Blog For the Story – It Helps
My favorite blogs have never been about winning some keyword search online.
Yes, I have written many (all too many) blogs with the intent of helping build up my online profile, authority, and eventually website ranking. Even the most enthusiastic marketers probably don’t wake up yearning to write 1,000 words that discuss in great detail the latest changes in a Facebook algorithm. For most businesses or brands, blogging is a thing you do to help generate some type of revenue.
And it’s only gotten easier for people to create. Those who never liked writing in the first place no longer have to stress or work to produce the content. They have a cheat code that will spit out a blog in mere minutes. They can sit back and no longer have their marketing consultant hassling them to create some authoritative content online.
And that’s great. Let them sit back, produce some AI-generated content, post, and repeat. That might work now, but it won’t for long. The winners will be those who enjoy blogging.
How Interested Are You in Stories Told by Robots?
If you’ve been following along this year, you can tell I have a love/hate relationship with AI. I’ve dedicated an entire month to blogging about the benefits of ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini. I’ve also recorded a forty-minute solo podcast complaining about how AI is ruining so many things and how people are going to rebel. The truth is, AI will be in the gray for me.
But there is one element that I am absolutely against - replacing storytellers and artists.
I’m not worried about jobs. Yes, I have a degree in Graphic Design. I was first a graphic designer. Those pesky event flyers people are making could have been paychecks for me, but let’s be real, very little of that would have come my way. The church was always going to create their own flyer - just in Word instead of ChatGPT. I do think we will lose some jobs because of the technology, but it won’t wipe out our entire industry.
What I really hate is the noise that is being created by everyone that clouds the actual valuable content. And we are in the midst of it, and probably the worst it will be.
Right now, everyone can create endless amounts of content and post on their website and social. Google is indexing some of the content. Social algorithms are letting the content through into our feeds. Right now, these tools don’t really know if the users want this content. More importantly, a lot of people can’t tell what is created by humans and what is created by robots. I think once people start to realize, they will start to filter out the artificial.
For me, I just can’t get enthused to listen, watch, or read something made by a machine. I’m turned off by the YouTube videos created with AI voice and generic footage. Social posts that are obviously AI have me scrolling. A blog from an “expert” but clearly written by a bot - why wouldn’t I just ask ChatGPT in the first place? Why would I go to your website?
I just don’t connect to robots telling recycled stories.
Why Blogs Written or Created by Humans Are the Answer
People still want answers. Sometimes they want quick answers. They won’t need a story (looking at you, recipe websites). For these things, let the bots go to work.
But when it comes to hearing perspectives, people want people. This is why reviews on Google and Amazon are so important. They are written by real people and real users.
This is the same reason why podcasts and YouTube videos continue to rise in popularity. It’s still hard to fake real people having real conversations. And although there are some pretty technical, scripted podcasts and videos, most tend to have some opinions and back-and-forth banter (even if it’s just talking to the audience).
And we relate to the author. Why? Because they tell us real stories, give personal opinions, and share things only they can.
This is the same for future successful blogs. Even if the topic has been covered a million times, having a real human, with real insights and opinions, will be the content that breaks through the noise.
Even if you need to produce a blog that deals with technical content, the author is likely to share their take on the topic. Sometimes that’s a personal story, case study, or their opinion. This is what makes the content unique and valuable.
In the future, search engines/AI engines are going to be sophisticated enough to really find content that matches your exact needs. Sharing personal insights and stories involving these topics might be the reason someone finds you.
For example, I wouldn’t doubt that a future customer might want to make a website but only want to deal with diehard Disney fans. Why wouldn’t they land on our website (considering I’ve blogged about Walt Disney, created multiple Disney-branded websites, and talk about Disney entirely too much)? It seems a bit far-fetched, but think about it.
Someone might be using ChatGPT to plan their next Disney vacation. AI knows this and has it stored in their memory. Later that month, they need to create a new website for their business. It’s reasonable for ChatGPT to connect the dots and say, “Hey, we know you like Disney, so we matched you with a company that has an owner who also is a big Disney fan.” Honestly, I think people will actually start getting super direct with what they want.
Hey ChatGPT - I need a website {blah, blah, blah about features]. I also like to work with people who have similar interests as me.
If they like Disney, Pro Wrestling, or Weird Al - I should get all of the business.
If they need a Real Housewives of New York diehard, I probably won’t get that call.
We aren’t there yet, but I could see that being the future.
Should You Just Blog for Fun?
In the past, I’ve said not to just post blogs about anything and everything - with fear of confusing search. I still feel like you need to make sure the content is relevant to your website and audience. I wouldn’t blog about your favorite movie unless it has a purpose. But I do think that you need to invoke your personality into your writing.
What will separate your blog from an AI-generated blog will be your ability to tell stories and give your personal opinion. AI will not be able to do this for you (not accurately and truthfully).
Not only do we as humans enjoy real stories, search engines and AI will find your content far more authoritative with actual examples (and sources).
And if you are bad at writing, you have some choices to make. You can leave it to those who enjoy it, you can have AI help tell your story, or you can produce slop. One of these options will be wasting your time.
Blog for the Story
So yes, write for search. Blog for authority. Create because Google still needs words on a page to understand who you are, what you do, and why you matter.
But don’t cheat for the algorithm.
Write because you have a perspective. Blog because you have stories no one else can tell. Create because your experience, your opinions, your examples, your weird references, your lessons learned, and your personal way of explaining things are the parts AI cannot honestly duplicate.
The internet is about to get flooded with technically correct, perfectly structured, completely forgettable content. That means the content that feels real will matter even more.
A blog should still answer the question. It should still be useful. It should still have a purpose. But if you want someone to remember you, trust you, hire you, or come back for more, give them something beyond the answer.
Give them the story.
That is what helps.
