Leveraging AI + Tools
Over the past 5 years, I’ve learned how to use a variety of tools including Chat GPT, Claude, Midjourney, Runway, Sora (audio), and more. But I haven’t just learned how to use these tools for my own benefit. I’ve had to vet, acquire, manage and train different teams on how to use these tools to increase efficiency, while ensuring proper use, client protocols and more. From creating imagery and videos, crafting slides for decks, streamlining content writing, creating albums about pie, crafting video collabs with Lenovo and Microsoft, and streamlining the creation of different documents (like BRDs and briefs), it’s part of my everyday process, and the teams I’ve managed.
I’ve leveraged writing tools, imagery tools, video tools, and audio tools to craft content, decks, emails, project outlines, briefs and more. And these are some of my favorite tools. Check out the specific project highlights below for more details on how I’ve leveraged AI for content creation.
Tools I Use
Given my background and experience with AI, I’ve been asked by different people for my opinions and views on how to use it and where the technology is going. Check out this piece I did for Media Post. Tap the Media Post logo to view the article.
In The News
I love experimenting with the latest AI tools like Midjourney and Chat GPT. And as a musician, I was intrigued by the AI music generation tool Suno. It allows you to plug in your own lyrics, create specific prompts for music styles and then create a finished song.
I had an idea to create a holiday album for our client Buttermilk Sky Pie Shop. Their brand is the perfect blend of classic and modern stylings. So for the album, I wrote the lyrics to new holiday classics like Holiday Pie Coma, Eating My Feelings, I Wish I Was A Pie, and many more.
While it sounds as simple as pressing a button, it took some trial and error, and musical taste to get it right. I did all the writing, had to spend lots of time crafting the right prompts, and then I had to edit together the audio to piece together the best working parts from some of the iterations. I also created the imagery we used to promote the idea with Midjourney. Check out some of my favorite parts, pieces and songs by tapping the thumbnail.
Making A Holiday Album With AI
I had a blast helping create this AI-centric campaign for Lenovo’s partnership with Microsoft. With Windows 10 support expiring, we needed to help get Lenovo’s sales teams and reps focused on selling the upgrade to Windows 11. We used AI to quickly create a unique video series to drive awareness and educate our audience. Part of the Windows 11 upgrade featured a more robust version of Microsoft’s Copilot AI assistant. I came up with the idea to show a world where Copilot acted as the literal Copilot of a ship traveling across the universe with the goal of ultimately upgrading their entire fleet to Windows 11. We saw Copilot perform a variety of admin tasks interwoven with some intergalactic fun and adventure.
Tools used: Chat GPT, Midjourney, Veo3
Tap the thumbnail to view the project.
Microsoft + Lenovo AI Video Series
I leverage AI for long-form content writing as well. In my various executive creative roles, I’ve overseen each agency’s editorial content capabilities. Utilizing AI has been incredibly important to streamlining the process of writing blogs, thought leadership articles, landing page content, and more.
Ultimately, how I used AI varied by clients. Some were ok with using AI for a rough draft as long my team and I reviewed it throughly. Some only wanted to leverage AI to edit a human-written piece. And some did not want to use AI at all! So I had to balance governance, rules and approaches across multiple brands on a daily basis.
One concern was research, as AI can often hallucinate or create fake stats and support info. To get around this, I leveraged research that I pulled or that my writers and strategists pulled. Then, I’d create walled garden projects that could only use the info I placed into the project. By doing this, I cut content creation time by 85%. Check out his LG thought leadership and sales support content that my team and I created leveraging this approach. Just tap the thumbnail.
Long-form Content
Streamlining Content Creation
I use AI to draft content every day. It gets me off to a good start, but I always take the time to edit the content. For Burn Boot Camp, I needed to rewrite roughly 80 emails, phone scripts and text messages through the lens of their new brand and check for accuracy. A project that would have taken weeks in the past took only two days. I created a project in Chat GPT, loaded in our brand guide, and several examples of the new tone in action, several new emails I wrote to act as the shining examples, and then I got to work. Some custom prompting was necessary for subject lines, headlines, and certain topics, but through careful vetting and review, I tackled the task in no time.
Tap the thumbnail to see the overall email refresh project which contains some of the work I note here.