed by AI systems to perform tasks or solve problems.

Neural networkAn AI model inspired by the functioning of the human brain and consisting of a series of interconnected units (neurons).

Data Science (Data Science): An interdisciplinary field concerned with extracting knowledge and insights from data sets, often in conjunction with AI technologies.

Large Language Models (LLMs ) are advanced AI systems that are trained to understand and generate human language. They are a very highly developed form of NLP.

In this guide, we have explored the basics of AI in the context of content marketing.

From an introduction to key concepts such as machine learning and natural language processing to practical applications of AI tools such as ChatGPT, Rytr and DeepL Write.

We highlighted the benefits of AI in content creation, including time savings, consistent quality and improvements in search engine optimization.

Specific areas of application in social media marketing and customer service were also discussed.

We have also emphasized the importance of the responsible use of AI, particularly with regard to data protection, jobs and environmental aspects.

The most important message is: AI is a technology that is only just beginning.

AI will continue to develop rapidly in the coming months and years. New capabilities and applications, but also new regulations, will constantly change the market.

Getting started can be overwhelming. But there are some resources to help you get started.

Don’t hesitate to contact us – we are intensively involved with the possibilities of AI in content marketing and can certainly help you further.