The State of AI for Long-Form Content Generation in 2024

It is undeniable that AI is the hot topic of conversation in 2024. Software providers across the board are unveiling innovative ways to incorporate AI, and professionals in the business world are eagerly exploring these advancements to enhance their daily efficiencies.

As marketers, especially content-focused marketers, we all heard the early cries that our work would soon be replaced by generative AI. After much testing, prompting, training, and evaluation; as of Q4 2024, there's not much for true content marketers to fear... yet.

AI-Generated Content Lacks Depth

Generative AI is currently unable to replicate the depth and nuance of human thought, especially new thoughts. When it comes to crafting niche, technical content that resonates with engineers, the irreplaceable touch of a seasoned human writer becomes more apparent than ever.

Your prompting skills certainly impact the results, but even with significant context given to tools such as Jasper and ChatGPT 4, they just can't beat our writers yet.

They seem to do a great job pumping out "fluff" content, but when you are looking for the substance, the actual answer to your question, it's hard to find and very thin.

New, Complex, & Technical Concepts

AI falls short in comprehending and reproducing intricate technical concepts, which is where human writers excel by distilling them into easily understandable and captivating narratives. Humans continue to bridge the gap between engineers and the wider audience by translating complex jargon into plain language.

Unlike AI, human writers bring creativity and innovation to content creation. They can provide completely new concepts, fresh perspectives, and unique angles, ensuring that content remains engaging and thought-provoking.

In an era where information overload is a constant challenge, the ability to capture and retain an engineer's attention through insightful, human-generated content is a distinct competitive advantage.

AI might replicate patterns, but it cannot replicate the creative spark and ingenuity that human writers inject into their work, ensuring that it stands out in a crowded digital landscape.

Effective Content Marketing Anticipates Questions and Addresses Concerns

Human writers offer the invaluable quality of empathy. They can anticipate the questions, concerns, and interests of their audience, tailoring content to address these needs effectively.

Engineers, like any other audience, appreciate content that speaks directly to their pain points and aspirations. This empathetic approach, born from human understanding and experience, is critical in building trust and rapport with the target audience—something that remains challenging for AI, which lacks the ability to empathize.

AI Doesn't Beat Human Writers ... Yet

If you need to produce content on very simple topics that most people could explain to someone else, AI should work just fine for you. Think day to day products or services in everyone's lives.

As we approach the end of 2024, it's evident that AI-generated content has not yet reached the level required to replace human content marketers in the manufacturing industry. This is particularly true for complex topics that demand extensive research and the skill to simplify concepts for a layman's understanding.

However, at some point this will likely change. Generative AI is improving hour by hour. There's no denying that it will continue to improve when it comes to writing complex, technical content for manufacturers.

One key area of improvement lies in AI's ability to learn from vast datasets of specialized content. As AI models are exposed to an increasing volume of high-quality technical content, they can develop a deeper understanding of industry-specific terminology, trends, and context.

These enhancements will enable AI to produce content that not only meets technical standards but also resonates with engineers on a more profound level. The potential for AI to complement the work of human writers and enhance content production efficiency is very exciting!