How To Create AI Content That Doesn't Totally Suck

Let’s play with an analogy for a second.

Imagine if performance-enhancing drugs were suddenly legalized in sports.

Sure, we all know they’re already floating around behind the scenes, but bear with me—this is going somewhere.

Now picture a group of elite athletes—all equally talented, equally trained.

Three of them decide to go full throttle with these newly legalized enhancements. One doesn’t.

Who’s going to fall behind?

Yeah. The “natural.”

Not because they’re not good—but because they’re not optimized like their juicy compatriots. All things being equal – everyone’s on juice – on a large enough scale and timeline they’re going to lose, regardless of talent and/or luck.

And this, in a roundabout way, is kind of like what’s happening right now in the world of content creation right now.

You're either enhanced (using AI tools wisely), or you're clinging to “natural” methods while your competition runs laps around you.

AI Is Like Steroids For Content Creation, And It Comes With The Same Kind of Dangers

You can debate ethics and artistry all day—but at some point, you need to get in the game.

Yes, Big Tech has done the dirty on publishers and creators, taking their content, repackaging it, and cutting them out of the occasion.

This is why the HCU update happened and why you cannot turn off AI Overviews.

Big Tech companies like Google, OpenAI and Meta aren’t ethical, but it doesn’t mean you have to be the same.

You can use AI in a way that doesn’t kill the open web, steal from your fellow content creators, and actually contribute something to the web, to information gain, to the conversation.

The point is: AI is here, it isn’t going anywhere, and your competitors are using it – but you don’t need to sell your soul to it, give it wholesale access to every process.

So how should you use AI in content creation the right way?

• Don’t let it replace what makes you, you – your voice, your opinions, your experiences.

• Don’t hand over your creativity to a machine. You know what your readers like. An AI will just guess.

• Don’t hit publish on anything that isn’t you—original, human, and meaningful.

So how do you actually do this? Don’t worry, it’s insanely easy.

Here’s the approach I use—there’s two variations as well, so you’ve got options.

Two Hacks That Turn AI Content Into Actual, Useful Content

1. Talk to Your AI: The Easiest Way to Create Original Content

Here’s a little trick that’s completely changed how I create content with AI: I talk to it. Literally.

Tools like ChatGPT and Claude let you record yourself or upload voice notes. So whenever I’m working on an article, I hit record and just start talking.

I use ChatGPT (the native Mac app) for content creation and I have a gazillion custom GPTs set up for different types of content.

But the process is always the same: I share my thoughts, opinions, and personal takes on the topic I’m writing about.

I riff on ideas, tell stories, or explain how a concept has affected me.

Sometimes it’s a five-minute rant, sometimes just 30 seconds. It doesn’t matter.

What matters is this: now my content isn’t just AI-generated—it’s AI-assisted and 100% original.

I’ve infused it with me—my tone, my voice, my perspective. That’s what makes it resonate.

That’s what makes it human, and I have my first draft in less than 20 seconds.

I then go through the draft and make it more my own. It’s longer than raw-dogging content from ChatGPT but I don’t care – it’s better content.

Good things take longer. If you spend your creative life trying to do everything quickly, you’re bypassing the actual creative process where all the magic actually happens.

Live in the creative process, walk in it, exercise in it, bask in it. Your content will be better and your readers will get more from it.

This is what adds to information gain on the web. You’re literally giving Google something it doesn’t have – and right now that’s a precious commodity.

So next time you’re staring at a blank page, try talking it out.

Let your AI draft the content for you, and then you rewrite it.

The result? Content that’s faster to create, and still unmistakably yours.

2. Share Your Notes With Your AI

If talking to your computer feels awkward—or you’re in an office and don’t want to be that guy—there’s a powerful alternative that still guarantees original, valuable content: start with a rough draft.

Just write. Doesn’t need to be perfect or polished. What matters is getting your own thoughts down on the page first.

Share your opinions.

Write out your take on the topic.

Include personal anecdotes, experiences, and insights only you could bring to the table.

The more detail, nuance, and personality you pour into this draft, the better. Make it uniquely you.

If you’ve got data, great – add it into the mix. The more unique you can make your post the better.

Always be thinking about information gain when you’re developing content: adding to the web, not rehashing what’s already there.

This is what transforms generic content into something useful, relatable, and engaging.

Whether it’s 500 words or just a few bullet points, your draft becomes the foundation for content that stands out—because it’s infused with your voice, your context, and your lived experience.

Then—and only then—bring in your AI assistant. And for the love of god, please make sure you’ve set up some custom instructions for it to adhere to as well!

Let it help you expand, refine, format, or structure what you’ve already created.

Now your content is AI-assisted, not AI-generated. That’s a massive difference.

But What If I Love Writing and All This Feels Kinda Gross?

Hey, I get it—I love writing too. It’s the reason I got into this in the first place.

Crafting sentences, finding the perfect analogy, hitting that rhythm where everything just flows? There’s nothing quite like it.

On WPDAZE, I’m not publishing every day, so I write all the content myself – no AI assistance whatsoever.

But on my blogs and sites that rely on traffic? I need faster output to keep pace with my competition.

This is where these two methods come in handy. I can publish new content faster than ever, cover more ground, but the content I’m creating is unique and offers a fresh perspective.

Think about it:

• Your competitors are already using AI.

• You can 10x your content output—without burning yourself out.

• You can operate like a team of ten, even if it’s just you at your laptop.

And if you are running a niche site or a blog, you’ll still want to use your own, natural writing for the stuff that really matters – your newsletter, your books, your premium content, your socials, your landing pages, you op-ed pieces.

These types of content are what actually moves the needle.

And post-HCU, your should be 100% focussed on building an audience. Not traffic.

Yes, traffic still matters. But the real win? Turning that traffic into subscribers—people that resonate with what you have to say, that want to hear from you.

Use YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn – whatever is most suitable for you and your potential audience.

That’s the game now: building audiences outside of Google.

And if your organic traffic sucks? Cool. No problem.

• Run PPC campaigns.

• Tap into social media.

• Explore every channel that makes sense.

The days of easy, free traffic from Google are over. Long gone.

It’s time to get creative, solve real problems, and dial in on creating content that’s actually worth someone’s attention.

Every piece of content you put out now has to be top-shelf because it’s doing double duty – It’s not just teaching or entertaining, it’s convincing people you’re worth following.

That’s the goal: get them on your email list, offer them value / insight they cannot get anywhere else, be a friend, a confidant, a teacher, a guide – whatever.

Use premium content downloads to get them to notice you. Social media threads. PPC. Reddit ads. Freebies. Lead magnets.

Whatever it takes—just get them onto your list.

Just don’t go thinking you can mug off your audience with weak-beer AI content.

People can feel it.

Think of all the big names and players in your niche. What do they do? Most of them are thought leaders. They spark conversion, initiate debates, cause controversy.

That needs to be what you do. And if you think AI can do that for you out of the box, you’re very much mistaken.

AI cannot think for itself, it cannot create ideas, connect things together like you can. All AI can do is speed up your production process, get your voice out to more people on more platforms.

Use AI daily, use automation platforms like Make and ActivePieces and N8N but for the love of god just make sure what you’re automating is worth automating in the first place.

Take the time to craft great content—use AI if you want, but use it smartly to speed up your output without losing what makes your content quintessentially YOU.

Do this from now on. You can come back in 12 months and thank me.