In a recent episode of B2B Weekly, we took a deep dive into the exciting and sometimes scary world of AI in B2B content creation and how it impacts creators. Gavin Purcell, a digital media veteran with a unique background in AI, joins hosts Tim Maitland and Terry O’Connell as co-hosts of the AI for Humans podcast on the immense potential and transformation of AI. We had a thought-provoking discussion about power.
The conversation moved beyond the usual suspect, ChatGPT, to explore the wide range of AI applications currently reshaping the creative world. He touched on potential concerns and misconceptions, such as the fear of unemployment due to AI, and emphasized the importance of understanding, accepting, and effectively utilizing AI tools in daily work.
A Marketer’s Perspective on AI in B2B Content Creation
“AI is one of the defining new technologies of our time,” argued Gavin, noting that its impact could be as great as the early introduction of the Internet. Terry discusses the impact AI is already having on content creation, especially social media and his B2B marketing. The group was excited about how AI could evolve and integrate into operational processes through plugins, apps, and other tools, as seen with Adobe Firefly.
Emphasizing the importance of individuals encountering AI in their current position, Tim said, “You don’t have to become an expert overnight. No.” The goal is not only to familiarize yourself with AI tools and processes, but also to understand how to practically apply them to your daily work.
AI: A Tool for Creative Innovation
In response to the hype and anxiety surrounding AI, Gavin stressed that AI should be seen primarily as a tool at this stage. “AI is a tool that perhaps makes us even better at what we can do. But it is also a tool for doing creative things and learning more about things,” he explained.
Gavin compared the advent of the internet to the rise of AI, suggesting that, like the internet in the late 90s, early adoption of AI could yield significant advances. His claims are backed up by the rapid adoption and success of tools like ChatGPT, which helped him reach 100 million users in just a few months of launch. The group then discussed that this is just the tip of the iceberg as real-world applications of AI in B2B content creation extend from written content to image generation and finally video creation. .
Rapid evolution of AI
According to Gavin, the ecosystem of AI startups is exploding, spanning a wide variety of industries and applications. It’s essential for businesses to understand what’s on offer and how it’s changed over the past year. “It’s important, especially for those doing business-to-business trading, to understand what they have to offer and how that has changed since last year,” Gavin said.
Executives, marketers, and sales professionals need to stay up-to-date to make sure things aren’t getting worse. Failure to adopt new and beneficial technologies can result in labor time and associated costs. Terry gave an example of how a writing project that used to take days now takes just a fraction of an hour.
Stay on top of AI developments
For those who understand AI and want to keep up with it, the consensus between Tim and Gavin is to start with the basics. For example, familiarizing yourself with OpenAI’s chat GPT is an easy entry point. The goal is to understand what a prompt is and how to ask the AI to return specific information.
Gavin emphasizes that learning prompts correctly can be a skill that can be learned. This includes not only asking questions, but preparing the AI to act in certain ways. Experimentation and practice lead to a deeper understanding of how to effectively use AI tools.
As AI continues to grow and evolve, so does the potential for innovation in various areas such as content creation and marketing. Companies and individuals who exploit this potential can greatly increase their efficiency and creativity. The key is understanding, embracing, and effectively leveraging AI.
