In a digital landscape dominated by AI-generated articles, human-written content still performs better in search results and earns greater trust. As questions surrounding authenticity intensify, industrial brands built on precision must look beyond surface-level cues.
It’s been well over a year since AI-generated articles on the web began to outnumber those written by people. Yet while machines may now produce more content, visibility and credibility still depend largely on human expertise.
A study by Graphite indicated that 86% of Google’s top-ranking pages are human-authored, as are 82% of the sources cited by ChatGPT. This is because traditional search engines and AI models alike reward depth, originality, and demonstrated authority. Content that reflects real-world experience and clear ownership is more likely to be referenced, ranked, and trusted.
This is true not just of algorithms but also of people. Social media users increasingly dismiss posts as ‘AI written’ when they feel generic or formulaic, while journalists are similarly alert to AI-generated press releases. Press Gazette reports extensively on how to spot synthetic content. Whether your content is seen as AI-generated or human, therefore, has an impact on reputation.
Some people are trying to prove their humanity by leaving typos uncorrected, omitting certain punctuation (particularly em and en dashes), or avoiding words commonly associated with AI (such as delve or resonate). The assumption is that anything too polished must be artificial.
Imperfect writing doesn’t prove authenticity, however. Rather, it can point to a lack of attention and care, and attention to detail is especially important in industrial sectors where contracts are high value, risk is carefully managed, and credibility is hard-won and easily lost. It also matters to journalists who need to trust that the information they receive is accurate.
When it comes down to it, it’s not really grammatical precision that raises suspicion. It’s content that feels superficial or interchangeable. In a web saturated with polished, yet surface-level material, it is substance and perspective that cut through – regardless of whether AI was used in the drafting process.
How to stand out in a sea of generic content
1. Establish clear ownership and accountability
Human expertise is not only about knowledge. It’s about standing behind what you publish. Named authorship tells readers – journalists and procurement teams – that someone is prepared to attach their professional reputation to those words. In industrial organisations, there is often hesitation around this. Experts may prefer statements attributed to the team or company as a whole. However, a collective doesn’t think or speak in unison. True authority comes from identifiable individuals with defined specialisms.
2. Develop a distinctive voice
AI can imitate tone and common industry phrasing but a brand voice is so much more than a style guide. It reflects how a company interprets its industry and market. Is the organisation pragmatic and operationally focused? Analytical and data-led? Challenging and opinionated? Or calm and advisory in complex situations? That voice emerges from a myriad of choices about what to emphasise, what to question, and what to leave unsaid. It evolves over time as experience deepens and can’t be reduced to a series of prompts.
3. Share lived experience and anecdotes
AI has no memory of a rainy jobsite, a delayed shipment that threatened a project timeline, or the tension of presenting a new specification to a sceptical client. It can recombine existing material, but it cannot draw on first-hand experience. Industrial audiences notice the difference. Concrete examples, lessons learned, or candid reflections on what didn’t go entirely to plan demonstrate the operational understanding that builds trust.
4. Show strategic nuance and empathy
Complex organisations rarely operate in straight lines. There are competing regional priorities, regulatory constraints, commercial pressures, and stakeholder sensitivities to navigate. Authoritative communication acknowledges these tensions, framing arguments with awareness of market dynamics and decision-making realities – without oversimplification. Readers may not consciously recognise this depth at first glance, but it’s what separates true strategic insight from mere competence.
5. Contribute original thinking
Efficiency doesn’t always equate to value as producing content more quickly doesn’t strengthen a brand if that content only repeats what is already widely available. Even if you train AI on speeches, LinkedIn posts, or internal documents to create a digital twin of an executive, it can only recombine what already exists. It can’t introduce genuinely new perspectives or challenge assumptions to move the industry conversation forward.
Authenticity is, therefore, not about adding flaws; it’s about adding substance.
Hannah Kitchener
Associate Director
About the author
Hannah is an associate director in the UK, leading strategic campaigns for industrial clients across the EMEA region. A professionally qualified journalist (NCTJ), she combines specialist sectoral knowledge in construction, energy, and materials handling with a strong network of trade media contacts to secure valuable coverage. Her expertise in inter-cultural communication, honed by degrees in modern languages and translation, is key to executing campaigns that succeed across diverse European markets.
