MARKETING
The Do’s and Don’ts of Choosing A Twitter Handle

With over 200 million daily users, using Twitter right offers you massive benefits as a new or existing business.
Just as you would spend a considerable amount of time choosing your business name, Having a good handle is always a plus for marketing on Twitter. It’s also crucial to take time to consider your options before choosing or changing your Twitter handle.
This article will show you the do’s and don’ts of choosing a Twitter handle and 25 examples of great Twitter business names.
What makes a good Twitter name?
The best Twitter handle for business is one that is the same or similar to your business name and identity. Using your real name will make it easy for users to identify you.
Twitter Name Do’s
Do use your full business name.
Making your Twitter handle as close to your business name as possible will make it easier for people to recognize you online.
Furthermore, whenever you tweet, you promote brand awareness for your business.
Do use short names.
Another tip is to use a short username. Why? Because it makes it easier to remember and spell for anyone that searches for your brand on the network.
If your business name is pretty long, then you can shorten it.
Do use taglines.
Sometimes it happens that your username has already been taken. When that happens, you could report the account for impersonation(if your business name is trademarked), or you can use an abbreviated form of your business tagline as the new handle.
Do be consistent.
If you already have a following on Facebook, Instagram, or some other social media, it’s a great idea to use the same username for your Twitter handle.
This way, it’ll be easier for your followers on those platforms to identify you on Twitter.
Twitter Name Don’ts
Don’t use numbers or symbols.
Unless a number is relevant to your business name, avoid using it on your Twitter handle. It isn’t a cool look and can be confusing for some users.
Don’t use witty names.
A witty username is excellent for a personal account, but it might not be the right fit for a business handle. Customers expect some level of professionalism, and funny names rarely give that impression.
Don’t overdo underscores.
Underscores separate characters in a username, which can be useful if two or more words make up your business name. However, be careful not to overdo using them. It’s recommended to use no more than a pair of underscores.
Good Twitter Name Examples
Here are 25 examples of great Twitter usernames. This list is divided into existing usernames and imaginary ones. Either option can serve as inspiration as you update your current Twitter handle.
Existing Twitter handles
1. Real Madrid – @realmadriden
Real Madrid FC is the biggest football club in the world and is loved by fans from different parts of the world.
The Real Madrid handle, with “en” indicates it’s the club’s official account in English, making it easy to remember and search.
This Twitter name can inspire you if your business exists in different locations around the world or communicates with customers in different languages,
2. Wendys – @Wendys
Wendys might not be your go-to fast-food chain, but they’re probably one of your favorite Twitter accounts. The burger joint is famous for its savage roasts and rivalries with other restaurants online.
We love this Twitter name because of its simplicity. It’s relevant to the brand’s name, which makes it very easy to find and identify.
3. Taco Bell – @tacobell
Using an underscore or number can differentiate your account, but it also makes it harder to find.
That’s why we like Taco Bell’s Twitter username.
Although the brand’s made up of two names, Taco Bell discards the underscore. Therefore, it’s easier to search for it on Twitter without wondering where the underscore appears.
4. PlayStation – @PlayStation
Playstation makes arguably the most popular gaming console on the planet, so it’s important that its customers can find it on Twitter and other social platforms.
It uses ‘PlayStation’ instead of ‘Playstation’ or ‘playstation,’ which we find interesting.
The capital ‘P’ and ‘S’ are synonymous with PlayStation, so it’s no surprise that it remains so even in its Twitter handle. If your business name has prominent features, something along the lines of PlayStation’s P and S, then you can also retain the feature in your username.
5. Yves Saint Laurent – @YSL
The designer apparel maker has an iconic, and lengthy name. Therefore, it might be rather tedious to find the official handle on Twitter.
Perhaps that’s why Yves Saint Laurent decided to use the ‘YSL’ username. It’s short, memorable, and definitely easier to find.
Do you have a long business name? Then take a leaf out of Yves Saint Laurent’s username.
6. Cristiano Ronaldo – @Cristiano
Cristiano Ronaldo is currently the most popular sportsman in the world, and his personal brand is worth millions of dollars.
It’s no wonder, then, that all his social media accounts, Twitter inclusive, use his easily recognizable name as their usernames.
