How to Effectively Use AI in Content Workflows

AI is seemingly everywhere. Its capabilities, and the tools built on them, are advancing daily. Trying to stay current can feel like drinking your way out of a river.   

And AI doesn’t just provoke curiosity. It stirs a whole spectrum of emotions: wonder and amazement, but also apprehension, confusion, frustration, and even insecurity. For marketing, content, and communications professionals, those feelings often coexist. AI can feel enigmatic: a potential career disruptor, yet also a powerful productivity ally. It promises to save time, but demands plenty to learn how to use it effectively.  

If that sounds familiar, you’re in good company. Even the largest enterprises and most experienced leaders are grappling with the same uncertainty. According to McKinsey, over 80% of enterprise growth leaders recognize that AI will change their work, yet 84% admit they don’t know how.  

In this article, inspired by a recent presentation by JAKALA N.A.’s Director of Client Success, Chaney Moore, and Creative Director, Matthew Dichter, we’ll explore how AI can help transform content operations, turning that uncertainty into measurable impact. 

You can’t replace a chef with a microwave, and you still can’t replace human expertise with AI. 

Because it’s difficult to view the current state of AI while in the midst of its rapid evolution, let’s hop into mental Deloreans and go back 75 years to a time when a new era of technology disrupted not our work, but our kitchens. 

When microwave technology hit the market, there were proclamations that this would forever and completely transform meal preparation at home. Though this new technology did have a lasting impact on how we prepare food (as well as society overall), it was never going to replace all our appliances, nor the quality of home-cooked meals. Microwaves do specific things very well – but not everything.  

Like microwaves, AI does specific things very well and will undoubtedly have a lasting impact across many aspects of our home and work lives. But be it microwaves, AI, or most any other technology, it’s only as good as how it’s used. 

World-famous chef Gordon Ramsay, offers a line of microwavable frozen lasagna meals in grocery stores across the world. But enjoying his microwavable dish doesn’t compare to enjoying his handmade lasagna in his restaurants. Similarly, you might microwave his frozen lasagna offering, but that doesn’t make you an award-winning chef. 

AI promises to transform the way we access information, simplify processes, accelerate progress, and unleash imagination. But to achieve an impact, it must be used intentionally for specific purposes. 

Coca-Cola made headlines last year when they debuted an AI-generated holiday ad. Generating AI videos is very easy. Even grandmas are using AI to generate video, presumably posting them to their Facebook feeds. But this holiday ad wasn’t made by giving some prompts given to AI; it was a team of professionals using AI in a very strategic and intentional manner to dramatically speed up production time, allow for more variety, and experiment with different approaches. 

Change is happening at an unprecedented rate. Last year, mainstream applications of AI were fairly basic: data-entry functions, copy editing, process automation, and chatbots. Since then, things have changed significantly. The number of potential applications has exploded and is increasing daily.  

But how many are really functional?  

How many are functional for individual use, but not suitable for team or org-wide implementation and operationalization?
 
How many are a fit for your org, and can be integrated into your existing work processes, tools, and tech stack?

→ According to recent findings by MIT, 95% of gen AI pilots in enterprises fail to deliver measurable business impact.  

The need for orchestration isn’t unique to AI. This has been a core aspect of what we do at JAKALA. From  wrangling large numbers of disparate websites into a unified and scalable DXP, to full digital transformation, we orchestrate implementation of new tools, platforms, and technologies based on our client’s landscape – including their specific goals and needs, digital maturity, unique marketplace, existing tech and tool stack, teams and business units, processes, and areas of risk. 

Why orchestration matters:

• Provides integrated tools to orchestrate contextualized digital experiences at scale
• Connects technology to the customer experience 
• Aligns technology with marketing efforts to enhance the customer experience 
• Serves as an essential owned channel in today’s digital landscape 
• Enables future-ready and current state AI-driven orchestration

Curious what orchestration could look like for your organization? Let’s connect!

We’ve found that trying to create original content with AI isn’t effective. BUT it is helpful for components of content creation, Here are some ways we’re using Gen AI to help create content - from ideation and research, to content production, to editing. 

Validating and tailoring content for audiences.

Generative AI is incredibly useful for sharing content with multiple audiences, as well as versioning for specific audiences. AI can represent massive time savings with these routine functions. 

Other routine functions AI excels with in content processes, representing immediate value: 

• Tagging and categorizing content 
• Segmenting audiences  
• Content summaries
• SEO and GEO (generative engine optimization) 
• Taxonomy development  
• Internal-facing content 
  • Example: Creating process docs, summarizing SOPs, and other ways to make it easier for teams to do their jobs. 
• Accessibility compliance (vital minutiae that takes so much time): WCAG standards, tags, closed captioning, accessibility-friendly code, image descriptions, alt text, etc. 

What to watch out for.

Despite what some AI evangelists may say, AI is far from perfect. Human direction and review are still important parts of the process to avoid major mishaps and inaccuracies, as well as even legal risks.  

“Supplement, don’t substitute”: Don’t use it to replace team members. It still needs a lot of oversight and direction (ex of AI = intern on their first day) 

“Garbage in, garbage out”: Bad data, not using appropriate prompts, not using AI with intention. 

Verify outputs: Not only for accuracy, but also tone, sensitivity (especially in the case of PR or sensitive subject matter), appropriateness for the audience (Too jargon heavy? Does it have authority?) 

Privacy and compliance: For any AI tool you use, make sure to get clarity about how it complies with your company’s data management requirements 

Broadly speaking, there are two primary ways you can incorporate AI into your workflow. 

First, there are external large language models (LLMs). When most people hear “generative AI,” they think ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, or Gemini. These are external LLM tools: you provide your data and information to it, and it outputs what you're looking for. You then might take that output and paste it into your website editor or into your marketing automation platform to be sent as an email. 

There is also workflow-embedded AI. This is AI functionality that’s built in the tools that you already use in your day-to-day work, allowing you to work where you already are. These tools will have access to your data and can take action on your behalf. Microsoft has offered Copilot, Google has Gemini, Zoom has a meeting note taker, and almost every CMS in use out there today has a suite of AI capabilities. 

The advantage of these tools is that you already know and use them, and can explore ways to get some immediate value out of them, rather than switching back and forth between your day-to-day workflow and an external tool. 

AI isn’t a magic solution, nor a passing trend. Like any tool, its value depends on the intention, strategy, and creativity behind its use. For content and marketing professionals, the opportunity lies in amplifying, not replacing, human expertise. True impact comes from orchestration; aligning people, processes, data, and technology so AI supports the broader customer experience rather than operating in isolation.