We all know that AI has its issues, but there’s no denying its convenience. Now, when you want to create content for your tech blog, you can simply feed your chosen AI tool information about your products and services, then ask it to generate article ideas, then the articles themselves.
But if that all sounds a bit too easy, it’s because it is. AI isn’t perfect, and it certainly isn’t the best solution for everyone. Regardless of how it continues to evolve and improve, it’ll likely never compete with the abilities of a human technical writer.
But what are the benefits and setbacks of writing your own AI content versus hiring a technical writer? Which is best for you? Keep reading to learn everything you should know.
What AI Tools Offer
You can use AI writing tools for pretty much any writing task you need, from generating documentation to creating first drafts and summarizing info. It takes a matter of minutes to enter a prompt into your tool of choice and receive the generated response, so using AI will help you speed up the content creation process.
The biggest benefit of AI writing tools is that most are currently free (unless, in some cases, you upgrade for a small monthly subscription fee). There’s also the fact that it’s so quick and easy to use, so you can scale your content quickly even with a small team.
But AI also has a ton of limitations that you should be aware of. The first is that it’s still glaringly obvious when something has been written using an AI tool, as all tools currently use the same generic words, phrases, even sentence structures. Sharing content that’s obviously AI-produced can cheapen your content and have the opposite effect when you’re trying to establish clear branding.
Also, AI-written content still needs human editing, which almost defies the point of using it in the first place.
What a Technical Writer Brings to the Table
There’s no denying the value of human expertise, and this is what you get with a real human writer.
Technical writers, like the team at DevDocs, can follow your instructions when it comes to consistency, audience awareness, and what your product or service actually does. They’ll write with a human touch, knowing how to relate to your audience in a way that an AI robot can’t. Plus, they’ll have actual subject-matter understanding, rather than just the knowledge that you feed into an AI tool.
Of course, cost is something you’ll need to factor in here, and this can be the biggest turnoff if you’re a smaller company or your budget is limited. Turnaround times will also be longer, usually a few days to a few weeks, so you’ll need more patience than with an AI writing tool.
Which Should You Choose?
Here’s what we recommend:
- If you want to make internal drafts and aren’t concerned about basic or repetitive documentation, AI writing tools are fine to use.
- When your tone, structure, and audience adaptation all matter, a real human writer is essential.
You might settle on a hybrid approach, using AI for smaller tasks and hiring a real writer whenever you need to establish and build on your branding, such as for product pages and social media posts.