If your business is tied to your name, you can use your first or last name (or the two). We like the ‘Cristiano’ handle because it’s pretty easy to recall and is quite unique.
7. CNN Breaking News – @cnnbrk
CNN has made a name as one of the most popular news networks in the world. The company has several departments, with some focusing on fashion, sports, politics, and more.
@cnnbrk is the account focused on releasing breaking news as it happens, so it needs to be different from the other official CNN accounts.
If your business runs a similar model, with different departments, then you can draw inspiration from this username.
8. Slack – @SlackHQ
Slack is a messaging platform, and more. It’s become a favorite messaging platform for companies across the world.
It would’ve been pretty easy for it to use the @slack handle — if it weren’t already taken. So, instead of paying off the current owner of the handle, it simply added HQ to the brand’s name.
With the HQ (Headquarters), Slack circumvents the ‘Slack’ username elegantly. You can copy Slack’s example if you face the same challenge.
9. PayPal Support – @AskPayPal
Paypal is a financial platform that facilitates sending and receiving money to and from almost everywhere in the world.
As such, it’s only proper to have a channel where users can reach it on Twitter.
Paypal uses ‘ask’ right before its brand name, which is a nice move for a handle that handles customer inquiries and issues. It’s a brilliant username you can copy when creating customer care Twitter handles for your brand.
10. eBay – @eBay
eBay is a hugely popular ecommerce platform that allows users to sell and buy goods.
Just as PlayStation mentioned earlier, eBay has an interesting Twitter handle. It continues the tradition of lowercase ‘e,’ and uppercase ‘B’ in its Twitter handle. Anyone who uses eBay won’t find it hard to find the Twitter handle.
So if your brand’s name has distinct features like capitalized letters, you can incorporate that into your Twitter handle.
11. Union – @JoinUnion
Union is a digital platform that connects startups to resources and networks across the world.
This handle works because the company is a service-based business, and ‘Join’ aligns with the community mandate of the business.
12. The New York Times – @nytimes
The New York Times is a popular news media company based in the United States.
The media company uses its already popular URL name ‘nytimes’ as its username. Thus, readers will find it easy to find.
You can also use your existing URL name as your Twitter handle to make it easy for people familiar with your website to find you on Twitter.
13. Notion – @NotionHQ
Notion is a tool that lets users manage files, save documents, schedule tasks and generally organize their work.
Like Slack, the Notion handle had already been taken. So what the Notion team did was to add HQ to the end of the brand’s name. Problem solved.
14. Carolina Hurricanes – @Canes
The Carolina Hurricanes is a professional ice hockey team based in North Carolina.
How’d you fit a lengthy brand name like the Carolina Hurricanes into a Twitter handle? By abbreviating it to ‘Canes.’ It’s a simple solution that can inspire business owners with long business names.
15. Bobby van’s Grill DC – @BobbyVansDC
Bobby Van’s is a restaurant that opened its doors in 1996 and is famous for its delicious steaks.
We like this handle because it includes the location of the business in the handle. An advantage of this is how the eatery appears in local searches for eateries on Twitter.
If you run a local business, adding your location in the handle can increase the chances of getting found by users.
16. Forever 21 – @Forever21
Forever 21 is a huge clothing company that sells trendy yet affordable clothing pieces.
Although we said you should avoid using numbers in your handle, this example works because ‘21’ isn’t a random pair of numbers but is part of the brand name.
So if the numbers in your brand name are tightly associated with the brand, then by all means add them to your username.
17. Chipotle – @ChipotleTweets
Chipotle is an American chain of fast casual restaurants in North America and Europe.
Chipotle had to resort to taking a lengthier Twitter handle because its first choice was already taken. This alternative handle works, though, as it reinforces that the handle belongs to an official account.
Adding ‘Tweets’ to your brand name can make your handle more recognizable to users.
18. Chick-fil-A – @ChickfilA
Chick-fil-A is the biggest American restaurant specializing in chicken sandwiches and is one of the biggest fast-food restaurants in North America.
Chick-fil-A could’ve gone for a handle like @Chick_fil_A, but we’re grateful they didn’t. The current handle is simple and doesn’t give searchers a hard time.
Editing a brand name to something simpler and easier to search for makes sense and pays off in the end.
