Short Answer
If you feel your marketing content is boring and generic, you can’t blame the AI. It’s only doing what it has or hasn’t been told.
Most AI-generated content sounds bland because business owners rely on AI to create their voice instead of refining their own thinking beforehand.
If you don’t clearly define your voice, words, positioning, and beliefs, AI will fill the gaps with average internet language patterns and that’s why you’ll sound like everyone else online.
Garbage in, garbage out.
Lets get your content sounding more like you and less like a machine.
So if you’re Using AI in Your Marketing… But Feeling Like Your Content Sounds Bland, sounds like everyone else and follows the same structure?
Well you’re not alone.
Because you can spot AI written copy a mile away.
Well actually let me rephrase that. You can spot AI written copy that hasn’t been instructed properly a mile away.
The same sentence structure. The same robotic tone. The same recycled phrases. The same “game-changing” advice. Two words. Three sentences.
I mean it’s so obvious…but here’s the truth – business owners, founders, coaches, consultants, marketers now all sound exactly the same. Blending in… and then people wonder why people scroll past their content?
So it’s a problem…and not a problem as defined by AI. (It’s not an x problem, it’s a y problem…anyone else notice that?!)
It’s simply a problem.
You write content. You want to attract people to your thought leadership or offer.
But yet if your marketing content sounds like everyone else, why should someone choose you?
So Lets Get Down to Why your AI Content Sounds Like Everyone Else.
AI is a tool. A very good one…no matter which one you use. But it’s just a tool.
In order to use a tool properly, you need to know how it works.
You see, if you give AI vague positioning, unclear messaging, broad prompts, average thinking, well, the resulting copy will be average too.
I’ve worked in corporate IT marketing departments since 1997 and what’s true then is true now…
Garbage in, garbage out.
I believe there are some business owners who are relying on AI before they understand their own voice, messaging, writing style and YOU Factor.
And unfortunately, if you don’t know that, that’s when content sounds generic. And boring.
Why So Much AI Content Sounds the Same
Lets look at this a bit more. AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot are trained on patterns. This means that they naturally pull towards what is common, repeated, and statistically likely.
In other words?
Average.
So if you simply type, “Write me a LinkedIn post about marketing strategy”, you’re going to get generic structure, generic language, generic opinions with a generic tone.
And your audience will feel it. Even if they can’t articulate why. That’s in-congruence and incongruence in marketing is not good.
You Have to Know Your Voice Before AI Does
One of the biggest mistakes I see business owners making is this – They expect AI to create their voice for them.
As Julia Roberts said in Pretty Woman – Big mistake. Huge!
It does not know your stories, it doesn’t know your lived experience. Unless you tell it, it doesn’t know what what frustrates you, what you believe in, what you disagree with, what matters to your audience and how you naturally communicate.
This is what you need to tell it, if you haven’t already.
Because here’s a truth bomb (you know how I love a truth bomb)….AI is not here to replace your thinking. It’s here to reward it.
If you keep that in your mind, then it becomes a partner in your marketing. Not to replace you or your thinking or your team. It’s here to reward you.
But lets get going. There is so much more I can tell you about stopping writing AI slop…but if you did these three things today…you will be in a much better position next week for writing with AI.
Step 1: Know Your Voice
This sounds simple. But most people haven’t actually stopped to think about how they naturally communicate.
I’ve studied the art and science of copywriting, but I knew my style even before that. So I know my style very well. I write the way I speak. (Sorry not sorry!)
I love white space. I use short sentences, I use bridge sentences. I ask questions and I challenge ideas. I have topic words for each paragraph. It’s flows.
That’s my rhythm, that’s my style. It’s neither right nor wrong. It’s just mine.
Your style may be completely different….but you need to know it. Because if you don’t know your voice, your writing style, your speaking style, the AI certainly won’t.
And like I said above, it will create average output.
Step 2: Know Your Words
Words matter. I’ve always loved words but from the Recession of 2009 onwards, I studied words in sales and offers and copy. I wrote my first book on copy and inside my FAY WAY™ framework, one entire stage is dedicated to Words because they shape how people perceive you.
