According to a study by Neil Patel, human-written content performs better than AI content when it comes to organic traffic growth – a key component of website authority scores.
We have found that many companies in the mortgage and real estate industries are relying too heavily on AI-generated content for their websites. We know this because whenever we connect with a new prospective client, one of the first things we do is run diagnostics on their website to get a clear picture of their ranking in search and explore the quality of their content.
AI-generated content can negatively impact both your brand and your website. It hurts 1) your ability to connect with visitors in an authentic way, 2) your search ranking, and 3) your brand.
Imagine a homebuyer searching for information about what to expect during the mortgage process, comes across a blog post on your website, reads it and feels like it didn’t provide enough depth or guidance. That homebuyer represents more than a website visitor. They are a potential long-term client. Then, they continue searching to get more information and come across a second post that provides the detail they’re looking for.
Which one builds more trust? Which page do they stay on longer to absorb the information? Which one do you think ranks better, reflects well on your brand, and feels more authentic? This is how a relationship begins.
Commit to Human-Written Content, the Key to Sustainable Website Authority
AI has its place in content writing. But it’s not in writing content. Human expertise, creativity, personality, and real-life anecdotes are irreplaceable when it comes to keeping the reader’s attention.
Here are some tips on how to ensure that your copy benefits your audience and your brand:
1. Use AI as the assistant, not the writer. In the run-up to writing great content, ideally you conduct some solid research, put together an outline, and come up with some title ideas.These are all great ways to use AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, and Perplexity – my personal favorites.Note, however, that you always need to review the output carefully. Drill down and make sure that what the tools provide makes sense, captures attention, and provides valuable information.
- Research: When conducting research, Gemini, Perplexity, and simple Google searches are all good options. Visit the sources themselves to make sure they are reputable and provide good information. If you’re going to cite a source, you don’t want it to be questionable.
- Title ideas: The title options provided by these AI platforms are rarely, if ever, the ones you should ultimately use. But they can stimulate your thoughts and creativity so that you have a place to start — by maybe moving some words around, shortening copy, or adding key words that you know will resonate with your audience.
- Outlines: Outlines are important for making sure your content flows well and brings your reader to a conclusion that is clear and makes sense. Therefore, review your outline and make sure that the headings are helpful and the topics you’ll dive into will be helpful and resonate with your audience – and are in a logical order.
The bottom line: AI is your assistant, and you are the manager. Therefore, you need to take final responsibility and approve everything.
2. Use internal resources or industry experts to write your content. I get it. Writing something well takes time and skill. You may have so many competing priorities that it’s hard to focus long enough to write something impressive in a short period of time.Giving the job to Jasper, ChatGPT or some other platform is not the answer. Trust me – if you do that, you will read it, and your gut will tell you not to publish it and you will have to rewrite it anyway.Hire an expert, hopefully someone (like us) that knows the mortgage and real estate industries well so that you don’t have to spend a lot of time teaching them before giving them a project.
3. Focus on high-value topics that build trust. Content writing is more than a box you need to check. Great content is what sets you apart – whether you’re writing about the nuances of the real estate market or reviewing mortgage technology.What are some great hacks for ensuring you have great content to share? Try these:
- If you have an SEO specialist, they have subscription tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush and others that can help reveal high value topics for blog posts. They can also perform a content gap analysis which allows you to compare your site to a competitor to find out what topics they are ranking for that you are not. They can also conduct a question analysis to show you common questions people are asking that will help you with creating other content.
- Within Google searches, you will see “People Also Ask” boxes. You can leverage these queries into content topics.
- Tools like BuzzSumo can show you the most shared content in the industry which can give you some great insights and ideas.
How to Implement a Human-Centric Content Strategy
If you have fallen into the trap of leaning too much on AI platforms to write your content, there are steps you can take to correct course and get back on the straight and narrow.
Here are a couple of good strategies to get started:
1. Conduct a content audit. This audit will identify shallow, AI-generated content that needs to be replaced. Here are a couple of ways to do this:
- Automated AI Detection Tools: You can use tools like Originality.ai, GPTZero and others that will identify the patterns that are common in AI writing. These tools are highly accurate, but note that no tool is going to be 100% accurate.
- Manual Review: Automated tools can be helpful, but a manual review is also important. Frequently, AI content is more shallow and can even be repetitive. There can also be issues with logic as well as inconsistencies in tone and inaccurate information.
2. Use AI to optimize your content once it’s written. Here are some ways to do this:
- Keyword Optimization: You can use tools like SEMrush, SurferSEO and others that will analyze your content and suggest relevant keywords to improve search rankings.
- Content Gap Analysis: You can use tools like MarketMuse and Clearscope to analyze your content against that of your competitors to determine where gaps exist and how you can improve your content.
- On-Page Optimization: You can use tools like Yoast SEO and Rank Math to analyze the structure of your content and overall readability.
- Repurposing Content: You can use tools like Canva and Lumen5 to repurpose existing content into other formats like social media posts, infographics, and videos. There are many other ways to use AI, including sentiment analysis, A/B testing and personalization.No matter what tools you’re using, your oversight of them is crucial. Remember, AI is your assistant in all cases and, like any assistant, you must review the work before you go with what is produced. Always focus on the value you’re providing to your audience.
Building website authority is critical for your success in the mortgage and real estate industries. As Neil Patel’s study shows, human-written content outperforms AI-generated material when it comes to organic traffic—an important factor in authority building. Relying too heavily on AI for content can harm your brand’s authenticity, search rankings, and ability to build trust with your audience. By committing to high-value, human-created content, you create a lasting connection with readers, provide depth and expertise, and ultimately strengthen your website’s authority. Whether you use AI to assist in research or optimization, it’s human expertise that will drive your content—and your brand—forward.