8 Proven Tips To Humanize AI Content (Plus Prompt Examples)

Fed up with fluffy robotic text from your AI tool? These quick tips will help you humanize AI content and get your tools working for you, rather than instead of you.

I’ve used AI tools to help me build several profitable blogs, enhance my LinkedIn presence, and manage my daily life for over a year now (read my Business Insider interview here).

I’m also finishing a PhD in computational social science, with published research about natural language processing on large text-based datasets.

AI tools are super powerful, but most people are using them wrong. Let’s get you doing it the right way!

How To Humanize AI Content (8 Proven Tips)

#1. Pick a human-sounding LLM

Much of the current flood of poor quality AI content stems from too many people using the free version of ChatGPT and using it incorrectly.

Personally, I avoid using ChatGPT language models for my writing work. I prefer to use Claude, as its default output is far more natural and human-sounding.

What’s more, Claude’s latest version can analyze up to 150,000 words in one go, making it much more powerful than ChatGPT.

Claude is also more likely to admit when it doesn’t know an answer, rather than just making one up. This feature means Claude is better than ChatGPT for avoiding the risk of hallucinations.

So my advice? Pick a better language model to give you a more human starting point. My favorite way to access the Claude models is via Poe.

With Poe, you can access not only the latest version of Claude (Opus), but also the older version (Claude 2.1 200K). It’s worth trying out the older model, as in my experience it gives consistently high quality and human-like results (even more so than the latest version).

#2. Train your tool to write like you

One of the most powerful features I’ve found when using AI tools is their ability to write like you. Claude is the best so far at doing this. The secrets lie in the prompting process. Here’s how I typically do it.

First, I get a manually written sample (such as a blog post that I wrote myself), make it into a text file and upload it into the Claude chat. Then I provide a simple prompt like the one below.

To get a really detailed analysis, it’s important to tell the tool to analyze all aspects of your writing: style, tone, voice, and structure.

Then, once Claude has provided the detailed analysis, my next prompt asks it to use the same style, tone, voice, and structure to draft the next piece of text. Here’s what that prompt would look like.

Please use the same style, tone, voice, and structure to draft a section for the below subheading. For context, this is part of a blog post titled “9 Proven Tips To Humanize AI Content”. Here is the subheading to focus on: [insert subheading]

#3. Skip the fluff and be concise

AI tools can easily produce lengthy, information-packed paragraphs. But human readers prefer content that gets straight to the point.

When reviewing your AI-generated content, take the time to identify and remove any unnecessary fluff or filler phrases that don’t add value to your message. This could include:

• Redundant or repetitive statements
• Overly complex or convoluted sentences
• Irrelevant tangents or digressions
• Excessive adjectives or adverbs that don’t enhance meaning

Instead, focus on crafting clear, concise sentences that deliver your key points effectively – using simple, direct language that your audience can easily understand.

You should also break up longer paragraphs into shorter, more digestible chunks of information to improve readability.

It’s best to prompt your AI tool to do all of this from the get-go, rather than having to go back and remove fluff later on.

#4. Use active voice

Active voice puts the subject of the sentence front and center, emphasizing the person or thing that’s taking action.

Using active voice in your AI-generated content helps create a more human, engaging, and impactful reading experience for your audience.

For example, instead of writing “The article was written by the author,” you would say, “The author wrote the article.” This simple change makes the sentence more dynamic and easier to understand.

When reviewing your AI-generated content, look out for instances of passive voice and rewrite them in active voice.

This will help you to:

• Make your writing more concise and clear
• Create a sense of immediacy and engagement
• Establish a stronger connection between the subject and the action
• Convey confidence and authority in your writing

To avoid having to do this retrospectively, I recommend prompting your AI tool to write in active voice whenever you create content.

You can also ask your tool to review a chunk of existing content by itself and rewrite it using active voice. This should be an easy task for it to achieve.

I find that Claude writes in active voice as a default, whereas ChatGPT is more prone to using the passive.

#5. Provide sufficient context

Before drafting the content, give your tool as much context and background information as possible.

For example, if you’re writing a blog post on a specific topic, tell your AI tool about your desired target audience, their level of expertise, your desired outcome from this blog post, plus any unique pieces of expertise or first-hand experience you’d like to include.