19. Arby’s Guest Support – @ArbysCares
Arby’s is another fast-food company whose Twitter handle offers inspiration to any business looking to create a Twitter account.
The brand prides itself on an emotional connection with customers, and its customer service handle uses a username that conveys sympathy.
When creating a username for your business, you want to go with something that conveys positive emotions and puts the consumer at ease—like this handle.
20. Chili’s Grill & Bar – @Chilis
Like all great business Twitter usernames, this username does a great job of being simple and easy to find.
Users don’t have to search for ‘Chili’s Grill and Bar’ but can find the brand right away by just typing ‘Chilis.’ This is another hack you can use if your brand has a relatively long name.
21. ReadWrite – @RWW
ReadWrite aggregates professional communities dedicated to specific subjects of interest such as connected cars, smart homes, AR/VR, fintech, and APIs.
ReadWrite aggregates content from professional communities dedicated to interests like AI, fintech, APIs, and technology.
A shorter handle makes it easier for people to mention you in tweets without taking a lot of character space. The ReadWrite handle is an excellent example because they’ve abbreviated their name into just three letters.
As ReadWrite shows, abbreviations can be a cool way to create a memorable username.
22. Oberto Specialty Meats – @ObertoBeefJerky
Oberto is a specialty meats company that’s famous for its delicious cuts and beef jerky.
We like this handle because it uses keywords in the handle. Thus, the profile is likely to appear when someone searches for beef jerky on Twitter.
If you offer specific services or products, including it in your username like this example can boost your chances of popping up when people search for them.
23. MADE.COM – @madedotcom
Made designs and retails furniture and homewares online and in showrooms across Europe.
This is a cool handle because it makes it easy for users to remember the brand’s website.
If you’re looking for something non-generic and memorable, then copying this example can be what your username needs.
24. Netflix – @netflix
Netflix is arguably the most popular streaming platform on the planet with millions of subscribers paying for its content monthly.
The main account, @netflix, is simple and a no-brainer to remember. The brand name is consistent on every social platform, including Twitter.
If you’re setting up an account for your brand, it’s best to have a consistent username across all channels as Netflix has.
25. Cakes Decor – @CakesDecor
Cakes Decor is a community dedicated to showcasing beautiful cake decorations that inspire cake makers around the world.
The handle is great because it includes the keywords ‘cake’ and ‘decor,’ which means anyone searching for cake decoration inspiration on Twitter is likely going to come across the page.
So include keywords in your username to increase visibility.
The Perfect Twitter Name for Your Business
Twitter is one of the most popular social platforms on the web today, and how you show up isn’t limited to just what you say, but the name you say it under, too. Choosing the right Twitter name for your brand is key, so follow the tips in this guide and take inspiration from the list of businesses above that did it right. You’ll have the perfect Twitter handle in no time.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in January 2009 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
MARKETING
How to Schedule Ad Customizers for Google RSAs [2024]
![How to Schedule Ad Customizers for Google RSAs [2024] How to Schedule Ad Customizers for Google RSAs [2024]](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/How-to-Schedule-Ad-Customizers-for-Google-RSAs-2024.jpg)
It’s no wonder that responsive search ads have steadily grown in popularity in recent years. Through Google’s machine learning capabilities, RSAs provide a powerful way to automate the testing of multiple headlines and descriptions to ensure a closer match to user intent. The benefits are clear: RSAs mean broader reach, better engagement, and improved performance metrics.
However, all these benefits come at a significant (but reasonable) cost – they can be extremely difficult to manage, especially when it comes to updating ad copy to promote limited time offers.
I know this firsthand – I work with several ecommerce clients with promotions that constantly change. Not too long ago, I found myself going through the consistently tedious process of updating a client’s RSA headlines and copy. As I was making the changes, I thought to myself: “There must be a better way to update this ad copy. I shouldn’t have to use find and replace so many times while pausing and enabling my ad campaigns.”
After expressing this to my colleague, Jordan Stambaugh, the two of us agreed there must be a better way. But we’d have to make it happen. A few weeks later, we put that idea into action and created a more efficient process for updating RSA ad copy on a scheduled basis. If you want to try this process for yourself, just keep reading.
Responsive Search Ad Customizers 101: Basic Options & Execution
Before diving into the process of scheduling automatic updates for your RSA customizers, it’s essential to understand some key Responsive Search Ad fundamentals.
