Over the past 12 months, Google has been strengthening its stance on AI and poor quality content, with their most recent March 2024 ‘spring clean’ aiming to better combat spammy, low quality content. As Google prepares for the universal rollout of Search Generative Experience (SGE), this core algorithm update will forever change the way sites containing AI content are ranked – many sites have already been penalised, with more and more business owners having concerns for the future of their website rankings.

So, how has AI changed SEO? And what does this mean for the future of digital content as a whole? Whilst using AI within your workflow for SEO can be effective, human oversight is now more important than ever – more on that below…

The evolution of Google & AI content

November 2022 – Open AI releases Chat GPT, allowing users to create content within a matter of seconds. Users across the globe begin to gamify content by producing low-quality AI articles in the millions.

December 2022 – Google detects AI content and combats this by introducing an extra ‘E’ (for experience) in their E-E-A-T guidelines. E-E-A-T (previously E-A-T) is a key component in Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines, designed to evaluate the quality of search engine results. The new acronym stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. The additional ‘E’ suggests that content must now demonstrate it was produced with some level of experience.

February 2023 – Google strengthens its stance on spam, stating that “using automation–including AI–to generate content with the primary purpose of manipulating ranking in search results is a violation of our spam policies”. They also suggest they will “reward high-quality content, however it is produced”. This suggests that Google will not penalise AI generated content as long as it is written according to the E-E-A-T guidelines.

Google’s March 2024 spring clean

Google launched their most recent core algorithm update in March 2024. This update penalises sites containing AI generated content that is not meeting the quality standards set out by Google’s various documentation. They have stated that this update would help reduce low-quality, unoriginal and “unhelpful” content by 40% by improving its quality rankings and strengthening spam policies.

Google published a set of self-assessment questions to help owners identify whether their content adheres to Google’s quality standards. These questions are split into three core categories: expertise, originality and people-first.

The ‘expertise’ section focuses on sourcing, evidence of expertise and author background; ‘originality’ centres around providing information that is unique and insightful; and ‘people-first’ discusses first-hand expertise and knowledge.

Brands that have been producing large amounts of low-quality, AI generated content have been hit hard by this recent update. Sites containing such content have been taken down, crushing the income streams of many.

Re-evaluating the role of AI in content creation: SOZO’s perspective

Should brands still be using AI to create copy? At SOZO, whilst we recognise the advantages of using AI as a tool for research and accelerating the writing process, we firmly believe it cannot substitute the understanding and creativity of a human writer. AI should complement, not replace, the human touch in content creation. Any content that is generated by AI needs to be thoroughly checked to ensure it accurately reflects your brand and adheres to Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines.

What does this change mean for copywriting?

Users are moving faster than Google, and we need to be looking at users more than anything else

– Carrie Rose, In Growth We Trust

Google’s March 2024 spring clean helps to cement our position as copywriters at SOZO. As human writers, we create quality content with real people and real readers first. We don’t write for robots or to manipulate Google rankings; we craft insightful and meaningful content that is designed for human consumption.

We already write according to Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines, which will become even more pertinent once Google’s SGE release becomes widely available to a UK audience:

• Experience – Our copywriting department consists of specialist writers who are experienced in writing across a wide variety of subjects and channels. Our copywriters are carefully matched to specific businesses and subject matters depending on individual strengths, allowing us to utilise our first-hand experience and knowledge.

• Expertise – We work closely with our in-house SEO team to create thoroughly researched content according to leading keywords. As well as carrying out in-depth SEO research, we also work closely with our clients to create original copy that demonstrates industry expertise and insights.

• Authoritativeness – We use first hand quotes from clients or industry experts and relate content back to the brand itself. This allows us to position our clients as market leaders and continuously build upon their reputations for providing accurate and reliable content.
• Trustworthiness –  All copy we produce has been thoroughly researched, verified, and cross-checked with different stakeholders and departments. We also regularly review and update our content, ensuring it remains accurate to the brand and industry as a whole. This allows us to establish a strong sense of trust for the end user.

We are strategic in our approach to content creation and planning, often collaborating with multiple sources and writing across several channels of communication for a more targeted approach. This allows us to produce content that is truly unique and helpful to the user.

AI doesn’t yet have the ability to forward plan and pull all these various strands together.

Human brains need to continuously think ahead. As copywriters, we almost need to pre-empt what users will be searching for and determine the type of content they need. This is something that AI cannot accomplish, as it relies on content that already exists in the digital space.

Call on SOZO for carefully-crafted copy that really packs a punch

Looking to make a meaningful impact with your website, blog, newsletter, or social media content? SOZO’s expert team of in-house copywriters are highly skilled in writing across all digital platforms. Together, we can help you craft original and insightful human-friendly copy that won’t end up in the digital trash.

Get in touch with our team today to discuss your copywriting needs.