You can also ask the tool to adopt a specific persona, e.g. by telling it to “Act like an expert with 10 years of experience in X topic”.

#6. Don’t just “prompt and go”

Basic prompts like “write a blog post about poodles” will give you terrible results. Instead, it’s important to break your desired task down into a series of steps. Each one becomes a prompt.

For example, if I wanted to write a blog post about a certain target keyword, I’d break it down like this:

• Give the AI tool the main target keyword and ask it to generate 10 title ideas
• Choose the title I like best, then ask my AI to write an outline
• Then ask for an introduction using the problem-agitate-solution framework
• Then fill in each section of the outline one at a time, tweaking as needed
• Finally, prompt it to write a conclusion that summarizes the article and provides a call to action

This might look like five simple steps, but there will normally be several iterations within each one. It all depends on the quality of the first output.

I just carry on refining until I get something I’m happy with, even if it takes a while. That’s one of the major differences between trashy AI content and high-quality content that’s human and expert-led.

Plus, getting a high-quality first output is a lot easier with Claude than with ChatGPT.

#7. Add your own expertise

Google prefers to rank content that’s written by experts.

After all, would you prefer to learn from a trustworthy human expert or a robot? I know which I’d prefer.

AI tools provide a solid foundation for your content, but it’s essential to add your own knowledge, experience, and unique perspectives. This helps to humanize the content and establishes your authority on the subject matter.

To add your expertise, here’s what to do:

• Review the AI-generated content and identify areas where you can provide insights, examples, or anecdotes from your own experience.
• Expand on key points by sharing your own successes, challenges, or lessons learned related to the topic.
• Include case studies or real-world examples from your professional journey to illustrate the concepts more concretely.
• Offer your unique take on the subject matter, even if it differs from the AI-generated content, to showcase your critical thinking and depth of understanding.

Your goal is to create content that not only informs but also connects with your audience on a human level.

Blending AI-generated content with your own expertise lets you strike a balance between efficiency and authenticity. That’s the best way to create blog posts that resonate with your readers and establish you as a trusted authority in your niche.

#8. Review and edit your text

Once you’ve generated your AI content, don’t just publish it as-is. Even the most advanced language models can make mistakes or produce text that doesn’t quite hit the mark.

I always recommend carefully reviewing and editing any AI-generated content before sharing it with the world. That way, you can catch any errors, awkward phrasing, or off-brand messaging that may have slipped through.

As you review, keep an eye out for a few key things:

• Factual accuracy: Double check names, dates, statistics and other factual claims made in the text. AI can sometimes hallucinate or mix up details.
• Coherence and flow: Ensure the generated text has a logical flow and the ideas connect well. Make edits for smoother transitions if needed.
• Brand voice alignment: Consider whether the content matches your unique brand voice and tone. Tweak wording to better align with your style.
• Grammar and typos: Run the content through a spell checker tool and fix any grammatical errors or typos the AI may have produced.
• Readability and formatting: Break up long paragraphs, use subheadings, and make sure the content is skimmable.
• Overall value and relevance: Most importantly, assess whether the AI-generated content truly provides value to your target audience and aligns with your content goals. Don’t be afraid to scrap sections that miss the mark.

I like to think of AI as a collaborator in the writing process. It can generate a solid first draft, but it’s up to you to refine that draft into something that genuinely resonates with your audience.

That takes time and effort; it’s not necessarily a lazy shortcut (but it certainly makes a content creator’s life easier).

Actionable Next Steps

I hope you found these tips helpful for using AI tools to create truly authentic, engaging, and valuable content.

Used properly and with care, these amazing tools will allow you to be a lot more productive as a blogger while also producing content you can be proud of (rather than the usual garbage that’s instantly identifiable as robot-written).

AI is a tool to enhance your content creation process, not replace your unique voice and perspective. Once you get used to balancing AI efficiency and human authenticity, you’ll be well-placed to create content that informs, connects, and converts.

Ready to take your AI-powered content to the next level? Sign up for my newsletter, where I share even more in-depth tips, tricks, and real-world examples of how to make AI work for you and your content goals. Don’t miss out on these valuable insights – join my community of intelligent bloggers today!