First, you can customize three main options within RSAs: the Attribute Name, the Data Type, and the Account Value. Each of these plays a vital role in personalizing your ads:
- Attribute Name: This is essentially the identifier for the customizer. It is how you’ll reference the specific piece of information you’re customizing within the ad. For instance, if you’re running a promotion, you might name an attribute “Promotion.”
- Data Type: This indicates the kind of data the attribute represents and it determines how the information can be formatted and used within the ad. Common data types include Text (for plain, non-numeric text), Percent (to represent percentage discounts), Price (to denote monetary values), and Number (for any numerical value).
- Account Value: This is the default value for the attribute that you set at the account level. It acts as a fallback if more specific values aren’t provided at the campaign or ad group level.
For example, if you wanted to promote a 10% off discount using RSAs, you’d use the “Discount” attribute, a data type of “Percent,” and an account value of “10% off.” Then, when someone is searching for products, Google would test automatically inserting a copy regarding a 10% off promotion into your ad.
Once you’ve set up the right customization options, you can start to format your RSAs with customizers.
Here’s how:
- Start by typing in {
- Click on Ad Customizer then select your attribute
- Google will populate your attributes that are already uploaded
- For a simple offer, use the “Default text” attribute as a catch-all. This will ensure your ads run smoothly if Google can’t pull the right messaging from your RSA feed
How to Schedule Your Ad Customizers with a Feed
Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s cover how to schedule your ad customizers.
Just follow this three step process:
1. Create the feed
Start by creating two sheets: The Parent sheet, and the Child sheet. The “Parent” sheet will act as the primary data source, while the child sheet will pull data from the parent sheet.
We’ll start by building the parent sheet. After opening the sheet, start by renaming the active tab to “Promotions.” Don’t skip this step, it’s crucial for referencing this range in formulas later on.
In your “Promotions” tab, head to the top row and label columns A, B, and C with the headers of your ad customizer attributes. For example, you might have “BrandSaleHeadline” as your attribute in column A, “text” as the Data Type in column B, and “Shop the Collection” as the Account Value in column C.
Once your headers are in place, move to cell C2. Here, you’ll input the expression =lookup(today(),F:G,E:E). This formula will play a key role in dynamically updating your RSA customizer based on the current date.
Next, go to columns E, F, and G, which will be used to manage your scheduling. In these columns, you’ll list out the different values your chosen attribute might take, alongside their corresponding start and end dates. For example, under the “BrandSaleHeadline” attribute, you might schedule various promotional headlines to appear during different sale periods throughout the year.
Here’s how your sheet might look:
Now look back at the first 3 columns on your sheet. They should look like this:
Now create a second sheet. We’ll call this sheet the Child sheet. It’s going to automatically pull in data from the parent sheet you just created, and will be the one you link to Google Ads later on.
Columns A, B and C will be almost identical to the child sheet, but we will be using a special formula later so we can automatically populate this. So, start by labeling Row 1 Column A “Attribute,” then the next column as “Data type,” then column C as “Account value.”
Then go to C2 and use this expression to populate the right account value from the parent document: =importrange(“[PARENT DOCUMENT URL HERE]”,”Promotions!C2″)
Your sheet should now look like this:
We recommend adding a date range with default text for any days you’re not running a promotion. In the example above, we have “Shop Our Collection” appearing as default text.
2. Input attributes
Once you have your feed created, the next step involves inputting your attributes into the Google Ads platform. This can be done either manually or through a bulk upload.
For the manual approach, navigate to “Tools & Settings” in your Google Ads interface, then go to ‘Setup’ followed by “Business Data.” Here, you’ll find an option for “Ad Customizer Attributes.” Click the plus sign to add your attributes. It’s crucial to use the same attribute names that you’ve established in your Parent Google Sheet template to ensure consistency and proper data synchronization.
Alternatively, if you prefer the bulk upload method, again head to “Tools & Settings.” This time, select “Bulk Actions” and then “Uploads.” For this process, you only need to upload columns A to C from your template.
Be aware that it might take some time for your uploaded attributes to be reflected in the business data section of Google Ads.
