Despite facing many controversies since its launch, ChatGPT from OpenAI has quickly become a go-to tool for businesses, with many looking for ways to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into their content and marketing mix. But while it opens up infinite possibilities in terms of practical applications and automating tasks, it can also lead others to question a company’s credibility, especially for those in the legal profession.
If you are considering using AI tools like ChatGPT or Dall-E for content creation and marketing, here are some important things to remember, including legal, ethical and regulatory implications.
What is ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is an advanced language model designed to understand and generate human like text based on the input it receives. It is a product of OpenAI, a US-based artificial research organisation dedicated to developing AI technologies. It is akin to a chatbot that can answer questions conversationally and can be used for generating creative content, writing code, offering language translation, and more.
ChatGPT continues to evolve as it receives more data, enabling it to accomplish more tasks and expand its capabilities. For this reason, businesses are eager to explore the AI model and maximise its effectiveness.
Should you use ChatGPT for your business?
There’s no doubt ChatGPT can be a helpful tool for content creation and branding, but the key is to utilise it effectively to elevate your business without compromising your credibility and reputation. Here are some things you can explore:
Use ChatGPT to expand on your own creative thoughts
From creating a brand statement to blog posts, you can use ChatGPT to create various types of content. But don’t rely solely on AI – the key to making the language model work for you is to delve into the given output and tailor it to highlight your brand and its unique identity and purpose. Use it for prompts and general ideation, then personalise it as you see fit. This enables you to create quality content with authority, which is a component of Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines.
Boost your reputation with ChatGPT
If you want to utilise your online presence to improve branding and business, you can use content creation to establish credibility. Blogs, LinkedIn and social media are among the most powerful tools to drive traffic and engage your audience. But to stand out against competitors, you’ll need to improve your site’s E-E-A-T and ensure your content meets users’ needs, allowing you to rank higher in Google searches.
E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness. It is part of Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines and what real people use to evaluate the quality of search results. Original content, authentic insights, topical expertise, factual accuracy and trustworthy sources – all these are taken into account by quality raters, and while ChatGPT can help you churn out thousands of blog posts, relying on AI alone can impact your E-E-A-T standing.
Instead of simply copying and pasting what ChatGPT has generated, you can ask it instead to give you prompts or outlines that you can use to create high quality blogs. Edit AI content as much as possible and add more value to it by infusing your creativity into your content.
Train your AI to know your brand better
Because ChatGPT is able to improve as it receives more data, you can train the language model to give information that is relevant to you and your audience. Consult ChatGPT to explore insights on your target market and potential competitors or discover frequently asked questions (FAQs) you should anticipate from your customers. You can utilise this information to generate a new set of AI content, contributing to the growth and expansion of your brand.
What should I watch out for when using ChatGPT for my business?
While AI models like ChatGPT and Dall-E make content creation and marketing easier, they still have limitations. Using these tools for your business and branding can also have negative implications, including:
- Providing inaccurate information
On its website, ChatGPT includes a disclaimer that the AI model can make mistakes. It may not always have the most up to date data and admits to generating responses based on patterns learned during training rather than specific knowledge about current events. Failure to verify with authoritative sources or fact check the information you put out can lead to potential issues and legal risks.
- Possible copyright issues
Copyright is the exclusive legal right of creators of an original work to control certain activities regarding their original piece. These include copying and re-use, like publication, performance, adaptation, and making the work available to the public.
When using AI models like ChatGPT and Dall-E, there is always the possibility that the tools have incorporated copyrighted materials in the generated content. Determining copyright ownership and assessing the legal implications for businesses that use AI-generated content can become complex. Infringement is possible if a user knowingly or unknowingly uses ChatGPT to produce output bearing a part of an existing work subject to copyright. To mitigate potential issues, it’s best to use their responses as a starting point and then transform them into something that is unique to your brand.
- Confidentiality breach
AI learns over time from the data it receives from users. Once a user inserts data, the AI tool can store that information for future use. Entering confidential information like a person’s name, address or other personal details, may lead the AI tool to include it in responses to another user. In such cases, you can be held accountable for inadvertently releasing confidential data.
- Trade mark violations
AI models like Dall-E can ease branding tasks by generating logos, company slogans or other trade marks for your business. However, using existing elements that are under trade mark protection can put you in hot water. When creating content for your brand, it is always best to err on the side of caution, especially where intellectual property is involved.
There’s no denying how quickly AI models have evolved and how helpful they’ve become in today’s world. But, like everything else, careful consideration is needed when using these tools for your brand. When in doubt, consider getting legal counsel before using any information generated by AI tools that could potentially be incorrect or protected. Intellectual property, in particular, is tricky, so you’ll need to engage a trade mark attorney to help you avoid costly rebranding due to the unintentional use of another company’s trade marked elements.
Lazarus Legal can help you deal with these legal matters and requirements so you can focus on growing your business. Contact us today or sign up for our newsletter to stay informed about legal news, business trends, and more.