Using AI to Speed Content Creation

Want to speed the time it takes you to create content? Wondering how AI could help?

In this article, you’ll discover how to use AI to speed your content planning and production.

#1: Feed Your AI a Brand Identity Document

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become an indispensable tool for content creators looking to elevate their video content strategy. By harnessing AI's power, you can generate fresh ideas, write compelling titles and hooks, and design eye-catching thumbnails that will make your videos stand out in a crowded digital landscape.  

But before using AI tools to enhance your video content production, you need to create a comprehensive brand identity document. This document will be the bedrock for all your AI-assisted content creation efforts.

Pro Tip: When crafting your brand identity document, write conversationally, as if you were describing your business to a friend. This approach will help the AI better understand your brand voice and personality.

Your brand identity document should contain in-depth information about your business, including your mission statement, unique selling proposition, and your products or services. 

It should also provide a clear picture of your target audience, encompassing their demographics, psychographics, pain points, and aspirations. When describing your target audience, Diana Gladney—video creator and AI strategist—advises being as specific as possible. Create a persona for your ideal customer with a name, age, occupation, and other pertinent details. Delve into their challenges, frustrations, and goals as they relate to what your business offers.

For example, if you're a real estate agent targeting first-time homebuyers in the St. Louis area, your brand identity document might include details like:

“My ideal client is a first-time homebuyer, aged 34–45, moving from Chicago to the St. Louis metropolitan area. They're looking for homes in the $200K–$300K price range in family-friendly neighborhoods. They're often overwhelmed by the home-buying process and need guidance navigating the local market.”

Once your brand identity document is complete, feed it into your AI content creation tool, like ChatGPT. This will equip the AI with the necessary context to generate ideas and suggestions tailored to your brand and audience.

#2: How to Use AI to Generate Video Ideas

With your brand identity document in hand, you're ready to harness the power of AI for your video content. Diana recommends being specific in your requests to the AI to get the most relevant and actionable ideas.

For instance, if you're planning your following few YouTube videos, you could ask the AI:

“Based on the information I've shared about my business and target audience, please generate 7 video topic ideas that will resonate with first-time homebuyers like Steve, who want to buy a home in the St. Louis area. The topics should address their common challenges, such as understanding the local market, finding the right neighborhood, and navigating the mortgage process.”

The AI will analyze your brand identity document and generate a list of ideas tailored to your brand and audience. To keep the list manageable, specify the number of ideas you'd like the AI tool to generate, such as 5–7.

When evaluating the AI-generated content ideas, consider how well they align with your brand, audience, and content goals. You can also ask the AI to provide a rationale for each idea, explaining why it believes a particular topic would be valuable and relevant to your audience.

For example, the AI might suggest video topics like:

• “5 Things Every First-Time Homebuyer in St. Louis Should Know Before Starting Their Search”
• “The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Right Neighborhood in St. Louis for Your Family”
• “Navigating the Mortgage Process: Expert Tips for First-Time Homebuyers”
• “St. Louis Real Estate Market Update: What First-Time Homebuyers Need to Know”
• “Common Mistakes First-Time Homebuyers Make and How to Avoid Them”

Remember, the AI's suggestions are just a starting point. Use your expertise and creativity to refine the ideas and make them uniquely yours. For example, you can add your own local insights and experiences to the video topics, making them more specific and valuable to your target audience.

#3: How to Use AI to Craft Video Titles and Hooks

A strong video idea is just the beginning. You need a compelling title and hook to get viewers to click on your video. The title appears in search results and entices people to watch, while the hook—the first 5–8 seconds of your video—keeps viewers engaged and encourages them to keep watching.

To get the AI's assistance with titles and hooks, provide it with your video idea and ask it to generate 5–7 options for each. For example:

“I'm creating a video titled ‘5 Things Every First-Time Homebuyer in St. Louis Should Know Before Starting Their Search.' Please generate 7 title options and 7 hook options for this video, keeping in mind my target audience of first-time homebuyers like Steve.”

Diana suggests sharing examples of successful titles and hooks from your previous videos to improve the AI's output further. This could include titles that garnered high click-through rates or hooks that resulted in excellent viewer retention. By providing these examples, you're giving the AI a benchmark for what resonates with your audience.

In the real estate example, you might say:

“My most popular video to date is titled ‘The Ultimate Guide to Buying Your First Home in St. Louis.' The hook for that video was, ‘Buying your first home in St. Louis can be overwhelming. In this video, I'll share my top tips for navigating the local market, finding your dream home, and avoiding common mistakes that could cost you thousands.'”

You can also provide the AI with specific criteria for generating titles and hooks. For instance:

“Please create titles under 60 characters and include the phrase' St. Louis first-time homebuyer.' For the hooks, create 8–12 seconds long options and start with a question or a surprising statistic that will grab the viewer's attention.”

