What AI Is Actually Changing About My Work
I've been dabbling with Claude more in the past few weeks for data analysis, research, slide deck prep, structuring and preparing for meetings...the kind of work that used to eat whole afternoons. Nothing dramatic. I haven't built custom skills yet, I'm not handing it the keys to anything important, and I'm not liking its output for creative work, though it can be helpful for ideation. But it's powerful enough that I've already noticed something shifting in how I spend my time.
The shift isn't about doing more work faster. It's about which parts of the work I'm doing at all. Less time formatting decks, dropping in images, copying numbers between tabs. More time reading what the AI produced, deciding whether it actually fits the application, asking better follow-ups, and setting boundaries around what I want and don't want. The work is getting more editorial...judging, redirecting, choosing...and less production-heavy. That's left more room to think about ideas and options, which honestly feels like the part I should have been spending more time on all along.
The flip side of using AI showed up the same week. I came across a post in a local Facebook group from a consumer urging people not to patronize local businesses that use AI in their marketing and design. The post wasn't well-written and the comments were the usual nonsense, but the signal mattered: there is real pushback out there, and it feels like it got louder pretty fast. That may be my own bubble. It also may not be, and our clients are reading the same posts we are, so it's worth paying attention to.
Where I've landed for now: AI for processes, internal docs, analysis, and high-level research (with a human eye on it) is worth doing. AI on the creative work is where I get uneasy. It doesn't feel genuine. Anything considered art is emotional...and human...and as a marketer, you know that buying decisions are emotional. Writing is human. Designing is human. Music is human (still working out where I land on AI-generated music, but I'm not sold). Editing by AI? Probably fine. Ideation and iteration? Often useful. But the made-by-a-person part is what builds trust with the people we're trying to reach, and trust is the whole game we're in today.
If you're using Claude or another AI tool in a way that's actually making your work better—or worse, or weirder—I want to hear about it. We learn faster when we compare notes. Hop into the conversation in our GSD/Midwest Marketing and Comms Facebook group or LinkedIn group...I'm posting on both this week and would love to know what you're seeing in your own work. We'll pick the thread back up in person at Roadmap in the fall, and the more honest stories we bring to that room, the more useful it'll be. Love it or hate it, AI is going to keep changing this industry. The smart move is to stay on top of it, apply it intentionally, and keep building real relationships through it all.