3. Set up an automatic schedule
At this point, you’ve almost finished scheduling your ad customizers. Navigate to Tools & Settings, then Bulk Actions, then Uploads, then click the Schedules tab at the top. Select your Child Google Sheet as the data source, and share your Google Sheet with the appropriate email.
And there you have it – Google will automatically pull in the data you populated in the sheets into your RSAs.
Common Challenges When Scheduling RSA Ad Customizers
When we test these sheets with our clients in the wild, we’ve uncovered five common challenges. Be on the lookout for these issues – solving them before they happen can save you a lot of trouble down the line.
Not scheduling your upload when the site changes
The first and most significant hurdle is the mismatch between the scheduled data upload and website content updates. For instance, if the Google Sheet is set to upload at 11 am, but the website changes occur at 3 pm, there’s going to be a discrepancy where the wrong message could be displayed for several hours, or new messaging could appear prematurely. Conversely, if the website updates happen before the scheduled sheet upload, outdated promotions might linger until the new data is imported. Synchronizing these schedules is crucial; it’s best to align them so updates occur simultaneously.
Skipping QA during a message change
Another pitfall is neglecting quality assurance (QA) during message updates. It’s vital to regularly check the business data section to verify that the correct values are in place post-update.
Issues with the IMPORTRANGE function
Then there’s the technical aspect of setting up the IMPORTRANGE function correctly in the Google Sheets template. The ‘child’ template must reliably pull data from the ‘parent’ sheet. If this function isn’t configured correctly, data won’t be imported as needed.
Not sharing access of the Google template for automatic uploads
Pay attention to your access permissions for the Google Sheets template. Google will prompt you with the email address that needs permission to access the ‘child’ sheet for automatic uploads. Overlooking the sharing of your sheet with this address will prevent the system from working.
Having date range gaps in your parent sheet
Lastly, a common oversight is leaving date range gaps in the ‘parent’ sheet. Every single date must be accounted for without overlaps. A practical tip is to have an ‘evergreen’ backup message ready, scheduled to run continuously, ideally through the end of the year, to cover any potential gaps.
Conclusion
Leveraging Google Sheets in conjunction with Google Ads to schedule RSA ad customizers is a game-changer for managing dynamic promotional content. This process not only streamlines your workflows but also ensures that your ads remain relevant and up-to-date, reflecting current promotions without the need for constant manual intervention.
By adopting this method, you’ll save significant time and effort, allowing you to focus more on strategy and less on the minutiae of ad copy updates. Give it a try and experience a more efficient way to manage your RSAs, keeping your campaigns fresh and engaging with minimal hassle.
MARKETING
10 Advanced Tips for Crafting Engaging Social Content Strategies

In 2023, there are a total of 4.89 billion social media users worldwide. One of the many reasons you should build your brand’s presence on social media is to capture a slice of this pie.
So, if you’re a marketer wanting to crush it online — this is your time to take action. The social presence of billions of users shows great potential to connect, engage, and build lasting relationships with your target audience.
The real power lies not just in being active on social media networks but in planning social media goals in advance and crafting engaging social media content strategies that make a meaningful impact.
And creating one isn’t as easy as it sounds. It requires a thoughtful approach that goes beyond the basics.
To help you accomplish your social media goals, we’ll cover ten advanced tips that you can use to craft an engaging social media content strategy.
1. Conduct A/B Testing
A/B testing allows you to optimize your social media marketing strategy based on insights and social media metrics.
Experiment with different content formats, headlines, captions, and visuals to see which format performs better.
You can also try different content styles and focus on visual content, which is 40x more likely to be shared on social media.
Example: Test two different headlines for a product announcement social post and use the one that users engaged with and shared more. You’ll need to track social metrics like reactions, shares, and new followers during your test.
2. Personalize your content
Before creating a social media marketing plan or content calendar, segment your audience based on demographics, behaviors, and interests.
Craft tailored messages for each segment and find social media content ideas for that target audience.
And to encourage them to engage with you, publish funny content. 80% of marketers say that funny content is the most effective form of social media posts.
Example: Tap into Instagram retargeting ads to promote personalized product recommendations to customers based on their past purchase history.
3. Embrace User-Generated Content (UGC)
User-generated content is a powerful way to build trust, gather a sense of community, and increase engagement rates.
Encourage users to share their experiences and stories about your brand.