The AI might generate titles and hooks like:

Title options:

• “5 Must-Know Tips for St. Louis First-Time Homebuyers”
• “St. Louis First-Time Homebuyer Guide: 5 Essential Tips”
• “5 Secrets Every St. Louis First-Time Homebuyer Should Know”

Hook options:

• “Did you know that 60% of first-time homebuyers in St. Louis overpay for their homes? In this video, I'll show you how to avoid that mistake and get the best deal possible.”
• “Buying your first home in St. Louis can be a daunting task. But don't worry, I'm here to help. In this video, I'll share my top 5 tips for navigating the local market and finding your dream home.”
• “Are you a first-time homebuyer in St. Louis feeling overwhelmed by the process? You're not alone. Watch this video to learn the 5 essential things you need to know before starting your search.”

Review the AI-generated title and hook options and select the ones that best align with your brand voice and content goals. You can also ask the AI to explain why certain options would be effective based on your brand identity and the examples you provided.

#4: How to Use AI to Develop Video Thumbnails

Thumbnails are the small, clickable images representing your video in search results and on your channel page. A compelling, relevant thumbnail can significantly increase the likelihood of viewers clicking on your video and help your content stand out online.

To enlist the AI's help with thumbnails, describe the desired image. Focus on the emotion you want to evoke in your target audience and how you want the thumbnail to represent your video's content.

In the real estate example, you might say:

“For my video about ‘5 Things Every First-Time Homebuyer in St. Louis Should Know,' I want a thumbnail conveying excitement, empowerment, and local pride. The image should make first-time homebuyers like Steve feel confident and prepared to tackle the home-buying process in the St. Louis market while also showcasing some iconic St. Louis landmarks or neighborhoods.”

Next, ask the AI to suggest 5–7 thumbnail ideas based on your description. The AI will generate textual descriptions of potential thumbnail images that align with your input.

For example, the AI might suggest:

• “A smiling young couple standing in front of the iconic St. Louis Arch, holding a ‘Sold' sign and the keys to their new home.”
• “A collage of St. Louis neighborhoods with a magnifying glass over one of them, representing the search for the perfect home.”
• “A map of St. Louis with pin markers on various neighborhoods, with a young couple looking at the map and smiling.”

After receiving the AI's suggestions, ask it to show you visual examples of the proposed thumbnail ideas. Advanced AI content creation tools like DALL-E 3 can generate images from textual descriptions, providing a solid foundation for your custom thumbnail.

Review the AI-generated visual examples and choose the one that best represents your video and appeals to your target audience. Use this image as a reference to create your own custom thumbnail using graphic design tools like Canva or Adobe Photoshop.

Diana shared a personal example of how she used this process to create a thumbnail for a PDF guide she offered at Social Media Marketing World:

“I wasn't sure what kind of cover would be appealing for my guide. So, I described to the AI what I wanted: an image that would resonate with my target audience of business owners and marketers, making them feel like they absolutely must get this guide to stay ahead of the curve. The AI-generated an image that perfectly captured what I was looking for—it was modern, engaging, and conveyed the value of the guide. I was able to use it as the basis for my final thumbnail design, saving me a lot of time and creative energy.”

Tips for Using AI to Save Time and Improve Content Creation

Incorporating AI into your video content creation process can save you countless hours and significantly enhance the quality and relevance of your content.

Rather than starting from scratch every time, you can use AI to generate ideas specifically tailored to your brand and audience. This can help you overcome creative roadblocks and ensure your high-quality content remains fresh, engaging, and on-brand.

Using AI to craft titles, hooks, and thumbnails can also help you optimize your videos for discoverability and click-through rates. By feeding the AI examples of your best-performing content, you can create new videos more likely to resonate with your audience and drive meaningful engagement.

However, it's crucial to remember that AI is a tool to augment and streamline your content creation process, not a replacement for your own creativity and expertise. Review and refine the AI's suggestions to align with your brand voice, content goals, and audience preferences.

Think of the AI as a collaborative partner in your content creation journey. Combining AI's data-driven insights with your unique perspective and industry knowledge, you can create video content that truly stands out and delivers value to your audience.

As Diana puts it, “When you add in the human aspect and our involvement, our genius, with what we've been able to generate just one-on-one with the AI, it makes this such an amazing process to really start getting results. The ideas that my clients initially had have evolved so much through working with the AI. They've been able to go layers deeper, refine their products, and come up with content that truly resonates with their audience. It's incredible to see how AI can help us create better content faster while still allowing our own creativity and expertise to shine through.”

Other Notes From This Episode

• Connect with Michael Stelzner @Stelzner on Facebook and @Mike_Stelzner on X.
• Watch this interview and other exclusive content from Social Media Examiner on YouTube.

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