Does AI content actually work? A B2B writer’s honest take

When ChatGPT landed in everyone’s workflow, the content world kind of panicked.

Suddenly, every founder, marketer and thought leader was cranking out LinkedIn posts, AI-written blogs, and perfectly SEO’d website pages — all without a copywriter in sight.

I get it. It’s fast. It’s free. And when you're short on time or ideas, it feels like a no-brainer.

But speed doesn’t always equal success. And content doesn’t always mean connection.

Just because something’s written doesn’t mean it’s saying anything useful. Just because it sounds professional doesn’t mean it builds trust. And just because you hit publish doesn’t mean anyone’s reading it.

So… does AI content actually work?

Kind of. But not always in the way you think.

Why AI is so tempting for B2B teams

For a lot of B2B and SaaS teams, AI feels like a godsend. You’ve got a hundred content ideas, zero internal writers, and not enough time to brief anyone properly. So you open a doc, drop in a prompt, and boom — there’s your draft.

And honestly? Sometimes that’s all you need. A bit of structure. A way to get past the blank page. Something you can tweak and push live before the next meeting rolls around.

That’s why it’s so tempting. It keeps things moving. It gives you volume. It feels productive.

But when that AI draft becomes the final version (when it goes straight from prompt to publish) that’s when things start to fall apart.

Because while it might look like content on the surface, it’s often missing the very thing that makes it work: perspective.

What AI content usually gets wrong

It’s not that AI writes badly. It writes fine. It’s grammatically correct (sometimes), mostly on-topic, and sounds professional. But that’s also the problem.

Most of the time, it sounds like everyone else.

No strong point of view. No real personality. No actual insight. Just neatly structured paragraphs saying things your audience has read a hundred times before.

It’ll tell you that “content is king” or that “customer-centric messaging matters,” but it won’t say anything new — or anything that sounds like you.

And in B2B, that’s a problem. Because if you’re selling something technical, intangible or high-trust, your content needs to do more than just fill a page. It needs to build confidence. It needs to feel sharp, specific, and well thought through.

AI doesn’t know your customers. It doesn’t know your product. It doesn’t know what your team argued about in the last marketing meeting. So it defaults to vague.

And vague content doesn’t convert.

What AI actually does well

For all its limitations, AI isn’t useless. I mean I use it almost every day.

Not to write finished content, but to make the process faster, easier, and a lot less painful.

It’s great for getting you started. Writing prompts, outlining sections, summarising transcripts, rewording awkward sentences — AI can handle the grunt work. It can also help repurpose content across different formats, so that podcast episode doesn’t just sit there collecting digital dust.

But it’s not just about speed and ideas. It’s also a really useful second set of eyes.

It can help you spot gaps in your logic. Flag when your tone sounds off. Push back with questions a reader might ask. Even point out things that feel vague or over-explained. When you’re too close to your own content, that kind of feedback is gold.

But the key is knowing where to stop.

Because the minute you rely on it to replace strategy, voice, or judgment, the cracks start to show. AI can give you a head start, but you still need someone who knows what good looks like.

How to get the best of both worlds

AI works best when it’s part of the process, not the whole thing.

It’s great for helping you shape an idea. You can throw in a jumbled brain-dump and get back a rough outline, or ask it to rewrite a messy paragraph so it’s easier to work with. You can even use it to turn half-formed notes into a first draft, or draft a clearer brief for your writer.

But that’s where the handover matters.

Because while AI can give you the bones of something, it still takes a human to bring it to life — to push the structure, sharpen the message, and make it sound like it came from your brand (not a template).

Used well, AI helps you move faster. It gives you momentum. But working with a good writer means what you’re putting out actually connects, not just ticks a box.

The takeaway

AI isn’t the enemy of good content. But it’s not a shortcut to it either.

It can help you move faster, get your thoughts out, and spot things you’ve missed, but it won’t replace the judgment, voice, or strategy that makes content actually work. Especially in B2B, where trust and clarity matter more than ever.

If you're trying to scale your content and stay human in the process, you don't need to choose between AI and a writer. You just need the right mix: tools that speed things up, and a human who knows how to make it land.

If you’ve got a rough idea, an overstuffed doc, or content that just isn’t hitting the mark, that’s where I come in. I help founders, marketers and teams turn half-baked drafts (or AI-generated ones) into sharp, clear, conversion-friendly content, without losing their voice in the process.

Got a draft that’s not quite working? Book a 1:1 session and I’ll help you shape it into something worth publishing.