Great content is when the content perfectly gives the reader exactly what they expected and needed for the question, problem, or product/service they sought.
AI can definitely be used to create "great" content, and it's going to be a big deal in the coming years. You may have heard about deep learning neural networks like GPT-3, which can translate human speech from one language into another and generate original content.
In this guide, I want to cover what it means for something to be considered "great" content, how it differs from mediocre or even good content, and how AI can help you create that perfect piece of writing for your needs.
To understand great content, you must first understand good content (because I think we all know what mediocre content is).
What is good content?
Good content is expertly written, well-researched, topic-rich, and even crafted with the best of intentions. It will use language exceptionally well, even provide fantastic insights into the topic.
Heck, a good content writer might even perform unique, custom research to bring about perceptions only they can provide. They might even go far above and beyond the competition to explore angles not yet covered thoroughly.
This sounds like amazing content. Why might it not qualify as great content? Can you guess why? It's really down to one thing missing. It's right in front of your face, and you might not even know it.
What is great content?
Great content is good content. It's powerful, insightful, informative, solves problems, and cleverly offers products and services. So what separates great content from good content?
One thing: an audience.
Great content is good content written on a topic or a product/service that actually has an audience. Instead of being written and nobody ever reading because nobody is searching for it -- great content is exceptional, relevant, and sought after content.
Great content is written for an audience that exists (such as Infopreneurs looking to promote their digital products) or needs it (like a topic where there is a high demand for information).
Not SEO
Great content does not mean good content with great SEO. Good content with great SEO can gain some amount of traction… but great content doesn't need SEO to thrive.
Or, maybe better put, great content doesn't need much SEO. Maybe just enough to make sure your article compares favorably with the content in the top SERPS for the search you expect people to find your article through.
But only after an intense focus on making the article purely for the reader.
What is the audience?
The audience is who you will imagine before you even begin to write. They are who you will have in mind while you create the content. You will want to write for someone's needs, wants, and desires.
Of course, it's your content. You're the writer and you will meet the reader's intent (their needs) in your own unique way through your words. But you will always focus on them because they are who you will be writing for.
In a nutshell, great content is made for an audience that has an interest in your topic.
Can AI help write great content?
Of course, it can. But it is not going to autogenerate a full article for you. Those "AI" tools are terrible. But GPT-3 based tools like ShortlyAI will help you create great content.
If you use them correctly.
The single biggest piece of advice I can give you is to pretend the AI is your writing assistant. Ask your AI assistant for suggestions and ideas for what to write -- but you will always be involved and constantly thinking about your reader's needs.
In ShortlyAI, this is easy. Its blank canvas design is just like writing in any other document -- but with an AI assistant ready to help you out. You can work fast -- you write some, the AI writes some, and you take turns creating something beautiful for your reader.
Summary
In closing, I'd like to say this isn't as hard as it sounds. We often put so much effort into things when the path of least resistance is often the right way.
For instance, I founded another site called TokyoSpark. It's over two years old but guess what. The AI Content Dojo has far more traffic -- something like 5X more -- and it's a little over a month old at this point.
Why?
Well, it turns out that the content I created for TokyoSpark was a bit of a commodity. I wrote too much "about" things… whereas on the AI Content Dojo I very specifically create content purely designed to help you.
And it turns out the "helping you" content resonates with people. Who would have known? 🤷♂️