How to Detect AI-Written Content

The rise of AI technology has led to many changes within the world of digital marketing – particularly in terms of AI content and copy. Whilst many people have praised artificial intelligence for its cutting-edge capabilities, you mustn’t rely on it too much. AI certainly has its perks, but if used incorrectly, it can cause more problems than it’s worth.

If you work within a marketing department, learning how to detect AI-written content is important. But how do you do it?

Luckily, we’re here to help. As a seasoned content writer at Embryo, I’ve keenly honed my writing skills, giving me the ability to detect AI-generated content. I hope that this guide will give you all the tools you need to work out whether a piece of content has been written by a human or artificial intelligence.

Seeking high-quality content that search engines will love? Get in touch with the Embryo team and we’ll make the magic happen!

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How to Detect AI-Written Content: The Ultimate Guide

So, how exactly do you detect AI-written content?

It might sound difficult at first, particularly if you’re not a writer yourself. There are several AI content detectors available on the market at the moment. However, they’re not very dependable and should not be relied upon when trying to work out whether a piece of copy was written by an AI or a human.

For example, Undetectable.Ai perceives the United States Declaration of Independence as being ‘100% AI’, despite the fact that it was written hundreds of years ago:

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(Source: Undectable.ai)

This means that you are much better off teaching yourself how to detect generative AI content, instead of trusting an AI content detector to do it for you.

Read on to find out more about detecting AI content and see if you can put the following tips to the test!

Repetitive Language and Recurrent Phrases

One of the things that we’ve noticed about AI writing tools like Chat GPT is that they tend to use similar words and phrases, regardless of the context or topic being discussed. Not only does this process make AI copywriting look spammy, but it also increases the likelihood of another writer using the same wording.

Some of the common words and phrases that seem to crop up include:

  • Explore…
  • Revolutionise…
  • Mastering the art of…
  • Unveiling…
  • Delve into…
  • Dive into…
  • Uncovering the benefits of…
  • Navigating the world of…
  • Discover a world of…

Of course, using one of these phrases by itself doesn’t necessarily mean that AI copywriting has been used. However, if you start to see repeating words and phrases laid out in the text, there’s a decent chance that the content has been at least partially AI-generated.

AI certainly can be useful for some content marketing purposes (for example, carrying out research into a particular topic), but overreliance on AI may put you in danger of breaching Google’s ‘Helpful Content’ guidelines.

Excessive Keyword Usage

As any good content writer knows, keywords are your bread and butter. They’re the bare bones of your copy, helping your website rank on a range of search engines. Nevertheless, too much keyword usage (or using the same keyword many times over) may be viewed in a negative light by Google, as it has a tendency to look spammy.

This process is known as keyword stuffing, and it’s one of the most common SEO mistakes we see. Google prioritises high-quality content that is created with the purpose of helping the reader. Keyword stuffing delivers the exact opposite – instead, you get poor content created with the intent of tricking SERPs into giving your site a higher ranking. Using spammy keywords may also discourage users from interacting with your website, adding another disadvantage to the mix.

Keyword stuffing is another way to detect AI. When entering a prompt into an AI writing tool, the tool will often attempt to use the perceived keyword as much as possible. For an example of this, check out the screenshot below – we asked the question, ‘What is AI?’, and Chat GPT automatically assumed that ‘AI’ was a keyword, before using the term multiple times within this text:

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(Source: Chat GPT)

However, it’s important to remember that whilst keyword stuffing can be a handy way to detect the use of AI, it doesn’t always mean that it’s been used. Nevertheless, it’s still a poor practice to carry out as a writer, so it’s worth checking for before uploading any new content.

Relying on Inaccurate or Outdated Information

Even if you believe that a piece of content has been written well, there’s still a chance it may have been written by AI tools. You should always check whether the information provided is correct when reviewing a new piece of copy. However, it’s more important than ever in the world of AI, as AI cannot detect whether a statement is true, false or simply outdated.

AI tools are trained and programmed with limited data sets, so they may not be able to access new or updated information. This can lead to inaccurate content, which goes directly against Google’s Helpful Content guidelines. However, if you’re trying to work out whether a piece of content was written by AI writing tools, this approach can help you to make up your mind,

If you do decide to use AI copywriting tools, it’s important to check your sources. Not only will providing incorrect information deter your readers, but it will also leave you in poor standing with Google, potentially leading to a SERP drop.

Embryo: Real Writing, Real Results

I hope that after reading through this blog, you have a greater idea of how to detect AI written content. Whilst artificial intelligence can be useful for creating SEO strategies and other aspects of digital marketing, overreliance can have a negative impact on your brand.

If you’d like to incorporate top-notch content writing into your marketing campaigns, you’re in the right place with Embryo. We’re a unique digital marketing agency, offering a range of services for our clients:

So, what are you waiting for? Get in touch today!

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