Is Freelance Writing Safe from AI of the Future? The Impact of Technology, Opportunities & Challenges

Right now, you’re probably feeling threatened.

Maybe you want to give up freelance writing before you even start.

Why this feeling?

It’s all about generative AI, and you are worried if freelance writing is safe from AI now and in the future.

I hear ya!

The impact of the new technological advancement is a central focus for many new freelance writers and copywriters – and it should be.

With Twitter/X, Youtube, and even celebrities talking about ChatGPT, I wanted to share my thoughts on the opportunities and challenges and what I think about if freelance writing is safe from AI writing tools like ChatGPT or Jasper AI.

How will AI Impact Freelance Writers: Opportunities and Challenges

When I first heard about ChatGPT, I was seriously impressed by all it could do. I own several blogs, and as a blogger, the thought of creating tons of content quickly was amazing.

Opportunities AI Will Bring to Freelance Writers

1. Generative AI Will Increase Our Writing Process

I mainly use something like Jasper AI to help me brainstorm content ideas for my blogs and client pieces.

I now have about 30 content ideas for my blog and Youtube channel!

This saves me time trying to come up with new angles and ideas that people ACTUALLY want to know about.

Another area AI writing can help with your business is by helping you conduct initial research.

But there are a few things you need to know about these generative writing tools:

• They “hallucinate.” This means they will make up facts and stats and do it very confidently.
• Any information you receive will be a few years old, and these tools may be unable to check Google (although this is changing).
• Be mindful of plagiarism. While I haven’t come across this problem, it can occur. I do use Copyscape to run my content through.

So, with that out of the way, try using something like ChatGPT or Jasper Chat to ask you to give you a stat with a link and check that link.

I clicked on each of those links, which were all relevant to my prompt.

This just makes my writing process faster since I don’t have to spend time sourcing these facts.

2. Using AI Will Remove Writer’s Block

Another added plus or opportunity AI writing has given me is that I no longer suffer from writer’s block!

Can you believe that?

Writer’s block used to plague me, and now?

If I can’t begin a blog post, I’ll use an AI writing tool to help me start it or just give me an angle to think about for my content piece.

For example, suppose I need an angle for my eCommerce post using social media.

In that case, I can ask an AI writer tool to explain how an eCommerce business uses TikTok (Instagram or Youtube).

Sure, these methods may not be entirely new and exciting. Still, it does give me a seed to start looking at different TikTok marketing methods that are popular for eCommerce businesses.

And BOOM! No more writer’s block!

This comes in handy for the niche websites I have.

If I write a list post and need more ideas, I can get them from ChatGPT or Jasper AI.

It’s easy now to make a high-list post of 45 ways or 65 ways because I can use AI to help me generate those ideas that otherwise would have taken me a half hour or more to source them!

3. AI Will Prompt Us to Have More Relevant Services

Look –

I’ve mentioned this before, but AI will replace writers that don’t adopt AI into their business.

It’s just a fact and it’s not like generative AI will disappear; it’ll only get better!

So, how can you not be left in the dust?

Make sure your services are relevant.

I used to write about Periscope, Vine, Board Booster, and more.

These are defunct social media platforms or tools.

But what if I never updated my portfolio and my Periscope content was the first on my list?

How would that look to prospective clients wanting to know if I could write for them?

Another viewpoint of this is maybe the explosion of AI and ChatGPT have given you the kick in the bum to try a new service.

Doing copywriting can help you safeguard against AI in the long run. So adding services like:

• website copy
• Sales page copy
• Email funnel copy

Sure, Jasper AI an ChatGPT can write a sales page and email but they don’t do it effectively.

It’s highly cliché and will not have nuance that is needed to create a highly converting piece of copy.

So, you see, something like this rapid adoption of generative AI for content creators and businesses means you have to make sure you are still RELEVANT.

Does this mean you must sign up for Fiverr tomorrow and add an AI fact-checker service?

No, it just means you can’t go under a rock and ignore all the information about AI there is!

4. It Will Give Writers & Copywriters More Tools to Try

One way to stay relevant is to try AI writing tools for yourself.

Many writers will say the writing is subpar, but I found Jasper content to be better than average writing.

But, these tools still don’t do fantastic for my writing niche of digital marketing and my writing audience of B2B marketers.

Long-form content is nuanced, and an AI writing tool can’t mimic that, but I still use it for my niche sites.

I also have used Wordtune’s Spices and am interested in using Copy.ai.

Here’s an example of using Wordtune and the options Spices gives me. I chose to give me an example.

For online writers hesitant to try AI, maybe something like Wordtune’s Spices (similar to Grammarly) can ease you into this new world!

5. It Will Open the Doors to New Jobs

One of the most significant outcomes of pushing out generative AI is the potential for new jobs.

AI specialists or AI editors, or AI Prompt Engineers will be needed.

I mentioned Fiverr, and if you look, they have opened up a new AI service list and you can see all the latest jobs there.

This is also another way to stay relevant!

Explore all these new AI jobs and see if you can adopt them or offer them as extra services.

If you need help offering new services, check out my masterclass, Jasper AI Prep.

Challenges AI Will Bring to Freelance Writers

Okay –

As you can see, there are many opportunities AI will bring freelance writers.

But there are some challenges too.

1. AI Will Replace Low-Level Writers

I’m afraid to tell you, but your writing job may be on the line….that is, if you are a low-level writer.

What is a low-level writer?

It’s a writer using freelance marketplaces like Upwork, Writer Access, Fiverr, etc.

It’s a writer that doesn’t value their writing and offers a low rate ($.05/word).

It’s a writer that pumps out bulk content for entrepreneurs about obscure topics.

I hope you’re not that type of writer!