Plan a posting schedule using social media tools, highlight, and feature UGC in your content, and give credit to the creators to showcase the authenticity.
Then, create a dedicated UGC marketing campaign.
Example: Invite customers to share photos of themselves using your product with a branded hashtag. Comment on and share these photos on your company’s social media (with permission, of course), thanking the participants for joining in on the fun.
4. Incorporate influencer collaboration
Partner with influencers in your industry who have high engagement rates. 67% of marketers agree they prefer working with micro-influencers with 10k-100k followers or subscribers.
Collaborating with influencers allows you to tap into their social networks and leverage their credibility to boost engagement.
Use social media management tools to co-create content, host giveaways, or collaborate on campaigns aligning with your brand and the influencers’ style to extend your reach and gain engagement.
If your target audience is Gen Z, you can prefer Instagram Reels for influencer marketing.
For context, look at the stats below:
Example: Partner with a fitness influencer to promote your health supplements through workout videos.
5. Use interactive elements
To accomplish your social media marketing goals, you can engage people to interact with your brand via polls, quizzes, and surveys. Encourage them to participate and share the results.
Incorporating interactive elements into your social media marketing strategy will spark active participation between your social media team and audience, making them more likely to engage and share opinions.
Example: Host a poll on X (formerly Twitter) to let your audience choose the next product feature you’ll develop or the types of content they’d like to see.
6. Leverage user reviews and testimonials
Showcase user reviews and testimonials as part of your content strategy. Highlight positive feedback and make improvements by taking accountability for negative feedback.
Incorporate these testimonials into your social media strategies to create dedicated reviews or testimonial videos. Sharing this social proof helps build trust and credibility with your audience.
Example: Feature video social proof of a satisfied customer explaining how your software improved their business.
7. Create long-form content
While social media platforms are mostly known for short-form content, they’re switching gears to focus on long-form content.
It’s great, especially if your business receives great engagement on X (formerly Twitter).
“Long-form posts on the microblogging platform are now at 3 billion views per day and rising.”, said Elon Musk, the owner of X.
“This is roughly on par with all newspaper articles views on Earth,” he continued.
Educational content and case studies tend to work great on LinkedIn. Additionally, blog posts can also help you establish your brand as an authority in your industry.
Publishing compelling content is a great way to increase engagement and shares. You can also repurpose educational content on multiple sites and tailor it to each platform for the best results.
Example: Publish content about challenges and opportunities your company faced and how it helped you increase return on investment.
8. Collaborate with other brands
Collaborate with complementary brands or businesses for promotional content.
As part of your digital marketing strategy, come up with mutually beneficial collaboration ideas that can help you both increase reach and tap into ideal customers.
Joint campaigns, cross-promotions, or co-sponsored events are great ways to use the power of collaboration.
Example: Team up with a travel agency to promote your hotel and their vacation packages through a joint social media campaign.
9. Emphasize customer service
Social channels aren’t just a source for publishing content but also for providing excellent customer service.
Marketers these days actively invest in building social media communities to better connect and interact with potential customers.
Respond promptly to inquiries, comments, and feedback from your audience. Show them you genuinely care about them by addressing their concerns and providing helpful solutions.
This level of engagement can build customer loyalty and community building.
Example: Respond to customers’ support requests on social accounts and resolve their issues within a few hours.
10. Monitor trends and stay updated
Stay updated with social media trends, algorithm changes, and content formats. Track performances, content audits, and social media KPIs.
Experiment with new features or types of content introduced by social media channels.
Plan your social media content calendar based on engagement metrics. Keep an eye on what your competitors are doing and identify strategies that work well in your industry.
Out of all content types, short-form videos are taking the spotlight. Research states that 64% of shoppers ended up making a purchase after seeing branded video content on social platforms.
Example: If video content is becoming popular on social platforms, create your social media content strategy around it.
You might also consider incorporating data storytelling into your strategy. Why? More brands are moving towards storytelling in their social media posts.
This helps reach larger audiences and accomplish business goals. If you haven’t thought about it, give it a thought. The early bird catches the worm.
Final Words
And there you have it — ten advanced tips to level up your social media marketing strategy.
Test the waters with new features on social channels and plan your content marketing strategy accordingly.
With consistency and some creativity, you can increase your brand awareness and establish a strong foothold in the vast sea of social media.
