People Don’t Need More Words; They Need Better Ideas
Your job as a thought leader is not to create content; it’s to deal in intellectual property.
So says Jay Acunzo, author of Break the Wheel and a brand messaging strategist.
People can get words anywhere they look these days. Thanks in part to AI, we are at no shortage for content. But what the world will continue to seek out is expertise. Fresh ideas. New approaches to solving problems.
And if the content you’re publishing isn’t delivering on those needs, it might as well just be words on a page. In fact, it is. Or maybe worse.
That’s Not How This Works. That’s Not How Any of This Works.
Companies continue to increasingly report, “Our website isn’t performing in search the way it used to.” That comes as no surprise. As my colleague Curtis Hays continues to demonstrate, search engines aren’t indexing content and returning search engine result pages (SERPs) the way they did just months ago.
For one, 60% of searches or more result in zero-click results, meaning the user is getting the answer to their query before they even click on a link.
Secondly, Google is now actively working to sniff out AI-generated content and instead “prioritize original, high-quality content that satisfies user intent and provides value, moving away from content primarily optimized for search engines.”
So if you’re relying on AI to word-stuff a blog post without providing any unique perspective, analysis, insights, or procriptive strategy, you’re just putting words on a page.
And next to no one will notice. Not even Google.
Said Nobody Ever:
Few among us make a concerted effort to seek out words. Nobody thinks to oneself, “I’m going to consume some content this morning.”
Instead, what we seek to do is become educated and informed. Solve a problem. Eliminate a pain. Identify a better way.
That’s what thought leadership provides, properly executed. It brings the expert’s best ideas to light to deliver on a promise to inform, to enlighten, or to entertain, even.
Yes, AI can make content generation easier and quicker. But so can an untrained intern. The deed you really need to accomplish is to demonstrate expertise. Differentiate. Endear trust.
That’s what creates thought leaders in the first place. Better ideas, not an abundance of words.
And if you think AI word slop is putting your brand in the best possible position to compete in the marketplace of ideas, well, I might want to have a word or two with you.