Using AI as a Creative Enabler

There has been much speculation recently about the impact of AI on the advertising industry in general. And one thing I know is that I am not equipped in the least to accurately predict what will happen when as this technology develops and impacts so many areas of work life. But I can share with you how I use AI in my daily work life in ways that save me a meaningful amount of time.

ChatGPT: Problematic in terms of attribution and ownability of content, but seems pretty great (so far) for quick, compiled research (saving multiple Google searches). For example, if I am about to chat with a new contact, I can get a summary of their business, their vertical, their top competitors and more with just a few prompts. If I need something thoughtful, or funny, or creative to close out a thank you card, I get tons of ideas right away. Some are really strange, but they often prompt new ideas for me at times when my brain has run out of juice (3 PM!). If I want quick prompts for brainstorming sessions (“what are the top ten reasons people buy soap?”), I get some nice thought starters. I use this tool at least daily to get useful tidbits of info that allow me to jumpstart my own work quickly and efficiently.

AI Logo Generators: I help incubate startups from time to time as part of my investment portfolio and many operate on a pre-funding shoestring budget and need to get to market quickly. AI Logo Generators generate bland, soulless “identity systems” that, so far at least, can’t come even close to replicating a well-researched, strategically sound, human designer-created logo. And they run the very real risk of infringement as they sell similar logos to thousands of buyers world-wide. However, they are a terrific tool to help narrow down founder likes and dislikes quickly for those who need an identity system yesterday. I typically start with a selection of AI-generated logos so that are roughly on strategy and act as good thought starters and then work with the founders to review their take as it relates fonts, color palettes, audience, competitive considerations, etc. It helps get to the root of those intangible feelings that stakeholders have that drive their likes and dislikes, and acts as a great shortcut to establishing an agreed upon visual language between founder and creative. My trusted (human) logo designer then applies his magic to create logo options that are elevated to something truly ownable, memorable and effective. Not at all suitable for big brand overhauls, but a useful tool to help shorten time to market for a bootstrapping company.

AI Image Generators: I find these so fascinating. Sometimes what they come up with is so totally out of left field, that the images can spur new creative ideas when a brainstorming team is burned out and needs some sort of crazy prompt to get the creative juices flowing again. A good tool to expand thinking from time to time.