Are you ready to boost your social media presence and accomplish all your business goals? Here’s to your success!
MARKETING
3 Questions About AI in Content: What? So What? Now What?

In the United States, Thanksgiving will give us the needed break to take a collective breath.
I don’t know about you, but getting my bearings around the disruptions of generative AI presents an extreme challenge. Innovations come so quickly that once we think we have our arms around it, something new appears.
Almost one year into seeing what generative AI can do for content creation and marketing strategies, OpenAI has introduced custom GPTs for those who pay for access.
You can build custom ChatGPT applications to use the tool’s newest capabilities to do things specifically valuable to you. For example, your company could upload 10 years of blog articles and instruct the custom GPT to use the knowledge gained from the content to formulate answers to questions on the blogs’ topics. In theory, you get the depth and breadth of ChatGPT’s large language learning model focused on your knowledge base and able to take specific actions, such as sending an email or automating a task.
Impressive. But sheesh. What does that do to your plans to integrate tools into your marketing workflow? It seems like one of a hundred things that you’re supposed to pay attention to right now.
Time to reflect
If your time frees up this week either because of the holiday or because the Americans are on holiday, take a moment and reflect on these disruptions to your current marketing and content efforts.
A little more than 20 years ago, a nursing professor at Swansea University published a helpful framework for self-reflection and communication. His exercise has helped me in times of disruption, and perhaps it can be for you as well.
Answer a few questions that fall into three stages – what, so what, and now what?
- What? Describe what has happened simply and objectively – without judgment or interpretation. Some helpful prompts: What happened? What did you observe? What events occurred? What is the current situation?
- So what? Answer questions about what you know now that you didn’t know. You can introduce emotions. Some helpful prompts: What did you learn? What difference have the events made? Answer as yourself or within the context of your team or company.
If it’s just you, potential questions could be: Did what happened clarify an interest? Did you hear or feel anything that surprised you? How is your experience different than what you expected? What do these events mean to you?
If you answer on behalf of a team or group, you can ask the self-questions along with these prompts: What do these events suggest to you about this group? How might the group work better or worse with these events? How were decisions made or not made based on these events?
- Now what? Reflect on your future actions based on the first two steps. These broader implications react to what happened. Questions center on defining and looking at the root cause: What would contribute to a successful response? What would be in the way of successfully navigating through this? What learning has now occurred, and how can I/we apply this learning?
Ask your team to do this same exercise. When you meet back up, create a workshop or team gathering where you discuss the answers and determine where opportunities may exist.
Real reflections aren’t hot takes
If you find yourself thinking that process is basic, well, you’re right. These three questions – and the provocations that come from them – mirror a progression you’ve all tried to work through a problem. However, you don’t often do it for big disruptions in the moment. It’s just too easy to jump to the third step, “now what,” and confuse it with “what’s next.” You get overwhelmed by all the actions you can take.
You can see this challenge happening with the disruption of generative AI.
Check out this article that reflects on the disruption of generative AI in the video game industry. To make the case, it leverages Bain & Company research that “more than half of video game development process will be supported by generative AI within the next five to 10 years.” It uses “what happened” to make a case for “what’s next.” The author didn’t even bother to ask “so what” to reach the conclusion: “Microsoft wants AI to solve problems that game makers say they won’t actually have.”
If you reflect on what the Bain research actually said, you can see it’s almost the opposite of the Microsoft conclusion. The research plainly says few executives believe AI will reduce development costs. They say AI will not significantly impact talent and “do not believe it will replace the creative spark necessary for game development.”
By misinterpreting what happened and not asking, “So what,” the author jumped to predicting what’s next, which is almost useless to make any productive change to address what’s really happening.
This is why working through this process is helpful.
Now, to be clear, hot takes are fun. I’m not suggesting you do away with predictions or the occasional response. Hot takes are a great way to start the conversation, not to finish them.
Take the time – and the process – to work it out. It’s not perfect. It’s also not meant to be a fail-safe way to predict the future. The three-question stages are meant to help you balance facts and feelings to make more productive and satisfying responses to the disruptions you face.
The process is meant to change your future, not by helping you see it more clearly but by helping you clearly see how you change it.
It’s your story. Have a wonderful, reflective Thanksgiving, and tell it well.
Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute
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