I hope you command high rates and know the value you bring to a client.

This means you specialize in one area or niche and become an expert in that topic or industry.

Doing this takes years but is worth it in the long run.

You can get ahead by offering the same service as the job you want to quit.

So, offering educational writing would be ideal if you were a teacher.

Similarly, if you were a nurse, a lawyer, or worked in the beauty industry, you can write about those topics too.

Finally, you need to know how to write for high-paying clients. In my masterclass, Writing a B2B $1,000 Article, I share with your a BTS look at how I write these articles from start to finish.

These methods are what high-paying clients expect and want from their content and their writers.

Having written in the B2B market for almost a decade and being paid $1k or more per article, I’m confident about what I share in that masterclass.

2. Businesses Will Be Divided

Unfortunately, one challenge that will come out of generative AI tools is that businesses will be polarized.

Some will use it and let their writers use AI writing tools, while others will completely blanket the industry and say no AI should be used in your writing.

I find this hard to do since Grammarly, Ahrefs, and even Google rely on some forms of AI!

In one of my videos, I share some AI news about which companies adopt AI and which don’t.

 What is the freelance writer to do?

I suggest listening to your client, and if they ask you not to use ChatGPT or other AI writing tools to write the bulk of your content, then listen to them.

Or, if they say they don’t want any AI-written content in the article, then agree with them – as long as this is the client and business you want to write for!

If the pay is good (or it’s a brand I want to work with) and I know the topic or want to learn more about it, I will TAKE THE GIG (even if they tell me only original content).

As an online writer, you do have to go with the flow with landing client work, but it’s in your best interest to learn tools like Jasper AI or ChatGPT.

3. Clients Will Accuse Writers of Using AI (When They Never Did)

This last challenge is new.

I recently wrote about this topic and published a Youtube video on this (and talked about it on TikTok too!).

Why?

Because not in a million years would I guess this would be happening to freelance writers.

What are you suppose to do?

Well, in my post about this topic I give you strategic methods to AI-proof your writing as well as educate clients about how faulty AI-detection tools are.

Also note, if you use Grammarly or another online editor, you have turned your writing into AI. So, make sure to let the client know this if they check your content.

4 Important Ways to Stay Ahead of AI as a Freelance Writer

Let’s look at four important things you need to know about AI writing so you can prepare for what will come with AI in the future.

This will be a toolkit for you to be at the forefront of this AI discussion.

These are the things I talk about in my Youtube video!

1. Start Following AI Writing News

Are you on Twitter?

This will be the BEST source for up-to-date news that is within minutes of happening for information about AI in general and generative AI.

You can follow creators like SEO people, VP of marketing, CEOs, and others that are revealing the latest news based on their tools and services for people.

Many of these creators also talk about Google Bard and Bing Chat and how this will generally affect SEO and blogging.

On my Twitter feed, I pay attention to people like Marie Haynes and Lily Ray. These two fabulous ladies are credible for sharing the latest in AI, ChatGPT, and generative AI content.

If you’re a freelance writer in the digital marketing niche (like me), this information is highly relevant for SaaS businesses and content marketing for digital marketing businesses.

Knowing the latest Google updates or what’s going on with generative AI will help grow my knowledge bank for my client articles.

But, even if you aren’t in the digital marketing niche, this tech news can still help you with your own freelance business thrive.

Other people I follow on Twitter for the latest AI news are:

• Danny Sullivan
• Barry Schwartz
• Ryan Jones

2. Start Using AI Writing Tools

Jasper AI, ChatGPT, Copy.ai, and Wordtune aren’t the only AI tools out there.

Here are some more AI writing tools to try out:

• Sudowrite
• Rytr
• Frase
• SurferSEO
• WriteSonic
• Closers Copy
• Peppertype
• Ink for All
• Paragraph AI
• Hyperwrite
• Grammarly
• Canva Magic
• Tailwind Ghostwriter

Didn’t know there were soo many AI writing tools, eh?

That’s why it’s important to take the time to try them out!

But with any AI content from these AI writing tools, you must ensure you’re not using them verbatim.

I wouldn’t just copy exactly what the tool gives me and put that in a client piece or in a blog post without spending time editing the copy.

In a Youtube video, I show you using ChatGPT to write an article.

In the video, I didn’t take the entire paragraph from ChatGPT.

Instead, I would take a sentence or a phrase, and then I would infuse my own words, add more examples, or change up some verbs to make it more my writing style.

The output from these tools isn’t always the best, and typically, the prompt and tone of voice can really shape the output to be more natural-sounding.

3. Use the Tools!

It isn’t enough to sign up to the free trials of these AI writing tools.

Spend a month or more using these tools and trying different templates and prompts.

You might find that one tool is great for social media posts or another one gives really good headlines.

This time out of your writing can help you speed up your writing!

4. Stay On Top of Any Training That’s Available

As a new freelance writer, it’s a good idea to be on the pulse of any AI training out there.

For example, my Jasper AI prep class will help you understand how to use Jasper AI for new services.

Some podcasts and summits are for writers and copywriters to help you understand the role of AI in content distribution.

Is Freelance Writing Safe from AI of the Future?

The quick answer: Yes, we are safe.

The long answer: Online writing is slowly changing.

I feel generative AI will be a staple in any online business over time, but CEOs will know the value of having people on their team – not just tools to automate their business.

I use automation tools, but I also hire writers. The businesses that value copywriters and conversion writing know that a tool can’t replicate that type of writing that evokes an emotion or compels someone to take action.

So, as a new freelance writer, perfect your craft, know the clients that pay for excellent writing, and watch your business grow!

Tell me in the comments if you feel we are safe from AI.

Please pin me!

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