Have you been wondering, “Can I use ChatGPT for blog posts?” or “Is blogging ChatGPT good or bad for SEO?” If so, you’re not alone!
AI-powered tools like ChatGPT have completely changed the way we create content, but knowing how to use them correctly is the key to maintaining quality and ranking well on Google. In this episode of Coffee + SEO, I’m breaking down how to use ChatGPT for blogging effectively without hurting your website’s visibility in search results (because it’s a slippery slope if you’re not up to date)!
Understanding Google’s Perspective on AI-Generated Content
Google acknowledges the use of AI in content creation and emphasizes the importance of content quality over its production method. In Google’s article on AI-generated content, it literally says, “At Google, we’ve long believed in the power of AI to transform the ability to deliver helpful information” and “appropriate use of AI or automation is not against our guidelines.”
Google cares about delivering original, high-quality content that demonstrates Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). However, it’s important to note that using automation, including AI, to generate content for manipulating search rankings violates Google’s spam policies. That being said, while AI can be a useful tool, it should be used to compliment human creativity, and cannot replace experience and emotion!
So, how does Google determine whether content is helpful and high-quality, or spammy?
The Importance of E-E-A-T in AI-Generated Content
“Google’s ranking systems aim to reward original, high-quality content that demonstrates qualities of what we call E-E-A-T: expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness.” – Google
E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. This is what Google looks at to assess the quality of content. Google’s goal is to show the best quality results at the top to its users, so focusing on E-E-A-T is a great way to improve rankings!
Here’s the breakdown:
- Experience: Demonstrating firsthand experience with the topic.
- Expertise: Showing deep knowledge or skill in the subject matter.
- Authoritativeness: Being recognized as a reliable source by others in the industry.
- Trustworthiness: Providing accurate, honest, and reliable information.
When using ChatGPT for blog writing, you have to ensure that the content aligns with these factors. This means going into the AI-generated content and heavily adding and editing, making sure to include personal insights, credible sources, and accurate information to meet E-E-A-T standards. I like to think of these factors as making content more human too!
Common Problems With Using ChatGPT for Blogging
ChatGPT can be a helpful, time-saving tool that can assist in generating content, but relying solely on AI alone to generate your blogs can lead to several issues:
- Lack of Originality: ChatGPT can create content that lacks unique insights or perspectives, leading to generic articles that don’t stand out. One of the biggest risks to your site when using ChatGPT for blogging is that it writes based on other articles out there, and doesn’t add anything to the conversation. Those articles aren’t going to see the light of day!
- Inaccurate Data: AI doesn’t have real-time access to information and may provide outdated or incorrect data. Not everything out there on the web is accurate, and that’s where ChatGPT gets it’s info. Another area ChatGPT is weak in is with keyword research. Unfortunately almost every time I’ve had it generate keyword research, the data is either straight up wrong, or are poor suggestions (ex. it will suggest me to write articles on keywords that are not being searched).
- Overuse of Automation: Generating large volumes of content without human review can result in low-quality articles that violate Google’s guidelines. I’m constantly seeing people posting on facebook groups “my traffic plummeted because Google caught onto my AI usage” and I know it’s not because they use AI – it’s because they’re trying to shortcut!
- ChatGPT would make an awful SEO: Because chatGPT is getting its information from all the sources out there on the internet, it is fed a LOT of accurate and inaccurate information. This is why it’s important for you to then go in an optimize, rewrite, and add once your article is generated.
There are lots of problems we must be aware of if we are going to use chatGPT as a blog writing tool. That being said, AI can make content generation so much easier, and here are my best tips on how to stay away from these problems and from risk of being spammy, and actually use it to your benefit!
How to Use ChatGPT for Blog Writing
Here are my best tips to using ChatGPT for blogging, that will actually help with SEO:
- Use it as a Drafting Tool, NOT a final draft: Think of ChatGPT as your assistant, not the main writer. One thing I regularly use chatGPT for is idea generation. Ask it for outlines, topic ideas, or a rough draft, and then make it your own. Don’t forget that as much info as you feed chatGPT, it’s not YOU, it does not have your brain, and it is not the expert, you are!
- Edit and Personalize: Add your experiences, case studies, and unique perspectives to make sure the content adds to the conversation, and isn’t just a summary of all the information out there.
- Do SEO Research Separately: Don’t rely on AI for keyword research or optimization help. Use dedicated SEO tools to identify relevant keywords and optimize your content accordingly.
- Review for Accuracy: Fact-check all information provided by AI to ensure its correctness. ChatGPT often gets things wrong. Again, it’s pulling from all sorts of data!
- Optimize After: After finalizing the content, optimize it for SEO by adding meta descriptions, alt texts, and internal links.
Balancing AI Efficiency with Human Creativity
Don’t forget that while ChatGPT can expedite the blog writing process, human creativity still remains irreplaceable! While everyone is out there writing articles from ChatGPT, be the person who adds in personal stories, emotional insights, and a human touch. YOU are the expert, and people want to connect with you.
Resources & Links:
- Google’s AI Content Guidelines: Google Search Blog
- Google’s Spam Policies: Google Spam Policies
- Need SEO help? Explore Aligned SEO Services
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If you found this episode interesting, please consider subscribing to Coffee & SEO, leave a review, and let’s take your blog strategy to the next level! Let’s connect on Instagram: @alignedseoco
Note: This episode is packed with insights on how to use ChatGPT for blogging effectively. If you’ve ever wondered, “Can I use ChatGPT for my blog?” or “How do I make AI content rank on Google?”, this discussion offers practical takeaways to guide you.
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