I use a lot of words over and over. Words such as
- truth bomb
- hey hey
- you see
- no-no
- strategy first
These are part of my communication style. They become part of my messaging. So when I use AI, I instruct it to use language patterns that sound more like me. I instruct it on words that I use and words that I will never use.
Anyone remember how AI used to use the word ‘wowser’ all the time?
Never in a month of Sundays would I ever use it in real life. And if you don’t use it in real life, why would I let AI write it for me?
The words you use repeatedly become part of your voice and the AI should know it.
Step 3: Know Your YOU Factor
This is the part many people skip. And if I had more time, I would write pages and pages on this. I referenced it above earlier. AI doesn’t know your beliefs, your values, your experiences. So it fills in the gap using the Internet.
And lets be honest…the internet is very average.
Your YOU Factor is what separates you from everyone else – it’s your lived experience, your perspective, your personality, your philosophy and so much more.
That’s what makes YOU and your marketing memorable.
Remember that.
AI Should Reward Your Thinking
Here’s something I say often – AI is not here to replace your thinking. It’s here to reward it. I truly believe that. You see, when you know who you serve, what you stand for, the transformation you create and the language your audience and you use, then AI becomes incredibly powerful.
Please don’t skip the step where you put the work into understanding your marketing strategy and all that it entails.
AI can be really powerful when you allow it to become your thinking partner, a brainstormer, a drafting assistant and a productivity tool.
But if your thinking is unclear, well then, the AI becomes noisy. And Noisy marketing will never work.
A Better Way to Prompt AI
Let me show you the difference. This is a simple prompt that you can model yourself.
Instead of typing:
“Write me a LinkedIn post about marketing.”
Try something like:
“Using my belief that business owners don’t need more tactics but better focus, write a LinkedIn post challenging busy marketing culture. Use a conversational tone with short sentences and bridge phrases.”
See the difference?
Now AI has:
- a belief – business owners don’t need more tactics but better focus
- a perspective – busy marketing culture
- an audience – business owners
- a tone – conversational
- a communication style – short sentences and bridging phrases.
Specificity creates personality with AI.
Strategy First. AI Second.
This is my belief – you need to start with strategy, namely marketing strategy and then let AI and all the relevant tools do their thing.
This is where so many people get it wrong. They start with the tool. Tools should come after the strategy, the audience clarity, the messaging, the goals, objectives, intentions, clear communication plan.
AI can absolutely help your marketing. But it works brilliantly when you already understand:
- what makes you different
- who you’re speaking to
- what action you want people to take
Because marketing should feel intentional. So whether you want to add in the word ‘human’ as so many people do…by all means. But it certainly shouldn’t sound like a robot.
Final Thoughts: Stop Sounding Like AI
If your AI-generated content sounds bland, generic, or forgettable, don’t panic. This is a solvable problem!
You don’t need more AI. You just better thinking!
Let me help you to
- understand your voice
- identify your words
- define your YOU Factor
- strengthen your positioning
- improve your prompts.
Because then you can use AI as a brilliant tool that it is. But you’re owning your difference with your thinking.
AI is a brilliant tool. But you are still the thinker. The marketer. The strategist. The instructor.
And after reading this?
Hopefully you’ll stop publishing AI-written slop.
Listen to the Podcast Episode
This article was inspired by Episode 8 of the Marketing Minute podcast:
“Stop Sounding like AI – How Do I Use AI in My Marketing Without Sounding Generic or Losing My Voice?”
In the episode, I dive deeper into:
- AI-generated marketing mistakes
- why so much online content sounds identical
- how to train AI to sound more like you
- practical ways to improve prompts and messaging
You can listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Want Help Creating Marketing That Sounds Like You?
If you want to use AI strategically without losing your personality, positioning, or credibility, I can help.
If you want help using AI strategically without losing your personality, positioning, or credibility, I’d love to help. Email me at denisefay @achievemarketing.ie, head on over to the contact page and I can share information about my mentoring programmes.
